When I think about the future with you I smile about the little things
I think about the late nights on the couch, eating leftover Chinese food and laughing until we cry
I think about the days at the pool, putting sunscreen on your back, and finding your sunglasses for you because you misplace everything
I think about the sunny afternoons, exhausted from the work day, and you're pouring me a drink and telling me you're so ******* proud of me

You may be wrong.
You may be right.
You may be crazy.
You may be big.
You may be small.
You may just be the smartest of them all.
You may be sad.
You may be bad.
You may be ****.
But what you are and always will be is you.
And when you become proud to be you,
There's almost nothing you can't do.

I celebrate my little steps,
They lead to great success,
Cause usually we move our legs
A bit, but go so far beyond the fence.

I get so proud of my own self,
And add another piece of puzzle,
And with the greatness of that sense,
I finish picture without struggle.

But let me honestly confess
It wasn't always so and wasn't better.
I used to often get obsessed,
Each mile didn't use to matter.

I ran a lot to catch the train,
The rest turned blurred and gray,
And if I tripped, get back again
Was painful, and cause of it, today...

I celebrate my little steps,
They lead to great success

You taught me I wanted to live
when I thought I wanted to die.
In my heart, I always knew,
but you reassured me it's okay to cry.
So that's why even though we live in a world that's drowning in fear,
it's a world I'm proud to live in.
Because you live here too.

Dark skinned and gifted,
high on all my ideas and imaginations.
All that keeps me forever lifted.

Brightness in my smile,
ten thousand years of wisdom behind my eyes.
Like the motherland I live in,
dearest mother has birthed a precious child.

Kissed by the African sun,
always dreaming under it's moon.
It dawns on my pride,
as I rest in it's afternoon.

You're worth is the worthy one
you have inside.
Hold onto that,
carry with it your African Pride.

you're trying to figure out
whether she's really
wearing Gucci,
or if it's a fake bag.

I'm trying to figure out
whether that look
in her eyes is grief
or another sadness
that I have not yet
learned to understand.

you're judging her
because her teeth
aren't perfectly straight.

I'm judging her
based off of the words
that come out from
behind those teeth.

you're hating on her
because she doesn't
wear her makeup like
the rest of these girls do.

I'm loving her because
she has the courage
to stand out, and the
self-respect to not care
if you don't like it.


you're studying her looks,
but I'm focused on her soul.

that's what makes us different.

You're a boy of clear seas and early mornings
Messy hair and smiles
Grass splintered sneakers and a laugh that makes the world shake
Storms on the water that drift into pink
Lonesome words looking for a heart
Rose petals pressed between your fingertips
And music that gushes and flows
And bounces and calls
Through the air
And the ground
And the water that sits there too
You're red velvet cupcakes with creamcheese frosting
You're fluffy white clouds that drift in the sky
You're all of the little beautiful things you find in far off lands
You're a boy of sweet dreams and cherry tomatoes
A boy of careful daisies and gentle hands
A boy of purple lighting that doesn't touch the Earth
A boy of sweet lemon tea that sits in my glass
A boy of honey and suger and mint
A boy of thyme and rhyme
A boy of silly words and careful thoughts
A boy made of marble so beautiful and perfect
AJBusse