(Intro – Spoken)
(soft piano… heartbeat)
Take a breath…
…nah, really—take a breath.
Some of us ain’t scared to die…
we scared to live with what survived.
(pause)
Lazarus… they praise the rise—
but never speak on what comes back inside.
(Hook)
One arm up, I’m tryna light the way,
Gift and the curse—I carry both each day.
Freedom ain’t free, it’s carved in my soul,
Smilin’ through pain but it’s takin’ its toll.
Came back alive, left a part in the grave,
Livin’ with purpose I’m still tryna name.
If I fall, if I break, if I lose what I gave…
Will they love me now—or just visit my grave?
(Verse 1)
Abandonment echo still ring in my chest,
Left young, learned early—love don’t rest.
Turned pain to armor, called distance my strength,
Now every connection come measured in length.
I show up present but I’m carryin’ doubt,
Say “I got you,” hear a voice speakin’ out—
“They gon’ leave too… don’t get attached,”
So I love with a ceiling, prepared to detach.
Romance or blood, yeah it all feel the same,
Testin’ intentions while they speak on my name.
Fightin’ ghosts in a room full of care,
Readin’ between lines that ain’t even there.
Mirror hit different—I couldn’t deflect,
I was the pattern I tried to correct.
Common denominator, pain I repeat,
Breakin’ myself just to feel incomplete.
Stand tall, ten toes, still question the cost—
How you lead everybody… but inside feel lost?
(Hook)
One arm up, I’m tryna light the way,
Gift and the curse—I carry both each day.
Freedom ain’t free, it’s carved in my soul,
Smilin’ through pain but it’s takin’ its toll.
Came back alive, left a part in the grave,
Livin’ with purpose I’m still tryna name.
If I fall, if I break, if I lose what I gave…
Will they love me now—or just visit my grave?
(Verse 2)
Survivor’s guilt heavy, I cheated the end,
Why I’m still breathin’ while we losin’ my friends?
Why I get chances to rewrite my page,
While someone else story just stop mid-stage?
Hospital nights, machines hummin’ low,
Flatline memories I can’t let go.
They call me miracle—I nod, but inside…
Still tryna figure out why I survived.
Worthiness war, I been fightin’ for air,
Feel like I gotta earn right just to be here.
Overgive, overstay, overplay roles,
Just to convince ‘em I deserve to be whole.
Truth is—I’m still that kid inside,
Chasin’ validation he was never designed to find.
Buildin’ light for the world to see…
while I’m still tryna find some for me.
(Outro – Spoken)
America’s stepchild… from LIB…
Land of liberty… still fightin’ for liberty.
Freedom ain’t free…
it’s carved in me.
My life… poetry.
My only regret…
I might be celebrated…
after they bury me.
NelDuo