Busy days

Well, my workdays are going to be very busy the next few days so you'll likely see very little of me (except when I need a break). In the meantime, however, here are the lyrics to a spoken-word song named Talk To Strangers by Saul Williams. I have this song in my head, so I thought I'd share here. I love the underlying point to it, so don't let the wall-of-text or the initial lines scare you away. The meaning behind it is worth the length. My apologies to Mr Williams if I have any incorrect lyrics.


Now I wasn’t raised at gunpoint and I’ve read too many books
To distract me from the mirror when unhappy with my looks
And I ain’t got proper diction for the makings of a thug
Though I grew up in the ghetto and my n----s all sold drugs
And though that may validate me for a spot on MTV
Or get me all the airplay that my bank account would need
I was hoping to invest in a lesson that I learned
And I thought this fool had jumped me just because it was my turn
I went to an open space 'cause I knew he wouldn’t do it
If somebody there could see him or somebody else might prove it
And maybe, in your eyes, it may seem I got punked out
Cause I walked a narrow path and then went and changed my route
But that openness exposed me to a truth I couldn’t find
In the clenched fists of my ego or the confines of my mind
In the hipness of my swagger, or the swagger in my step
Or the scowl of my grimace, or the meanness of my rep
Cause we represent a truth, son, that changes by the hour
And when you're open to it, formability is power
And in that shifting form you’ll find a truth that doesn’t change
And that truth is living proof of the fact that God is strange

Talk to strangers when family fails and friends lead you astray
When Buddha laughs and Jesus weeps and turns out God is gay
Cause angels' and messiahs' love can come in many forms
In the hallways of your projects or the fat girl in your dorm
And when you finally take the time to see what they’re about
Perhaps you find them lonely or their wisdom trips you out

Maybe you’ll find the cycles end you back where you began
But come this time around you’ll have someone to hold your hand
Who prays for you who's there for you who sends you love and light
Exposes you to parts of you that you once tried to fight
And come this time around you'll choose to walk a different path
You'll embrace what you turned away and cry at what you laughed
Cause that’s the only way we’re going to make it through this storm
Where ignorance is common sense and senselessness is the norm
And flags wave high above the truth and the two never touch
And stolen goods are overpriced and freedom costs too much
And no one seems to recognize the symbols come to life
The bitten apple on the screen and Jesus had a wife
And she was his Messiah like that stranger may be yours
Who holds a subtle knife that carves through worlds like magic doors
And that’s what I’ve been looking for, the bridge from then to now
Just watching BET like, "What the fuck, son? This is foul."
But that square box don't represent the sphere that we live in
The earth is not a flat screen, I ain’t trying to fit in
But this ain’t for the underground, this here is for the sun
A seed a stranger gave to me and planted on my tongue
And when I look at you, I know I’m not the only one
As a great man once said,
"There’s nothing more powerful than an idea who’s time has come."