[Intro: Phone Ringing]
[Hook]
Early morning skies before the sun rise
Immune to the pain of sacrifice
What you put aside for your family
Remains true to me, I wish you could see
That I see you in me, what we have is an oddity
Cause our chemistry is far from a commodity
[Verse 1]
All I ever wanted was a fraction of your time
To frequently congregate around
Eating home cooked meals once-a-day
Throwing shade at each other
For the light that we-put-out yesterday
Laughing endlessly, cause when the clock strikes three
Street lights become your worst enemy
Please don't lose your sanity
Without you life would be a tragedy
Quietly anticipating your arrival
Eyes glued to the side of the window in agony
Positioned with a view to catch your headlights
When they shine through
While Erykah Badu whispers in my left ear
Trembling with fear, two o'clocks finally here
But I don't hear the sound of the exhaust
Approaching anywhere near
Mama, could be widowed anytime now
See her life flash before her glazed eyes
While singing lullabies that are full of lies like
"Daddy's going to be home any minute now"
Geared up to say goodbye
Until you walked through the door
What a pleasant surprise
Hearing your voice is a blessing in disguise
It keeps me alive
[Bridge]
Enslaved to the money, just to feed us
Circulating different regions, to protect us
From day one, from day one
You've always been about us
[Hook]
Early morning skies before the sun rise
Immune to the pain of sacrifice
What you put aside for your family
Remains true to me, I wish you could see
That I see you in me, what we have is an oddity
Cause our chemistry is far from a commodity
[Verse 2]
You taught me a timeless philosophy
"In this world no one ever learns free"
We are a rare breed, and in this city marked a low-yield
So move cautiously, "Something is better than nothing"
He would always preach, reaching
For his reading gla**es at the age of sixty two
Extending his restless limbs across the living room
Begging that I finish school
Dropping out is a forbidden fruit
There was no second guessing
If it wasn't for you, I would be constantly stressing
We abused laughter as a mutual remedy
Speaking through the phone, our friendship grew rapidly; There's so much, I need to ask before you're gone
There's a bunch of advice I need you to expand upon
But it's saddens me, how you often confused
Continual support, with extrinsic rewards
When I needed you the most your heart just stalled
Only validated the transaction to soothe your soul
Two followed by three zeros down the phone
The difficulty of a failed parenting responsibility
Would have made you fold, admittedly
Extending your hand, the one I craved to hold
Is all I desired while I was growing old
[Bridge]
Enslaved to the money, just to feed us
Circulating different regions, to protect us
From day one, from day one
You've always been about us
[Outro: Voicemail]
I know you're probably driving right now
But just remember that
The most expensive currency in this world is time
And you cannot buy it off the shelf
We might be here today
But tomorrow isn't promised, I'm just being honest
You're working overtime to accumulate wealth
I know bills need to be paid
But look at the damage it's doing to your own health
Grey hair, hunched back with minimum strength
You're innocent man with a strong heart
Work ethic that stretches beyond thought
I can't thank you enough, I just hope that one day
When my time finally arrives
I can be at least half the father you are
An inspiration to say the least
I know God has a special place for you
In heaven once you reach
But I apologise for all of the times
I shied away from verbal compa**ion
An unspoken bond that we retained in a sealed package
I wasn't man enough to tell you this
So I wrote down with a pen
86400 seconds in a day, and I can't even find two
To say how much I love you