Expressions In Formatic

It Just Gets Hard Sometimes

Sometimes it’s just hard for no reason at all I mean NO REASON at ALL!

You do what you gotta do to be a good person and live life right Then
BOOM for no reason at all it just gets hard sometimes.

Work hard and do what you’re supposed to do and still don’t catch a break.
What’s up with that???

Come home with your hard-earned paycheck on Friday only to find out that
you gotta give it all to the MAN on Saturday for gas.

It’s just hard sometimes.

Go to church, pay your tithes and live by the way of the Lord. Give to the
poor and help the helpless, it doesn’t matter…

It still just gets hard sometimes.

But you know what! Without the hard times, we wouldn’t know how good
the good times felt. So, with that said, I’ve gotta say this…

You gotta stay humble during the good times because, just when you least
expect it.

It just gets hard sometimes.
That’s Just The way Life is…

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

The Lessons of Life

Life is a never ending class of lessons learned Seems, like you always
learn the lesson after the lesson is learned and the consequences have
been earned.
Just when you think you’ve got it all figured out and things seem to be
turning around for you, there is something else you’ve got to go through.
There’s a saying that states “that you will revisit the lesson to be learned
over and over again until you master that particular lesson
That’s pretty much on point in my book.
I’ve looked, back on the books of my life and noticed how many different
ways and lessons I should’ve learned,

long before life came back to haunt me with a whole new look.
The thing about life that’s a trip is the fact that most of us just float through
it neglecting to tap into the God given talents and blessings that have been
bestowed upon us

How many times have you said, “If I only knew then, what I know now”?
And look back at your life and say “WOW”.
I could’ve done this, and I could’ve done that??
Well, what are you waiting for? You know now, what you could’ve and
should’ve done THEN!

Now the question is, why are you doing it NOW?

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

Life Is…

Life is too short to be standing on the sidelines biding your time until
someone or something calls you into the game

Life is too short to allow petty circumstances to hinder you from fulfilling
your potential just because you were or are afraid to take chances and face
shame

Life is Life is too short to live it to anything less than its fullest and sit back
years later telling yourself,

SHOULD’VE done this or you COULD’VE done that “only if” this or “only
if” that

Life is Life is such an abundantly, GREAT blessing from God, that to do
anything less than live it

abundantly through the good, the bad & the ugly is a shame in and of
itself
Life is a sweet fruit… pick it Life is a vintage sports car… drive it
Life is a cool pool on a hot day… dive in it
Life is short… Don’t waste it
Life is what you make it… work at it
Life is a Blessing… Receive it
Life is good… live it
Life is…

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

Pizzazz, Sass, Class, and Jazz
The way you can step into a room draw everyone’s attention and shine just
has to be pizzazz.
The way you stroll ever so confidently knowing full well you’re workin’ that
walk, just has to be Sass.
The way the whole package that is you, so elegantly presented in such a
regal and charismatic way, just has to be class.
The way you embody and exude all of that Pizzazz, Sass, and Class is like
music, it just has to be Jazz.

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

Pro-Black
Pro-black does not mean anti red, white, or blue Pro-black does not mean
anti-you
Pro-black is the beauty of black self-love Understanding self comes from
within, not from above
Pro-black is the spirt of a strong, proud people Not laying down scared,
weak, or feeble
Pro-black is the strength to stand up and fight Standing tall and facing all
for what I know is right

Pro-black is the pride in my stride Loving who I am, my blackness I will not
hide
Pro-black is enjoying the beauty of my peoples’ many a hue We are coffee
brown, high yellow, boot black and even so black we blue
Pro-black is the respect I have for my sister, wife and mother Honoring their
struggles of raising a black nation like no other
Pro-black is the way I love my woman complete and whole Intertwined
together as one, mind, body, and soul
Pro-black is caring for, nurturing, and educating our youth Not to his-story
or falsehoods but teaching them truth
Pro-black is recognizing where we’ve come from and where we are Not
only that, but also recognizing that we’re not through, Not by far………

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

Sometimes
Sometimes I just want to hear silence, I want it to be so loud and clear…
everyone will just stop and enjoy, just be quiet and lend an ear.
Sometimes I want to be alone, alone to think in peace and quiet, The only
sound, the sound of a silent stone.
A peace so full of silence I wouldn’t let anyone buy it.

Sometimes I wish for darkness, a darkness so blinding only peace and
quiet can be seen,
simply enjoying a moment alone in silence and darkness makes everything
feel so serene.

Sometimes I just want to be quiet. Quiet, alone, and in the dark.
I don’t care what anyone may think of me as long as my peace hits the
mark.

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

Strong Black Woman
You’ve birthed nations and raised nations without the credit you’re due
Picked cotton from sun up to sun down Then wash clothes and cooked too

You get up a little earlier than your man to have his breakfast ready,
Clean up the dishes, see your man off to work and do what you have to do
to keep the kingdom steady

Having to fight for everything you’ve got, yet, you still have that soft touch
your man and baby needs,
all while you keep your head held high and you keep yourself beautiful
Whether your hair is short, long, or in braids with beads

You watch with the pain of a mother who’s lost her son as Black Men fall
prey to gangs, drugs, prison and every form of vice
You keep your head strong as he falls further and further by the wayside
Blowing his money on wine and shooting dice

Don’t give up on your Black Kings, Sistas, some of us are lost in this land of
our enslaved labors.

