It’s just a game they say-

Tell it to the kid who gave up smokin’
who’s no longer stuck jokin’ about cancer-
because someone gave him a token to play

Tell it to the kid who just dropped a sweet dime
saw the smile on his daddy’s face for the first time
found that on the court he had rhythm and rhyme

Tell it to the girl who finally found a place
where she doesn’t have to put on a new face
and she can take on the world at her own pace

Tell it to the guys who bang the boards at noon
knowing their lunch hour will be through soon
stickin’ around because this game plays their tune

Tell it the kid who just joined his first team
who finally found out what the word means
because it’s something his family never seemed

Tell it to the people with empty pockets
who feel rich when the ball hits the net like a rocket
the adrenaline pulsing like it came from an electrical socket

Tell it to the kids in a gun-riddled city
who have to grow up hard and gritty
people tellin’ them they’ll never be witty

You know what they’d say don’t you
who are you- if you had half a clue
if only you knew what they had to do
you’d know it was the only way to see it through

sonnet