House of Mirrors

Driving down “happy” lane
Among the young children
And drunken pigeons
I gaze at abused women
Beautiful and driven
Each one the same yet different

They know of pain and suffering
On Barnard Boulevard I spot one lovely
Full-grown girl in braids,
With two kids and a bag of groceries
Her black eye stays hidden behind dark shades
Under gray clouds somehow my heart strays
Running back to better days
Before the arguments
Before the alcohol and drug play
Before the hardships
That made all love decay
And I wonder from my black eyes
Are we really all that different?
I want to escape to better days
Where the summer stayed humble
Come on folks remember jump rope
And Double-Dutch
Prepared us to stay on toes
When trouble touched
The sudden rush of life
Can sometimes be too much

As I drive down my road
I notice the telephone poles
And my very soul cringes
At how I must jump rope
With cable bills
And Cox shady business

The petrified electric lines
Provide a safe haven
For the tiny sparrows
And bulky ravens
My only entertainment
Is a pair of old Nikes
Hanging in the middle.
Once treasured loves now abandon,
This is how the city youth
Decorate their planet
With dirty shoes
To claim their rightful street corner,
Up above the sparrows and ravens
Fight for the same reasons
Territory and land
Natures not that random
Are we really all that different?

Come and find a friend
At the local playground
Or jungle gym
And jump along the spider web
Or the makeshift diamond bed
Where the squares read
Numbers of hope
Numbers of joy
As long as you stay on your toes
There was always another chance
To build confidence
Master your footwork
And hopscotch across ghetto blocks
Where white chalk serves
Multiple purposes
It was all rehearsal for
A life of constant war
Where focus was merciless
And everyone got along
Picking on the fat kid for fun
Yet protecting the shy ones
We understood war
In the bushes to in the trenches
View masters become binoculars
The blacktop became a battleground
In the summer time we had
Epic water gun fights with
Hydro-balloon grenades
It all trained us for a modern-day
War…. Stealth attack mom
A cherry bomb to the face
Was worth being grounded for a week
Little soldiers can’t be afraid….
From dodge ball to hard laws
Life has been one of staying alert
At all cost
Because the code on the street
States anybody can be touched
It was never a game boy
You just had to believe
Finding new ways to get in trouble
Upside down in trees
The adventure never stopped
Mimicking our favorite heroes
In comic books
Telling dirty jokes
Ignoring all adults
Giving strangers funny looks
Eating worms to impress the girls
Drawing hearts in the etch a sketch
Retrace your steps around the world
And travel back to a time of
No worries, no stress, no work
Before you lost your innocence’s
And didn’t know your inner sense
When you could ignore you inner sins
Because God found joy in your ignorance
Similar to a parent’s protective glance
As you danced in the sandbox of muck
Fearless and unconcerned
Jumping off escalated swings
Daring down razor edge slides
Climbing along monkey bars, unashamed
Those recreational areas will always
Hold memories of hidden peace
Before our freedom became limited
lets journey back to the days
when life was all child’s play
and nothing made a bit of sense
but we knew it all anyway………

I wonder back to the road
Reminisce on this one poem
Now I understand
Smiling at a light pole
Reminding me to come home
Back into the arms of security
My mother’s separation anxiety
God wouldn’t allow anything to harm me
All that praying from strangers
Must have worked

As I STOP…. at the CROSS
In the street
Always remember to look both ways
Before getting in bed with a freak
Instead I close my eyes
And count to three
Playing hide go seek
With old memories
The honking horns behind me
Disturb my peace
Rush…Move…Go
Time is not cheap
Gas is not free
I make a left
And obey the speed limit
Wondering when will they
Charge us to breathe
Or tax my beliefs
The more extreme
The more green
And I have to move back three
Just like monopoly
And I was never good with paper money
But this is the final jeopardy
Now I understand all the animosity
From my mom see…. she must of
Seen something special
Inside me, whispering:
“Oddie just notice the little things”
pushing me to always do better
like an A plus student
looking for improvement
or a grown man riding a bike
for innovative influence

but my parents never bought me
a red bike
my first bike was….
….purple
and it still hurts though
but now I realize their hidden agenda
they wanted me to search low
to strengthen my soul
for the 12 rounds with life
in this corner we have vengeance
Weighing in at 247 pounds
Representing broken kinship
Lets get it on!!!!!
The bell rings…and the radio static
Program a reflex to grab my cell phone
But I’m on everyone’s ignore list
Because life interrupts friendships
When lovers discover matchsticks
Aren’t that innocent.
Years of experience
Reveal that candles burn bridges.
So slow down
Before you ignite the passion
And learn of the endless
Mind expansion
Memories that time has
Captured, Because
Forever likes to dance backwards
In a house of mirrors
Where everyone is the same
And only appear different
No stranger to disaster
Where I run faster into the hands of…
No the arms of…peace
Security…laughter

Stop….now imagine
Remember…. freeze tag
Fire and ice
Red light green light
Capture the flag
Spin the bottle
Your first kiss

Close your eyes and count to 3
Now imagine you are free

I’m just like the sparrow, busy and fearless
Or more like the raven, black and curious
I smile at the children playing ninja
I’m just like them a great pretender
No longer will I point fingers

I’m connected to those single mothers
I’m one with that homeless brother
My neighborhood is just a house of mirrors
And these memories will mirror me forever