Retrospect For Life (Featuring Lauryn Hill)

Song Retrospect For Life (Featuring Lauryn Hill)
Artist Common
Album One Day It'll All Make Sense

Lyrics

[00:00.515] Yo, we gotta start respectin life more y'all
[00:03.770] You look at your brother man you gotta see yourself
[00:07.042] Gotta see the God within him
[00:09.306] Brothers gettin changed real quick over nothin
[00:13.234] We losin too many of ours
[00:16.330] Gotta recreate y'all
[00:18.842] Yo, check it
[00:21.489] Knowin you the best part of life, do I have the right to take yours
[00:25.676] Cause I created you, irresponsibly
[00:28.193] Subconciously knowin the act I was a part of
[00:31.145] The start of somethin, I'm not ready to bring into the world
[00:33.876] Had myself believin I was sterile
[00:36.115] I look into mother's stomach, wonder if you are a boy or a girl
[00:39.257] Turnin this woman's womb into a tomb
[00:41.585] But she and I agree, a seed we don't need
[00:44.660] You would've been much more than a mouth to feed
[00:47.238] But someone, I woulda fed this information I read
[00:50.165] to someone, my life for you I woulda had to leave
[00:52.801] Instead I lead you to death
[00:54.660] I'm sorry for takin your first breath, first step, and first cry
[00:58.425] But I wasn't prepared mentally nor financially
[01:01.025] Havin a child shouldn't have to bring out the man in me
[01:03.601] Plus I wanted you to be raised within a family
[01:06.297] I don't wanna, go through the drama of havin a baby's momma
[01:09.297] Weekend visits and buyin J's ain't gon' make me a father
[01:11.988] For a while bearing a child is somethin I never wanted to do
[01:14.723] For me to live forever I can only do that through you
[01:17.489] Nerve I got to talk about them niggaz with a gun
[01:20.145] Must have really thought I was God to take the life of my son
[01:22.822] I could have sacrificed goin out
[01:24.755] To think my homies who did it I used to joke about, from now on
[01:28.321] I'ma use self control instead of birth control
[01:30.937] Cause $315 ain't worth your soul
[01:33.757] $315 ain't worth your soul
[01:36.466] $315 ain't worth it
[01:38.761] I, never dreamed you'd leave, in summer
[01:47.458] You said you would be here when it rained
[01:57.928] Yo,why didn't you stay
[02:01.456] Seeing you as a present and a gift in itself
[02:03.328] You had our child in you, I probably never feel what you felt
[02:06.724] But you dealt with it like the strong black woman you are
[02:09.275] Through our trials and tribulations, child's elimination
[02:12.224] An intergration of thoughts I feel about the situation
[02:15.152] Back and forth my feelings was pacin
[02:17.347] Happy deep down but not joyed enough to have it
[02:19.705] But even that's a lie in less than two weeks, we was back at it
[02:23.099] Is this unprotected love or safe to say it's lust
[02:25.858] Bustin, more than the sweat in somebody you trust
[02:28.432] Or is it that we don't trust each other enough
[02:31.040] And believe, havin this child'll make us have to stay together
[02:34.072] Girl I want you in my life cause you have made it better
[02:36.688] Thinkin we all in love cause we can spend a day together
[02:39.460] We talkin spendin the rest of our lives
[02:41.560] It's too many black women that can say they mothers
[02:43.728] but can't say that they wives
[02:44.946] I wouldn't chose any other to mother my understanding
[02:47.760] But I want our Parenthood to come from Planning
[02:49.911] It's so much in my life that's undone
[02:51.784] We gotta see eye to eye, about family, before we can become one
[02:55.962] If you had decided to have it the situation I wouldn't run from
[02:58.691] But I'm walkin, findin myself in my God
[03:01.312] So I can, discipline my son with my writin
[03:04.088] Not have a judge tellin me how and when to raise my seed
[03:06.672] Though his death was at our greed, with no one else to blame
[03:09.528] I had a book of Afrikan names, case our minds changed
[03:12.344] You say your period hasn't came, and lately I've been sleepy
[03:15.024] So quit smokin the weed and the beadies and let's have this boy
[03:18.067] I, never dreamed you'd leave in summer
[03:26.490] You said you would be here when it rained
[03:36.336] You said you would be here when it rained
[03:39.041] Ohh I, never dreamed you'd leave in summer
[03:47.940] Now the situation's made things change
[03:57.575] Things change
[03:58.687] Why, didn't you stay
[04:01.807] Why didn't you stay...
[04:09.511] I, never dreamed you'd leave, in summer
[04:20.727] In summer
[04:23.247] You said you would be here when, it rained
[04:30.945] When it rained, it rained
[04:33.820] Ohhhohh I, never dreamed, you'd leave in summer
[04:43.273] You said you wouldn't leave
[04:44.575] Now the situation's made things change
[04:51.767] Things change, why didn't you stay?
[04:56.959] Stay, stay stay stay stay stay stay
[05:02.673] Mmmmm, stayyy
[05:07.198] Uh-uh
[05:09.312] Ohh why didn't you stay..