i come from mud
but i'll be damned if i'm stuck there
mud made me
me
hot days on a one way street a hundred feet from a freeway
nights where the chill hangs in the air
and the echoes from gunshots shake your soul
where men guised as pigs
snatched my uncles and your brothers
where life ain't fair
mud made me
smarter than you
i learned the hard way
my classes were graded in candy money lost and whippings gained
where grandma's kisses left cheeks stained red
but better lipstick on cheeks than blood across concrete
i come from mud
but mud ain't make me
i grew in soil
on top of a hill where the sun shone strong
fertile loam nourished me
spoiled me with safety
lavished me with life and indulged my desire to grow tall as trees
i come from mud
but i grew in green fields
i come from mud
but mud ain't make me
me