He says he doesn't understand me
If you want to know me
Examine with careful eyes
Look beneath the surface
Let your imagination run wild

Read my work
Claim my knowledge
If you want to understand me
Look beyond the shell of flesh
Read through the writings on the wall

Come to the land you claim is strange
Walk through my paths
Don't condescend like others
Come by day
Not by night

Over look the dark skin
It carries pregnancy of hope
Its milk and honey
Yet dark in color
But a bright light it has

Hear our folklore
Listen to our storytelling
Visualize our art
Never mind our harsh whipstrokes of slavery
Pay attention to our happy smiles

Our streets are full of laughter
Joy runneth through our veins
Happy people we are
Though we have seen and unseen scars
Happiness is our way of life

Are you still asking?
Our teeth flashing of smiles
Takes the sorrow away

If you want to know me
Take an in depth look

Are you not yet to understand me?
The radiance of my joy
Gladly gives me away
My African songs lends me to you
This is who I am

What I am
You see it in my sceneries
My collections of me
Reflects my eternal being
This is who I am

Written by Tosan Oluwakemi Thompson