BETWEEN WHITE AND BLACK 

I used to walk down a narrow road with my eyes fixed straight ahead
Only seeing what I was taught to see
Never ventured beyond the lines that were drawn and I made my bed
In the house that my father built for me

I used to see black or white, high or low, wrong or right
It used to be us or them, either stand with me or stand against
Now I see the world is round not flat
With a million colors between white and black

I turned away from what didn’t fit, thought nothing worthy could exist
Outside my world so carefully designed
To keep out anything alien, anyone different
Who threatened my fragile piece of mind

Chorus:

But when the enemy has a face
Black and white become shades of grey
What was once written in stone
Crumbles when the feared becomes the known

I stood confused and unsure, but I took the key unlocked the door
And let the world rush in like a tidal wave
All the sights and sounds and faces and words that didn’t fit before
Found room in my newborn state of grace

Chorus:

c 1996, Barbara Martin