100 years celebrated

A group, sequence, or series
Of 100 like things
Yeah that’s what makes a century.
Her life more than a legacy
Her story pieces of your history.
May we bow our heads
And truly agree
That God has blessed Us abundantly.

She created this family tree
Eleven branches and many leaves
The wind that blows through them
New life constantly breathes
Generations to come an instant guarantee

She is this families VIP
Sweeter than the honey
Made from the bumblebee.
She’s served on committees
Been an employee
Played referee
To some knuckle head kids
Who never knew the phrase latch-key

Her prayers kept you safe
In wars you fought overseas
Fighting for a country
With no warranty
Coming home safe
Was more than some foresee

With five loaves of bread
And two fish she did feed
Eleven kids
Some of us barely feed two or three

Chicken wings
And collard greens
Black eyed peas with okra it seemed
A spread that only
Bigmomma could create
Sho-nuff soul food filled your plate

As a kid going to her house
Was like going to the country
To many bugs for a city girl like me
Sittin on the porch
Waving at speeding cars go by
Legs ate up by mosquitoes and horse flies

No sidewalks to ride my bike for goodness sake
Stories of my uncle killing backyard snakes
With a shot gun non-the-less
Now that just takes the cake

No driving record
Had to add longer years to her life
No baby momma drama adding less years of strife
No fast food joints
Every other night of the week
Making her own clothes to fit her beautiful physique.
100 years her life preserved
Jim Crow laws treated equally…umm unheard
A black president her eyes surely deserved

I spit these words
In rhythm and rhyme
Causing your memory to race back in time
When life was simple
No real bills to meet
Now some of us working 40, 50, sometimes 60hrs a week

100 years painted strategically
God the first artist better than Leonardo DaVinci
Should I reach this age
I hope it’s as a retiree
Sipping on ice tea
Sand between my toes on the shore of Hawaii

A group, sequence, or series
Of 100 like things
Yeah that’s what makes a century.
Her life more than a legacy
Her story pieces of your history
May we bow our heads
And truly agree
That God has blessed Us abundantly.