The dream is to be rich and bold, great and strong,
So our parents see a hero and professionals in us,
Prophets and soothsayers even see beyond,
Whilst friends and society may see otherwise,
But above all that they see; you just find yourself in life’s net.
Plenty folks have a different dream for us,
Regardless of our potentials within.
And on those foundation I term their counsel,
They build some massive castles.
Being born as a child; so young and free,
We enjoyed everything freely at no fee.
So the confidence of who we want to be when we grow,
Was on our lips like a chorus we sing at a show.
Everyone want to be a queen and rule like king,
With several servants and wear diamond rings.
Like Azar; we want to be number one,
Painting the world with our favorite colors,
And walk majestically on golden parlors.
But growing up as youth,
Life actually told us the truth.
Reality taught us that it's not on a silver platter,
Achieving your dreams and goals,
And even being yourself,
Is like opening to a difficult chapter,
Which is difficult to read and even comprehend.
The desire to be a doctor at six,
Turns to a carpenter at twelve,
Migrate to a musician at eighteen,
And at some point; we don’t even know who to be.
Not forgetting, Our welfare is subject to the economy,.
With education holding the autonomy,
And after realizing our goals,
We still realize a vacuum on our true purpose.
For our environment influence our decisions,
Trampling on our vision and passion,
Forcing us to chase the wrong dreams,
And end up emptied to the brim.
One thought of being like teacher Kwesi,
Or fly to America and Zambezi,
Has taken a different flight.
In reality, some qualified doctors are balancing accounts in banks,
And the unqualified in most institutions are being giving high ranks.
Hunger and greed has called several men to the pulpit,
Looting and pushing the innocent and ignorant into a messed pit.
Filling people’s mind with winding ecstasy,
Through their ambiguous and false prophecies.
Do I even know who I want to be?
What is my true purpose on earth?
These questions are usually hard to answer.
To me it’s like a heavy burden loaded on me.
I wish I could be a footballer or writer,
But for a traders son I have to learn to be a manager.
Climbing the ladder upstairs to success,
In this diaspora is filled with immense stress,
So now I don’t think of who I want to be,
For even those we look up to or envy,
Are like wolf’s in a sheep skin,
They really burn deep from within.
So if you ask me, who I want to be ?
I will simply say, 'I want to be me'.
For the person you ought to be,
Is yourself and not anyone else.
©dacosta
D