(Early Poems continued…)
50. SHE
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
She
Never had to say
I love you
She
Was always there
By my side
She
Was my lady
I loved her
She
Was the
Only One
My lady
My life
My lady
My wife
51. ON MY WAY
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
The time has come
To be on my way
But I’d like to stay
Another day
With you
But I have to go
And I’ll miss you so
But I’d like to show
You I love you
For another day
Just to hear you say
(Unfinished)
52. WHY
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
Why
Tell me
Why
Who
Am I
I live
I must
Die
A tear
In my
Eye
Life
Goes by
Sorrow
In the
Sky
A heartbeat
Until I
Die
Why
Tell me
Why
Who
Am I
I live
I must
Die
53. SILENCE
(Written in England on my bike trip)
Silence
All around me
Echoes
Linger on
Fear
Surrounds me
Lost
I want to be found
Set me free
From my prison
Set me free
Give me life
Come to me
Take me with you
All I want
Is my life
Life
Life
Life
Give me life
54. DREAMING
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
Dreaming
On a sunny day
Thinking
We’re going to find a way
Baby
I’ve got a feeling inside
That we’re
Going to make it through
And be satisfied
55. HELLO
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
Well hello
How are you
I’m alive and well
How about you
You know it’s been
Such a long time
56. CATCH A BREEZE
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
Catch a breeze in your sail
And you’re on your way
I hope you have
Such a pleasant stay
While you’re on your way
Carried on by the wind
57. HOPING
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
Hoping
Searching
Crying
Every day
Looking
Trying
Dying
To find a way
Dreaming
Scheming
Feeling
I’ve got to say
(Unfinished)
58. A JOURNEY
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
A journey
Across the sea
Cloaked in mystery
Coming
To a new land
Making
A final stand
Fighting for life
Living for love
(Unfinished)
59. A PLACE IN THE SUN
(Written in England on my bicycle trip)
Do you want to be
Do you want to see
Can you follow me
To a place
In the sun
(Unfinished)
60. WHEN I NEEDED A FRIEND
Hello
How are you
It’s been a long
Long time
Since I saw you
How are you
How are you
Hello again
It seems like so long ago you said
When I needed a friend
To call you
How are you
How are you
Hello my friend
I remembered the good times
We shared together
The days we walked
The beach together
And the nights that
We had to share together
Together
With a friend
A friend
How are you
How are you
Hello
How are you
You’re so far away
From me tonight
As I call you
I want you
I need you
How are you
61. YOU SAID FOREVER
You said forever
You promised me forever
You took my hand
And walked with me
You told me that
You needed me
I believed in you
I believed in you
I needed you
I needed you
You walked
Into my life
(Unfinished)
62. IN MEMORY OF A FRIEND
(In memory of Mark Walker, my childhood friend. This was my first poem, written in May, 1974 – while I was still in High School.)
We were best of friends
In days gone by
When we were young
And had hopes so high
Who could know that his final day
Would be in ’74, the 22nd of May
The last I saw him alive and well
Was from a distance at a hockey game
The memory is dimmed
For seven years have gone by
Since we were friends
When the second hand stops and
Our card is drawn
Our time is up and we must depart
For a new life and a new dawn
In some distant place
We go to our final resting place
It is not a time of sadness
Though our emotions might tell us so
We go to have a new beautiful life
Without hatred, war, sadness or strife
Who knows when it is our turn to go next
It could be tomorrow or 70 years hence
The lottery of mankind is always in motion
Delay as we might that final day
When we take our turn at the wheel is our notion
For all mankind must inevitably take
That card on which our name appears
Scared or frightened we should not be
For everyone will do it and begin eternity
A friend I have lost but the memory remains
Of the boy I knew and the happiness our lives contained
We will meet again in some distant day
And continue on our eternal way
63. SINGING MY SONG
I’m just truckin’ along
And singing my song
Just where I will go
I don’t even know
My life’s on the road
Carrying my load
I’ll cruise to the sun
The journey’s begun
I’m riding on my dream in life
Sighting on the stars
Riding on the winds of change
Cruising past the cars
I’m living life free and easy
I’ve got to make a stand
Got no use to settle down
It’s just not in my plans
The road on ahead
Is going my way
I don’t think I’ll stop here
Just can’t afford to stay
I’ve got to travel on
I think it’s in my blood
Excitement is my spice of life
I can’t live like a stick in the mud
64. YESTERDAY’S TOMORROW
Yesterday’s tomorrow
Is still heavy on my mind
I’ll always remember
That you were very kind
You know sometimes
I think I should come home
But I know
