To be good

Life just leave me alone
To get on and become
Like pebbles made smooth by the sea
Or Earth warming the soles of feet
I must extend my reach

If I survive the dips and dives of these days
I will be on my way
To save you with my problems
Join me, I am too far gone
Together as one, lost to each other
Surviving the dips and dives of these days

Dear people of this Earth
Mimi ni mzungu
You can hear it in my voice
Mimi ni mwanamme
You can hear it in the way I talk
Every light has a shadow, every shadow has a light
Now listen...

These are the voices of the ancestors
In the form of music and rhythm
We do not understand the words but we understand their meaning
Deep down in a place that dances
A place where it echoes our birth beyond time
We were one, now listen...

We are expanding and moving
Just as with time
What I see is a beast
You may say is only human
Ndio mimi ni mshamba, mkorofi, mwizi
Ninazunguka kama mzungu nabaki bila kuhama
I will take my space like land, napanda maharagwe na sukuma
With you, na wewe tu.

Lakini kuna mengi
Swali langu ni moja tu
Which one do I hurt first
Ignorance or compassion?
Which one has survived the longest?
In deed or action

Cheza cheza
Play with my thoughts and emotions
Blow this beast a kiss
Mzungu na mwanamme
Like the smell of soil on my hands
You are under my nails woman, I can hear you
My palms bear the fruits of your labour
With you, na wewe tu
Now listen...

Wewe ni Mwafrika
I can see it in your rhythm
Wewe in mwanamke
I can see it in your thoughts
And the shape of your actions
Sasa cheza cheza
Dance with my thoughts and emotions

Dance with the two face
Sing with the voice and vision
The speed of light and sound
Will bring us back from the edge
Of oblivion, Now listen...

Mimi ni mzungu, nyinyi ni waafrika, people of this Earth
And we wish to be disowned
So that we may be owned again
On a trip to our roots, to wander without moving
Insh’allah, Mungu akipenda, Jah Rastafari!
Every light has a shadow, every shadow has a light
Now listen...

Is the Sun going up
or are we going down?
Pieces of darkness cut
Into the silence of this town

Are we going up?
On this quiet corner
me and you holding hands
As the Sun goes down