~~~~





like bells
lies and truth
both have tongues

but only one rings


soulsurvivor

my great grandmother said,
Oh, freedom
oh, freedom
oh freedom
over me

my grandmother said,
and before i'll be a slave,
i'll be buried in my grave
and go home to my Lord
and be free

my father said,
no more weeping,
no more weeping
no more weeping,
over me

I say,
before i'll be a slave,
i'll be buried in my grave
and go home to my Lord
and be free

Oh freedom!

Oh freedom
over me!

how thankful am i
how blessed am i
to be black
and
be free

like the melody of song
does my heart beat itself for you
and at the bridge of every lyric
each beat presents it to be true
my life you have become
filled with joyous harmony
your voice brings life into my bones
You see you've become a part of me
with every whisper in a change of tune
i'll remain loyal in my stature
the way our souls are intertwined
our bond is solely second nature
your touch upon my skin
creates a bit of electricity
as your lips graze the tips of my mine
i know my soul is free
keep singing my love,
keep singing this song to be
for i don't mind a broken record
nothing of you is broken to me

no reassurance
of what truly lies ahead
kills me every day

you ask me what it's like to be black
and i'll tell you it's a warm soulful fulfilling feeling
like a pair of new Chucks on the hot pavement jumping scotch on a busy summer day
eating cool iced pops and not ever being afraid
and smelling the warm carmel cake cooling on the stove
and the togetherness on a Sunday evening in grandmama's home

but you ask me what it's like to be black
in america
and i'll fall silent of conversation
because as you see history repeats itself
i don't understand why there is still need for explanation
in deep adversaries and hateful unappreciation
here we stand to be questioned by an authoritative negation

and ignorant folk,
why do you ask me such things?
why are you people mad?
why is it about race?

and i'll ask you, why does the caged bird sing?
is he not entitled to his song or his wings?

as green as the earth and as blue as the sky
i will only explain to an ear willing to listen
to a being with a sound heart and a firm mind
because as God as my witness we were created as equal

and for that given right we must die?

i will sit back and in turn ask you why;
i bet you couldn't say
and maybe we will all learn the answer some day
so join me in prayer will you?
join me as i pray:

to the children of Chicago
who can't go out to play
to the sons and fathers of
Missouri and Florida and New York
who will never again see the light of day
to the mother's pain that may fade
but won't ever go away
to the hateful people and their hateful words and their hateful ways
God won't You heal their pain?

they're so ******* us, Lord
now we're ******* ourselves
and on our knees we have fallen
needing guidance and help
because it isn't about being privilged
or living for the light we're consumed in

being black in america is no longer about being accepted as black

it's about being accepted as human.

When unto night ill dreams befall
When into light the shadows creep
What is illusion?
What is confusion?
What is the truth in what's said or unspoken?
I've tried to understand it all
But I may be thinking way too deep
So many exclusions
With so few conclusions
Is it untruth, or a heart oh so broken?

Has everything that I've been through so changed me
That I just can't see poeple's hearts anymore?
Maybe I've become blind
To all pain but what's mine
Sometimes I just don't know what to think at all
But there is one thing that I know shouldn't be
The loss of a memory before it's in store
We're but wasting our time
With each moment declined
We think we're so smart, but know nothing at all

I've spoken each word I feel and fear
And I've tried from the depth of my heart to explain
Why I can't reach conclusion
Why, for me, it's confusion
And the only thing certain is you've changed your mind
Somewhere amidst all that you've let me hear
From the start and the after, you seem to abstain
I don't want an illusion
And I don't want exclusion
I want to know all that you're feeling inside

I want to know your heart
All your pains, and all your joys
Both before and after we first met
What elates, and what annoys
I want to know just how you feel
On nothing and everything
I want to know how you see you
And the hopes to which you cling

I can keep talking, and you can stay silent
Or we both can go our seperate ways
But both would hurt more
Than not trying much more
To relate to each other through smiles and scars
But the only way that I'll feign to be silent
Is if you can open to me in some way
My heart has been poured
And just what was it for?
So completely, you'll know we can share heart to heart

I want to spend whatever moments
Which God sees fit in giving us time
To share every smile
With each moment worthwhile
Loving friends to the end through the good and the bad
I want you to know we're both poets
Both in words and in actions, in kind
We've both walked weary miles
And we've both faced our trials
But we've both found our passions in times between sad

I want to continue to know you
Every day that we possibly can
When the days in-between
Bring but words on a screen
Because we'll ever be thankful we're friends as we are
That's why I continue to show you
Every day that I possibly can
You have brought out of me
Someone I couldn't see
I want to know your heart

I want to know your heart
All your pains, and all your joys
Your smiles and frowns
Your ups and downs
Let silence be destroyed
I want to know our friendship
Means as much to you as I
That we both can defend
A love shared between friends
Because friendship is worth every fight
I want you to know my heart
And to know these things of me
Each moment is what we make it
And there are moments left to be
I want us to know there's a next time
In each moment we know we must part
I want us to cherish our friendship
My friend, I want to know your heart