When life gets hard, I think with my eyes closed
"What if I weren't black, is that the pigment i would've chose?"

Then I see my little sisters, things become so clear...
Even though we are different skin tones, they hold me so dear

I look at their eyes, their faces, their smile
Their brother is black....the only dark skinned child
The oldest at that, out of 9 kids....yep nine
Whenever these dark thoughts plague my head, they shine

Every trayvon martin case I see, every black person that dies
Through an injustice act, covered by a "felt threatened" guise
I question my want to be black, in this world of white

But then my sister calls me, just to tell me she loves me
Then I think to myself...my sister isn't the only one that loves me

All of my family, regardless of tone
love me to death, to the core , to the bone
So...I should love myself, I mean its only right.
I will love whatever makes my sister happy, for my family are the love of my life.

So I want to be what my family is in love with
I want to be the short, glasses wearing little black kid
I want to be the nerd they come to for help with math and crooked teeth

But most of all, I want to be...the boy that is loved by his family.

I want to be...me