You are a Queen, please know that, and we need you to help fix OUR
kingdom, not our neighbor’s

You are in corporate boardrooms, you are Surgeons, Doctors, you are
Phd’s, Professional athletes and you are doing everything you can to do
your part in the struggle our people face in this land.
I want to thank you and let you know that your struggles and sacrifices
Have not gone unnoticed, you bore fruit through your being You are loved,
you are respected, and you are admired by this strong Black Man

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

Tears of A Man
The Tears of a Man don’t flow down the sides of his face.
Most times they flow from his heart, through his veins, to a hidden place.

The Tears of a Man aren’t allowed to flow freely in plain view,
they must be suppressed because, that’s what society says a man must
do.

The Tears of a Man come out in grunts as he lifts weights,
allowing his physical to override His mental and spiritual states

The Tears of a Man shine ever so brightly as his diamonds gleam,
disguised in the best designer wear to hide his low self-esteem

The Tears of a Man may come to pass in the dark and in private as he
goes about life in perpetual betrayal of himself and in self-hate

The Tears of a Man often manifests in violence,
sometimes there are signs of the looming storm as he stalks in silence

The Tears of a Man drip drop as he beats his wife,
mad at himself for faking his way through life

The Tears of a Man burn in his eyes as he pulls the trigger,
his tears, the tin shells hitting the concrete, as he stares at the prone figure

The Tears of a Man run through his veins as he overdoses on dope
screaming out for all the world to hear, With his one last hope

The Tears of a Man can reach their final destination in a lonely room.
If he’s not allowed to express himself, the last sound he may make may be
a cylinder spin, a trigger squeeze and a resounding BOOM.

The Tears of a man must be allowed to run freely, releasing him from self-
repression,
after a long cry he’ll be able to shake off his long standing depression

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________
___________________

The Flower That Grew

From my seed a blessing was conceived, I was young and there wasn’t
much that I’d achieved

None of that mattered once I held you in my arms, instantly you’d stolen my
heart and it was my duty to keep you from the world’s harms.

My babygirl, my tender baby flower So precious, so sweet, I’d just sit and
watch you hour after hour.

Now a father with a baby flower to raise, but still young in my ways.

Terrible decision after, terrible decision landed me with years in prison.

Leaving you and your young mother to make it in a world that has no heart,
barely able to walk you were handed a tough start.

Years have come and years have gone, and you’ve grown. When I look at
your face, I see eyes like my own.

Through the glass we touch fingertips And I notice you’ve got your mother’s
lips.

Time stops for no one, that I already knew, Still, it’s so amazing to see the
flower that grew.

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________
The Mirror

The mirror always speaks truth, man lies. Ask the mirror a question You’ll
get no surprise.

In the mirror are the answers from your heart Run from them if you want,
the mirror will give you a head start.

You can tell yourself anything you like, but the mirror will get the point as
sharp as a sprinter’s spike.

You know the real deal but you try to hide, The mirror will keep it ultra-real
though, And stay right there at your side.

Be strong though and face the mirror.

Ask the through questions of yourself, In the end you’ll have no fear.

See, the mirror is only a reflection of you in reality you tell the mirror what to
do.

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

True Love
Some people think that love, true love, is like a rainbow All beautiful and
with a pot of gold at the end but they must not know.

I heard that love, true love, takes on many forms, Now I can dig that cause
the love my brother had Seemed like she was outta two or three hurricane
storms.

I was told love, true love is for suckers but that don’t really make much
sense Cause if that was true What would that say about our mothers?

I read that love, true love, comes from the heart That could be but I’m not
so sure the last time I checked, From my heart is where my blood got its
start.

I’ve heard, been told, and read what love, true love is, but if you ask me, I’ll
tell you the real love biz.

Love, true love, is a commitment A pact so solid and strong That nothing
can break it.

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

“What Are You gonna Do?”

Shaka Zulu, don’t trust em, he already knew!

Harriet Tubman, the conductor of the train Never giving up the freedom
fight, didn’t matter the pain!

Elijah Muhammad tried to open our eyes, In Black Unity and love lied our
prize.

Malcolm told us “By Any Means Necessary”, That didn’t mean self-
destruction, our own brother to bury.

Martin shared his dream, we turned it into a mother’s scream.

Huey P. Newton was down by law! Gave his life for the black beauty he
saw.

Stokely Carmichael fed the kids free lunch, It was pure love although it
might not have been much.

These brothas and sistas set the stage for betterment as a people, how do
you think Barak Obama had a chance sit in the White House?

All the Great men and women that fought, stood, marched, lived, and died
for the opportunities we take for granted in a in a state of disarray

didn’t fight, stand, march, live and struggle for us to just sit on the couch
like we do today…

So here comes the kicker…

Then it came down to you… So, what are you gonna do?

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
___________________

You Inspire Me!
Too bad you can’t see what I see but the thought of telling you has inspired
me

You have a walk that’s jazzy yet fly I can’t help but stare every time you
walk by

Yeah, it’s true…you don’t know me that well Just know this, I’m for real and
that’s no tell.

You’ve got such smooth brown skin, the way you keep it hidden ought to be
a sin

I wish I knew you a little better Maybe then I could sit down and write you a
nice love letter

In that letter I’d tell you about me I’d start by telling you that they call me
“Key”

I’ve been in the game and out of the game Overall, I’ve only made my
family shame

But if you could see what I see You’d know that you inspire me.