Posts Tagged ‘urban’
God in the City
Posted in church, faith, inspiration, ministry, service, tagged Bible, change, community, evangelism, fishers of men, ministry, outreach, preach, service, urban, work on August 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Lessons from the Streets
Posted in America, ancestors, change, choices, community, expressions, future, hope, inspiration, poetry, poverty, reading, writing, tagged change, community, inner city, poem, poetry, urban, writing on July 5, 2010| 2 Comments »
A while back, maybe a year or two, I started working on some poems that told the story about life in the inner city and the urban streets. I began to conjure up poems and vignettes about the streets in the fashion and style of an Iceberg Slim or Donald Goines. I started crafting urban sorrow songs like those penned by Rick James and Marvin Gaye. I wrote “Words from the Underground” which will be released tomorrow at www.lulu.com/lifepath/ . Here is ‘Lessons from the Streets’ as a sample of the works contained in this new publication.
The lessons on the street
Can leave you bruised for life.
They can leave some permanent scars.
I’ve seen folks take it like a joke
And then come up lame.
This ain’t no game for kids.
It’s the real thing out here.
Bullets tear flesh
And make holes in domes
It’s a war zone 24-7 out here
With the enemy at every turn
Even when they say they riding with you.
Can’t trust a soul when the game’s like this.
You got to choose your battles
Before someone sets sights on you.
Make a move
Even if it ain’t the first move
But God help you make one.
Whatever you do,
You better make it quick.
That’s all that’s to it
And it’s true.
I saw a man lose his life
Because he didn’t make a move.
He could be here today
But he didn’t make his move.
It’s just another lesson.
Another one to learn.
The lessons in the streets will mess with you
Then get in your head real bad
And leave you so sick
That life will lose its meaning
And even its value.
Learn it one way
Or learn it another,
But the streets will teach you
How to survive or die
Just by being out there.