|
[Slug] |
|
She lost one to pneumonia, gave the other to prison |
|
and now she spends mother's day sitting in her kitchen |
|
Looking at the pictures of her past felt surreal |
|
She had a couple of people, some friends that helped her heal |
|
But days like today, she doesn't want to be a bother |
|
and as far as she's concerned, them boys didn't have a father |
|
Nuh uh, she had to teach 'em the ways |
|
Teach 'em how to behave, be brave and even how to shave |
|
Some days it makes her feel like a soldier |
|
and other times it makes her feel like a failure |
|
Why did the stronger one die from a cold, huh? |
|
Why did the smarter one end up in jail? Nah |
|
She gave them boys everything that she could |
|
Two full-time jobs to keep 'em in a good neighborhood |
|
They understood how to love and how to live |
|
Now she doesn't understand how it comes down to this |
|
Maybe she should go work in her yard |
|
and take her mind off the past and try to let the days start |
|
But she's waiting on one of those annual calls |
|
while she's looking at the photos on her hallway walls |
|
[Slug] |
|
His big sibling died, and mom's by herself |
|
and now he spends every day inside of that cell |
|
Looking at the photos of his past makes him crash |
|
So he never takes 'em out that folder under his mattress |
|
Days like today he doesn't think about what happened, no |
|
Still gotta call mommy, wish her a happy one |
|
Uh huh, mom, if only she'd had been around |
|
Maybe big brother would still be living now |
|
Some days it makes him feel like a traitor |
|
and other times it makes him feel like a martyr |
|
Seems like some displacement of anger |
|
Seems like he blames her more than his father |
|
She was gone all the time at work |
|
Never around to play the part of the police or the nurse |
|
She understood how things fall apart |
|
So why'd she let the nest hit the ground this hard? |
|
Well maybe he should go walk in the yard |
|
and take his mind off the past and try to let the days start |
|
Cause it's so difficult to admit it's his fault |
|
when he's looking at the faces in his hallway walls |
