What Is Life

Surrounded, Trapped in Taken out of my home land Brought into a new place 8000 miles of scared 8000 miles from freedom 8000 miles of bars, That encloses me Nothing but walls and darkness So, what is life, other than a cage for me? I feel as though I am a gift, Wrapped up, Made in Africa Shipped from the motherland Thrown, broken and given away Shred from my knowledge Brainwashed by my owner Abused by myself So, what is life, other than a cage for me? My heart beats faster The rhythm stuck in my head 2000 miles from love 2000 miles from safety 2000 minutes watching those memories leave me And only one thing stopping me from running So, what is life, other than a cage for me? My mind is lost in thoughts Thoughts I can’t control Thoughts that can disappear from me Thoughts that I can’t stop from traveling back 2000 miles Thoughts that keep me locked up So what is life other than a cage for me? I try to fight past the sights My eyes have to endure The sights of my brothers and sisters Being destroyed by their brothers and sisters The sights of screams From a mother trying to save her children But they already have us Locked up in boxes, Shipping us away So what is life, other than a cage for me? I smell flesh Flesh of my four parents Flesh that has been hung up like beef in a Chinese market Flesh that has been burning for thousands of years Flesh waves over my nose, As I sit here thinking, What is life, other than a cage for me? As I sit here wondering, I can’t help but imagining Is this the life that Martin Luther King dreamed of? Is this the life that Malcolm X fought for? Is this the life that Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat for? Is this the life that Lil Wayne tattooed to his body? Is this the life that Beyoncé sings about? So I must ask myself one last time, What is life, other than a cage for me?