THIS IS THE REAL WORLD

I remember at four years old,

sitting on my mother’s lap

watching the towers fall with her tears

“don’t be sad,” I said

“it’s just a movie.”

but she just shook her head

“this isn’t a movie.

this is the real world.”

the snowcapped mountains act as guardians

and white picket fences protect our fragile hearts

we’ve got the one-way ticket to heaven here

as long as you keep your nose clean and your eyes closed

kids lose themselves in a smoke-filled haze

while others get lost in the smoke of the bombs

and white boys in snapbacks who’ve never bothered to pay attention in history class

throw the n-word around like kisses on the pedestal

sorry, rosa, they say

sorry, mr. king,

but how can you be sorry when you dance on their graves?
this isn’t hate

but we’re still asleep

and our history stays chained beneath our beds

there are graves underneath our pillows

voices rooted deep within our blackened lungs

whispering in the silence

this is the real world

so please

wake up

this is the real world

this is the sunburn that blisters after a day at the pool

the heartache that follows the whirlwind romance

this is a father’s last strangled breath on the concrete ground

the blood of those whose only crime was to write

this is the bullet holes and the rioting and the mother who hangs one less stocking on christmas day

this is the real world

and you can’t sleep through it like you slept through this class

blankets can’t protect you now

this is the real world

not the history resting tidily on a textbook page

this is the present

expertly wrapped and tied with rusty chains

while the only chains I’ve ever known are those of the playground swing set

that allowed me to skim heaven with my sneakered toes

there’s no anne sullivan to lead us out of the dark

and the blood moon only shines so bright at night

and the bliss that comes with ignorance also comes with the price of a child’s tear-stained cheeks

a child that can’t understand why this is her reality

while I’m still living with the stars in my eyes

this is the real world

don’t sleep in another day.