I must travel on alone
My life is wasting away
Sitting here day after day
I know what I must do
Travel on without you
65. REFORM YOUR WAYS
If a man is short or tall
Does that make him different
From the rest of them all
If a man is black or white
Is that a good reason
For you to dislike
If a man has long hair
Is that a reason
For you to beware
If a man is not
100% good
Does that mean he is a hood
People you had better reform your ways
Because you are going to be judged
One of these days
I’ll start from early on in my evolution I am a biracial man whose father is African-American and mother is Caucasian. My parents met in 1959 when my un-wed mother was in a nursing school where my father was employed as a nurse’s aide. My mother was engaged to a white man who was attending engineering school. My father had an African-American wife and five children at the time of his extra-marital relationship with my mother. At some early point of my mother’s pregnancy with me, she made the decision to marry her fiancé, and to lie to everyone about who the father of her un-born child was. She achieved this by claiming that I had been afflicted with a skin-disease called “melanism.”
Communicating my experiences to my mother and step-father was difficult because they had no experience with racial prejudice, therefore when I had problems with other children, it would be looked at as an issue that “I” had in getting along with others (as well as intra-family sibling issues). Because “race” was being ruled-out entirely, by my mother’s denial of my father, she could not logically use that rationale to explain any conflicts that I would have. My step-father’s complicity in this was to blindly support my mother’s viewpoint.
Questions:
How has black society formed its identity?
What role models have been used, and how does white society react to positive black role models today? (Are they held to a more critical prism??)
Is there enough information readily available for black people to easily form a positive racial identity?
Is it important that black society is able to connect accurately the dots of its social evolution in America? and is it also important that white society can connect those same dots??
What is White Privilege?
What is White awareness?
What is Whiteness?
What about Affirmative Action?
Is” Race” a social construct?
How do we improve our society in America?
Is there any other way(besides the attrition of the old guard) to achieve this??
By: dave myers on May 24, 2009
at 3:58 am
Dave,
Thank you for your thoughtful post to my poem about prejudice. I have edited your comments to give readers the essence of your comments, and for more they can go to your web site, discussrace.com, where I found this thoughtful comment of yours, “We believe that knowledge brings understanding, which begets wisdom, and every understanding human-being is better equipped and prepared to tackle what has now been called “the Race myth”. A better dialogue on Race is not only better for our generation, but also for future generations as the face of our future leaders continue to become increasingly more diverse.”
As for my beliefs as a caucasian, I can only respond from my own individual perspective, where I have felt total disbelief and humiliation when discriminated against or made fun of because of my size as a child or my hair length when I was on my bike trip once. Of course, my situation is not race based, but any discrimination in life is humiliating as a person.
Personally, I don’t really view people from a racial perspective – but from a human perspective. I look at someone based on the caliber of the person that they are, how they act, how they speak, and how they interact with me and others around them. I form impressions of them based on who they are as a person.
We have a bi-racial woman in our office that I never even consider from a “racial” perspective, but simply as the person that she is. We had an African-American young man in our office who has now gone off to USAF pilot training; and as he is a very talented musician – I gave him the music equipment that I wasn’t using. Another woman in our office has an inter-racial marriage. Every situation involving interaction between people is just part of the greater whole called, “Life.”
The real goal in life should be to view people as God loves and views us, unconditionally, as individual creations of great worth and precious to Him because of the fact that we are created in His image. To place individuals into any category (age, race, origin, nationality, religion, gender, lifestyle, etc.) runs contrary to viewing people as “individuals.” Society has come a long way towards treating “all” people as the unique and beautiful children of God that they really are. Let’s continue that progress toward a more loving and just society for everyone!
Cheers,
Mark
By: livelovethinkexist on May 24, 2009
at 11:04 am