Lost

Fear (reprise)

Marianne Williamson said,

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our Darkness,

That most frightens us."

As I look in the mirror,

A man of color,

A man with a dream of more success than I have personally ever seen,

I can't help but disagree.

It is not my light,

But my Darkness,

That allows fear to creep into my heart.

It is not my light,

But my Dark

That people see first.

They judge me on my Dark

Before they even get a chance to glimpse my Light.

Most who don't know me,

At first glance may see,

Thug, Uneducated,

Hood, Ghetto,

Broken in some way.

But when I look in the mirror,

I see a culture as rich and vibrant

As the land our ancestors came from.

I see the same skin as icons who changed this world.

The color and beauty of which is incomparable.

You know they say

"The darker the berry, the sweeter the juice".

And Tupac said

"The darker the flesh, then the deeper the roots."

Well I wonder how deep my roots are.

I wonder how deep my roots can run.

I wonder how deep the roots of my people run.

I wonder how many times the roots of my people have been dug up,

Plucked from the Garden of Eden in which they were first planted by God,

Clipped like the weeds growing in your garden, Not Eden,

And tied into nooses

That left those dark berries,

Those black berries,

Those black bodies

Hanging in the trees that they were left in.

I wonder how many times the roots of my people

Have been melted down like the metal used to

Fashion the bullets that are used to

Litter the streets with those black bodies,

I mean black berries.

I wonder why the crimson juice from those black berries

Always seems to end up wasted on the ground,

Where it's not supposed to be.

I thought people liked sweet things.

I wonder, if people like sweet things,

Then why waste perfectly fine black bodies,

I mean black berries?

Everyone is always talking about how much they love chocolate.

I guess I'm just the wrong kind of chocolate.

See for me,

Having the power to change is not fear.

Fear is knowing

That at any given moment,

For any given reason,

You could see those lights,

Flashing red and blue.

And face a gun staring back at you.

Fear is knowing that the light of a fired shot

Will be followed by an all consuming Dark.

And you're powerless to stop it.

                                                                                           -J.M.