I smiled

As I sat in the park today
watching the people
hurry along their way
I thought of you and smiled

You are the one of God's wonders
tall strong and proud
standing out among the crowd
I thought of you walking the African soil
Kings among men
ruling over the riches of the motherland

I thought of you in Egypt
Pharaoh and Hebrew
creating the beauty of the sphinx
and the pyramids
no one will ever accomplish what you did

And then a bit of sadness came over me
as I thought of you being forced across the sea
to be chained, humiliated and sold
for a few pieces of gold

but still I smiled

For as hard as they tried
you kept your kingly pride
and like all good things
you continue to rise

No one else is quite like you
your skin comes in all shades and hues
from the brightness of the sun
to teasing tan, or pleasing brown to pretty black

There is nothing that you lack
you have your own since of style
the way you walk with an inherent rhythm
that only you can hear
the way you talk is like music to the ear
from the fullness of your lips
to the swagger of your hips
you are often emulated
but never duplicated

You are my brother, my lover, my friend
as I sat in the park today
I thought of how much I love
black men
and I smiled.