Tupac's Rose (the rose)

TUPAC’S ROSE

He was a soldier in a lyrical battlefield
Putting his heart on the front-line
A victim of industry politics
and a militant mind
As I press rewind
he speaks saying only God can judge him
tears replace the space
where a smile had once been

It’s the heart afraid of breaking
that never learns to dance
It’s the dream afraid of waking
that never takes the chance
It’s the one who won’t be taken
who cannot seem to give
And the soul afraid of dying
that never learns to live

Nobody deserves to die from shots to the chest
No matter if they live by codes of the streets
When will people learn life is bigger than beef?
How can we have hope? When there ain’t none left
Especially when as children the only thing promised was death
Who knew that a rose that grew from concrete,
Would inspire everyone it touched
Who knew I’d ever miss a stranger so much

Just remember in the winter
far beneath the bitter snows
lies the seed
that with the sun’s love
in the spring becomes the rose

Unique Verses January 23, 2004
Italicized words taken from ‘The Rose’ by Bette Midler