All My Life

Every Monday, I want to try to be the day I publish one love poem a week. It will only be for 52-weeks. Listening to the music being played in the cell next to me is an OG Crip, well he is older than me by ten years out of Watts Vario Grape. He really goes bacc to what sounded like The Shirelles, and Sam Cook. But what really had my mind going there, as far as a Monday Love poem type of vibe was when he played the O’Jays “Loving You.”

Now this particular song wasn’t a head-banger for me, but I did have a peculiar relationship with the O’Jays. Even though I was orphaned at birth the first woman I loved was my adopted mother. Not to take anything away from any other woman I’ve loved, but mom’s was a great relationship. One year for either her birthday or Mother’s Day, I can’t recall the occasion, I bought her for that occasion a gift, and the gift was the O’Jays album “Identify Yourself.”

“Identify Yourself,” came out in 1979, mom’s birthday was in November, as she was a Scorpio, and mine is a month later as I am a Sagittarius. Since I was born in 65′, this meant I was 13-years-old. This wasn’t the crack cocaine era, so hustle’n to buy your mother a whole album at 13 was truly getting it out of the mud. The song that inspired me to buy this for my mother was “Forever Mine.” It was a song I knew she loved, and me being a son, honored my mom by buying her that album. My homies who had tight relationships with their moms can relate. So much in these 2020s is about Black men and women beefing, I just prefer a simpler time.

The O’Jays song for C-Note was the 1978, “Use ta Be My Girl”. Those lyrics. I was in the 7th grade at John Marshall Junior High, and the youngest of two girls who lived across the street, said she was in love with me. She was light skin and fine, but her older sister who was dark skin and fine, we were actually doing real bird’s and bees stuff. I don’t know why the younger sister’s desire for me casted a spell on my heart and mind, but if you listen to the words, “Use ta Be My Girl,” speaking from a man’s perspective, it is the kind of love you don’t want to lose.

And if I had the chance

Lord knows I’d take her back

As a matter of fact

Right away like today

–O’Jays

No. 3:

ALL MY LIFE

All My Life

I’ve been searching for you

Blue ships, amidst blue moons

Would be a fantasy come true

All My Life