I Am Not An Outcast

I came from a village Very fortunate to have attended college He came from a cottage Got lost on his quest to finding courage I need not waste time for I have no future leverage  During the busy day when both the minute and the hour arm of the clock Fell on each other at the very top of the clock Signaling the day in its half When the sun becomes shinny and unfriendly They sat in the class all catchy and quietly   Seeking to decipher the key to unlock the answers to scientific formulae and mathematical equations  I walked bare footed with a single arm shirt hanging to my west With a very flat stomach as though I have smelled no food in the years past   My skin pays no more attention to the burning sun For they now look like father and son I travel from one town to another Looking for what? you will wonder my brother People stared at me and wonder Most people think of me as a thief But those who knew me look at me in grief I am no thief nor mad I am only a boy who is grieved and sad Searching for a way to making my future glow and my progeny glad I am the scavenger of the waste metallic materials called scrap I am not solving scientific formulae and mathematical equations I am seeking the key to unlock my future from the shackles of poverty* My palms are all callused and nails fractured My teeth lost its purity for it knows no tooth brush in a while My beautiful toning black African colour left without notice My youthful smile gave way to a sadden old age But I was brimming in determination to succeed I shook off my lethargy and fought on all odds I walked, scratched and bled just to work Most people said I am useless and or mad But I was just a hard working lad Working so hard to see myself through education So to you I say, see me not as destruction For all I need is your kind word of motivation And do show to me the right direction So that I may be among the beautiful generation In contributing my quota to building the nation That is all I ask, I plea thee