I come from a musical place
Where they shoot me for my song
And my brother has been tortured
By my brother in my land.
I come from a beautiful place
Where they hate my shade of skin
They don't like the way I pray
And they ban free poetry.
......
We were all much younger, happier then,
And untouched by heartache, sadness;
In dreams, we go back again and again,
And bring to our hearts gladness!
From Grandpa Frank, father of the Fields,
And Miss Pauline, who married his boy;
The hand of fate's no longer concealed,
As countless descendents live the joy.
......
My son called the other day
Saying now that he has grown
And has responsibility
For a family of his own,
He hoped that as a parent
He could do the job I did
Providing the security
That he felt as a kid.
I asked, "What security?
You never had a home."
......
Running while I best abdicate,
Can’t let you dictate the rest.
Family familiar, failing foundling.
Wills and wells, halls and hells.
Walls and falls.
All’s well when whiles’ done.
My son, my son, Babylon.
"Hoity-toity! Hop-o'-my-thumb!
Tweedledee and Tweedledum!
All hobgoblins come to me,
Over the mountains, over the sea:
Come in a hurry, come in a crowd,
Flying, chattering, shrieking loud;
I and my broomstick fidget and call ---
Come, hobgoblins, we want you all!
I have a pot of a mischievous brew;
You must do what I tell you to;
......
They say youth is but momentary,
An emotional journey, a fleeting mirage,
Where uncharted waters are a treat not a foil
Tempered only by fates willful barrage.
But as time marches on and life settles in
with a rhythm well known and rehearsed,
A mixture of joy, tedium and tears
To the beat of our life we're soon versed.
......
In a land beyond the sea,
Rooted beneath the earth,
Lived a wise, white lindworm.
Within his grotto could be found,
Life's trinkets and treasures to greet the weary traveller.
At first, his precise position cannot be drawn by the eye,
But instead the timbre of striking keys and scents of shades and spirits.
In the innermost of this inky pit, sits an empty canvas,
Perched proudly on its pedestal, illuminated from above.
My presence revealed, the lindworm nudges me a pallet full of pigment --
......
My dearest dear Be’er
That is what I always called you.
Endearing, to say the least
Although you now cease to exist,
my memories of you will never cease
As in my heart, you live forever
But how I do miss you
More than you could ever know
All that I ever wanted was a better life
For us three
......
Hush, little baby, do not cry
Mummy is going to give you a better life
Across the border, she will sail
Across the waters, through treacherous waters
She will persist
Through the blackness of the night
Through the relentless wind and rain
To give you a better life
Through sacrifice and pain
Huddled as sardines, clenching onto hope
......
I’ve often wondered who I am
I pondered who gave birth to me
I wondered why you gave me up
I asked if this was meant to be
I wondered why I never knew
That my new mother had replaced you
She gave me love and tender care
Made sacrifices for me each day, each year
......