Noir Black
Tread softly on my heart.
Don’t be mislead by my armor of steel.
I am daughter, mother, and sister.
It is a façade that I keep up to survive.
She whispered.
Death comes to those who appear too soft.
Death of the young eager heart.
Death of the young mother who hopes.
Death for the dreams for her young.
Death of the child-like admiration that her heart holds for him.
Tread softly on my heart.
The armor protects the heart, the mind and the man.
The heart that protects the offspring.
I am son, father, and brother
He whispered.
The armor that protects the child of the offspring.
The multigenerational mind that protects and shelters.
He comes for the weak.
Tread softly on my heart,
They said in unison.
Two minds mold into one heart.
Strong and malleable.
Not timid but Herculean.
Formidable, as steel.
Man of steel.
Tread softly on my heart.
Tread lightly in the paths of those that
Came before you.
Tread a path of your own.
Tread softly on this heart.
I am your reflection.
(c) Tia Stewart from the book, Colors of a Man, Tribute to African-American
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