You will never realize how much I love you
Even though I never met you
And I will never have the chance to tell you
I know that it hurts to be you, because it hurts to be me
As brothers our struggles are so intertwined without sharing a conversation
Never even crossing paths but walking up the same slippery slope
That never seems to end at the mountain top
The fact of the matter is, it is not fair
The cards we are dealt are far from a royal flush
In this game of spades you are not supposed to be born hating the black of your suit—
I mean skin—
But it’s a learned action from the rest of the world
We are not supposed to be told that we are monkeys
So the concrete jungles we are housed in are a fitting place
Actually exchange jungle with food desert
Never having an introduction to nutrients
Because companies don’t invest here
And if you are what you eat what good can come from a toxic diet
Brother, I understand
And you will never realize how much I love you
Even though I never met you
And I will never have the chance to tell you
I understand what it is like to be hopeless
No one ever actually cares to listen to your story, they treat you like an animal
And ironically pigs come round us up like cattle to be held in barbed fences
There is a reason they call it the trap house
The closest field trips we took to mountain rocks was a crack house
Yes people make it from here and go on to do great things
But for every one success story that we love to boast about
There are a thousands of whispers—I mean whimpers—of crying souls that die in pain
Brother, I know that every path seems like a dead end
And the exit roads being traveled are like Lake Shore during rush hour
…Seemingly impossible to get through
So why even burn the gas to try
Brother, I understand
And you will never realize how much I love you
Even though I never met you
And I will never have the chance to tell you
I understand what it’s like to hurt and not know why
I understand what it’s like to have that hurt manifest itself into rage
I understand what it’s like to lose hope
I understand that you cannot lose what you never had
I understand what it’s like when they tell you
“You can be anything”
But deep down they don’t believe their own words
I understand what it is like to want more
Even when it’s worth less from depreciation
And they tell us we are worthless from their 3 million dollar trust fund highchairs
I am telling you I understand
…I Understand
……I Understand!
So when you pulled that gun out to rob me for the same pennies we both struggle to get
What hurt was not the feeling of the bullet piercing my skin
What hurt was not hitting the cold concrete
Watching my blood paint the ground like a canvas
What hurt the most is that you will never realize…
That brother, I love you…
And I understand
Even though I never met you
And I will never have the chance to tell you