Hide Child, Hide

Photo via The Library of Congress

Hide child, hide

Don’t bathe in the sun.

The garden has long wilted

Dirt is no place for the young.

Run child, run

Tuck your innocence in your shoes.

Ride high on jazz notes

Youth is too young for blues.

Breathe child, breathe

Don’t cling to the light.

Be the warmth in worn hands

Strange fruit entices your height.

Laugh child, laugh

Find joy in the safety of storms.

Plain sight shows you fragile

Repeating times weaken your sword.

Black child hide

Black child, don’t weep.

Black child mourn

Black child, don’t fade.

Black child evade

Black child, don’t decay.

Hide Black child, hide

Don’t you dry up in the sun.