ready to die?
if you were
to go
today
how many accomplishments have you made?
are you proud of what you've done?
and were there lives that you've affected?
are you proud of whom you've touched?
only you can answer these questions
only you can
you ready to die?
[chapter-1] leaning against a tombstone
with no one around
grass blows from the breeze
blowing grass from your mouth
weeds choke out the vegetation
that’s all about
willow trees hang low
like the locks on Bob’s scalp
heart palpitations increase
as the day grows old
stone blocks in the earth
now rep what used to hold a soul
now bones rot in a plot
until its soil in a box
it’s funny how life can be explained
from the words on a rock
[chapter-2] where does a person go
after they leave their shell cell?
ancient tales tell stories that stand by themselves
many men have fallen victim to exaggerations of the afterlife
so they try to walk the straight and narrow
they try to live longer than their own bone marrow
just so they can play a harp and
shoot-off a few arrows
[chapter-3] if you were to go today
how many accomplishments have you made?
are you proud of what you've done?
and were there lives that you've affected?
are you proud of whom you've touched?
only you can answer these questions
only you can
you ready to die?
[chapter-4] how long will the pain last
before death comes knocking?
whether injured from a bomb blast
or a razor piercing your epiglottis
it’s hard to realize and
face the face of death
it’s hard to conceptualize
the time of your last breath
[chapter-4] how would you like to go?
in your sleep?
there’s a 1% chance
that that’s how death is going to creep
[chapter-5] most of us will die slow
we were born to die
most will suffer before they go
we’ll have time to cry
and cry and weep
and mourn our own existence
then sigh in defeat
as our bodies
put up that last resistance
[epilogue] if you were to go today
how many accomplishments have you made?
are you proud of what you've done?
and were there lives that you've affected?
are you proud of whom you've touched?
only you can answer these questions
only you can
you ready to die?
Copyright © 2012, Duaynekalade Parnell Bey, All rights reserved