_____________________________________________
The Best & Worst of You is Me
I sing praises to you for I have your eyes
And your crooked smile which captivates the world,
And the prominent line of your jaw and high cheekbones that supermodels envy
You even gave me your cocoa-colored hair—though at times it’s almost unmanageable--
And it was only the other day when someone told me I talked just like you did, waving my hands wildly, my voice increasing in pitch with every syllable, my million words becoming a single one because breathing was a foreign concept.
I sing praises to you for I feel you in each step
As I venture down the street, your blood pumping through my veins
My heart beating with your love and compassion and generosity
Giving to those who know you and those who don’t and then the ones who don’t wish they knew you.
I sing praises to you for you are my greatest teacher
Sometimes it’s what you do, not what you say,
And mistakes lead to yelling which lead to crying which lead to “I’m sorry’s” and hugs that make everything okay
Eyeliner and mascara and powder can hide imperfections of the face but they do nothing for the impurities of the mind and soul and my beauty can’t be purchased but comes from the light that you have shown me
I sing praises to you for sometimes I can be too stubborn
I often forget that being wrong is not synonymous with being defeated
You should never underestimate a person or judge someone or make the boy who sits behind you on the bus feel like they will never be as good as you are because one day they might be better.
And that if you tell someone you hate them and that they are ruining your life you can apologize and they might forgive you but they will not forget –I said that to you once and still today it sometimes comes up in conversation.
And I sing praises to you because nothing is impossible
Bruises can cover every inch of your body and the scars will probably never fade but you can dance and laugh and tell the world that pain is just a state of mind
And I will dance and laugh with you because even though the world thinks you’re crazy I believe with every ounce of my being that you are absolutely right, pain is just a state of mind
And there is enough of you in me to keep my head held high long after you are gone.
And your crooked smile which captivates the world,
And the prominent line of your jaw and high cheekbones that supermodels envy
You even gave me your cocoa-colored hair—though at times it’s almost unmanageable--
And it was only the other day when someone told me I talked just like you did, waving my hands wildly, my voice increasing in pitch with every syllable, my million words becoming a single one because breathing was a foreign concept.
I sing praises to you for I feel you in each step
As I venture down the street, your blood pumping through my veins
My heart beating with your love and compassion and generosity
Giving to those who know you and those who don’t and then the ones who don’t wish they knew you.
I sing praises to you for you are my greatest teacher
Sometimes it’s what you do, not what you say,
And mistakes lead to yelling which lead to crying which lead to “I’m sorry’s” and hugs that make everything okay
Eyeliner and mascara and powder can hide imperfections of the face but they do nothing for the impurities of the mind and soul and my beauty can’t be purchased but comes from the light that you have shown me
I sing praises to you for sometimes I can be too stubborn
I often forget that being wrong is not synonymous with being defeated
You should never underestimate a person or judge someone or make the boy who sits behind you on the bus feel like they will never be as good as you are because one day they might be better.
And that if you tell someone you hate them and that they are ruining your life you can apologize and they might forgive you but they will not forget –I said that to you once and still today it sometimes comes up in conversation.
And I sing praises to you because nothing is impossible
Bruises can cover every inch of your body and the scars will probably never fade but you can dance and laugh and tell the world that pain is just a state of mind
And I will dance and laugh with you because even though the world thinks you’re crazy I believe with every ounce of my being that you are absolutely right, pain is just a state of mind
And there is enough of you in me to keep my head held high long after you are gone.
9/18/10
