In the public domain – – – official records – police reports
newspapers
It is written —–
— Cain grew jealous of this brother – that God favored his alter sacrifice – He slew him – then the Lord put a dark mark upon him – and he was sent to the distant lands
But man – may I set the record straight
You know how English speakers are
when they try to translate
foreign documents or languages
Oh I was jealous of him that was for sure
I mean all the chicks liked him – all over him
wouldn’t give me the time of day – but
I loved my brother – protected him
It was his own undoing
I told him over & over
Yeah – we would toke a few together
Not the hard stuff !
I mean hemp is natural – green
He started messing with the wrong
crowd – they seem to come out of nowhere
Crack – crystal meth – What else I don’t know
“ Bro – Don’t you know – Just say no!”
“He who be without sin throw the first stone”
he tossed with a sharp quip
We ain’t that far in the book man
You are verses & chapters ahead of me
Our parents were having issues of their own
Something about “Fruit & serpent”
words whispered outside in the garden
I heard of spiders & snakes
But – apples ! Oh man who knows
the older generation
As if prophecy foretold – our parents had been
driven out of town
to renew the lease
or was it to resolve
a misunderstanding with the mortgage
lender or was it the landlord revoking the lease
I never got that involved
In their financial or spiritual life
The projects were dark when
he wandered in high as a kite
Concerned when he would drag in
On the stoop I sat
Standing & confronting him
when he finally showed up
“Man I just gotta intervene!”
“Fuck off “ flew effortlessly
After a heated confrontation he took
a swinging punch at me
Stepping back to avoid the brutal blow
He lost his balance
fell on the steps
hit the sidewalk
busted his skull
“911! 911! 911!” crying & holding his limp body
as a river of blood seeped onto my shirt
never came clean – always left a dark mark
a reminder to this day of that day
deeds that undone him – did him in
got the best of me too I suppose
Man it was a disaster
Whispers that he & I were suppliers
We were always fighting
I was his supplier
The rumor mill turned
like a hamster wheel
The police kept harassing me
Did you kill your brother?
Time
&
time
again
So after we lay him down into the cold ground
I took off far east from this place
A branded man for a crime I didn’t do
A fugitive – so I lay low – got a job – live alone
Lord only knows what they say about me back home
My folks lost the place
They had to relocate
not even a shirt on their back
Forbidden to go back
when they drove them out
blacklisted to ever enter again
Why could they not do that to the drug dealers?
I went back – helped them move
Mom cried all evening
My Old Man was adamant
“You’d better go Cain
as soon as you are able.”
Too tired from this factory job to cry
Trying not too think of Mom & Dad
My Lil Bro – – – Will I ever clear my name
May the guilty who are dead & living – rot in Hell
And so they say – The Rest – is left to History
TERRENCE SYKES
+++++