“Dad! I feel the green!” my eight-year-old son blurted out. Lying on the grass at Skinner Park, we see the white clouds come our way, the summer rays warming our black faces. Propping myself up with my left hand, I face him while my right-hand scratches my head, “Terrell, how on earth do you feel the green from the grass?”

He closed his eyes for a moment.

I could see the gears churning in his head. “Weeelllll, ‘memba when me and mom were waiting for you at the airport? It felt like forever! But really it was a few minutes, And then I ran really fast once I saw you! But I fell and scraped my knee, but it didn’t hurt though, and then you picked me up really high in the air before giving me the biggest hug ever!”

“Well, son. Of course I remember. That happened yesterday. And besides, on my way home all I thought about was…” I began tickling him “how much I could hug ya till your eyes pop out your head!”

“ha ha ha, dad, dad stop, ha ha ha!” managing to squirm away I then stopped and he begins “Well, that’s what green feels like.”

How did I miss so much? He’s become incredibly thoughtful.

I close my eyes to think about when he fell to this earth.

Cradling Terrell in my arms, my heart beats gently like the soft sound of a kick drum with a feather-filled pillow in its core. In this memory is a melody welling up with a symphony of strings soothing my soul seeing an angel sleep soundly. 

The memory of his first steps is as blurry as the video feed I watched it on, 6,915 miles away minutes before deployment.

Opening my eyes, I find myself sitting in the stands watching Terrell rounding the bases to applause arriving at home base.

Five years had flown past.

I blink.

Another five years.

Seeing him in his cap and gown left me feeling joyful then blue. I already missed so much, but we need the money for his Harvard tuition. I’ll get some more and then we’ll be good.

I close my eyes once more.


About Saba’s “Come My Way”

2018 Chicago Tribune’s Chicagoans of the Year Saba releases “Come My Way” from his latest album “Few Good Things”. The album is a much anticipated follow up to 2018’s “Care For Me”, named #1 Hip-Hop Album of the Year by NPR

Saba’s North America tour, Back Home Tour, begins in April, buy your tickets here.

“Poverty song was a concept I considered for this one. “All I’m doing [is] thinking how to get some money, and then we’ll be good.” A false statement, but one that I believed at a point, and many others believe right now. This song also takes place in that nostalgic kind of setting. I’m describing many things that are normal on the westside of Chicago, so that it plays like just any other day. Pretty stagnant but having so much life. “We ain’t got no time to relax.” A harsh reality for so many people experiencing this type of poor. The focus is on work and survival. “Had to run them niggas shooting shit, I wish that the guys had shields.” An acknowledgement of grief, but the song is not written as to feel sad or sorry for ourselves. It is a reality, not one I or anyone else can change, so this song is getting up the next day and getting to work, or getting to it however you provide, but just moving on in that fashion. “And then we’ll be good.” Throughout whatever adversity, and challenges, and otherwise just fucked up shit comes our way.” – Saba provides insight into his song.

Patrick Funom is the Editor In Chief of 8Pounds.com