DREAMS ARE ILLEGAL
i had a dream that i was in america
i was actually in the land of the beautiful
and the home of the brave
my boss came into my office
and said hi bob, how’s it going?
why don’t you take off early
and here is that raise
as i pulled my suburban
up to my suburban home
i got the mail out of the box
and saw that i was approved for another home equity loan
the girl scouts were there with cookies to sell
of course, i bought a box
as hillary quieted down marmaduke who had begun to bark
later me, the wife and kids
all took a bike ride to the park
when we got back we had a snack
apple pie with ice cream on top
then we buckled up and headed on down to the red box
to get some videos to watch
when we returned the kids put on their pjs
and we relaxed on the couch in the den
for some family time watching videos
then all these strangers turned to me and said
what are you doing here?
don’t you know that dreams are illegal?
gun shots ring in the heat of the night
followed by screams
violently disrupting my dreams
in my neighborhood
i don’t have to read the paper or watch the news
to know that something bad happened around here tonight
but once the ambulance leaves, the police sirens stop
and the crowd disperses
that silence soaks into my soul
sobering my senses in this often over intoxicating society
and i try to relax, but the Devil just won’t let go
he keeps pointing to the signs
posted all around me that read
Dreams Are Illegal
my neighborhood is the bottom of the barrel
where drugs get mixed
here there are no brothers & sisters
just confused brother & sisters
here people drown in the backwash
of the latest political scandal
in the midst of ghetto chaos
dreams are quickly lost
the Devil is in sweet control
as dreams are stole
and you know
there is no honor amongst thieves
so dreams are stolen with ease
as a high school graduate barely seventeen
gives up her college dreams
for a pair of tight jeans
and a chance to be the next ghetto queen
in the inner city
checks and basketballs bounce with regularity
life and death intermix with no disparity
some children live for nothing
some children die for nothing
every day blue skies are gray
all they know is: they want to make dough$
the Devil has them chasing a colorless rainbow
and at the end there is no pot of gold
just a pot of steam
which He exchanges for their dreams
bonafide slaves are made in the Devil’s dream trade
without dreams you are equivalent
to being non existent
our children need to be told that they can achieve
and that God blesses those who hold on to their dreams
we have to take down the signs so the kids won’t know
that the Devil is trying to make dreams illegal
DREAMS ARE NOT ILLEGAL
