Remember

Remember when the good old days weren’t so old,

When kids actually did what they were told,

When being grown didn’t mean being so bold,

When the cops were actually the good guys,

Preachers didn't tell lies,

When politicians could actually look you in the eye,

When Good Times were not just on TV,

When we played sports outside not on the Wii,

And you could get a drink of water for free,

I remember

Remember when fashion before comfort wasn't the rule,

When getting your big brother and sisters hand me downs was still cool,

When wearing name brands didn't mean you could be cruel,

When you could still wear cutoffs in the pool,

Remember when your clothes had to fit,

When you had to stand for the pledge you couldn’t sit,

And you couldn’t miss school unless you could prove you were sick,

Remember when going to McDonald's was a treat,

When a pound of butter went into everything you’d eat,

When it was actually sugar that made your food sweet,

When everything was O'tay like buckwheat,

I remember

Remember when fights ended with a bloody nose,

When there was nothing but role models in the pros,

Even the white kids wanted a Dr. J afro,

Remember when break dancing was new,

The only gangs were dance crews,

We all had fat laces in our shoes,

When you used to wear parachute pants,

You had to wait for the record to get turned over to dance,

The wall flowers would do their cool guy stance,

When everyone thought Prince was gay,

Then you saw Purple Rain and said "Ah,no way!"

And everyone wanted to moonwalk like MJ,

I remember

Remember when the saying was black is beautiful,

And white is right,

But it didn't matter what color you were everything was "Dynamite",

Remember when the n word was wrong,

You never heard cursing in a song,

There wasn’t anything worst than Cheech and Chong,

We danced to a song about a thong, thong, thong, thong,

Remember when board games where fun,

When fun never involved using a gun,

When just not being picked last for a team was better than saying I won,

I remember

Remember when every guy opened her door,

When you didn't have to get paid to do your chores,

When you were told "Don't touch anything in this store!",

Remember when you were the remote for the TV,

When you had to ask permission to leave,

When you had use a hot comb before they invented the weave,

Remember when every kid wanted to marry their mom,

When everyone hot was totally the bomb,

When the most important night of our lives was the prom,

Remember when your mom and dad use to kiss you on the mouth,

Then you wouldn't kiss them outside of the house,

Now your kiss your kids can't do without,

Remember when brother also meant your friend,

When marriages never broke only bend,

When being a dad meant being a dad to the end,

Remember when your Grandpa would take a nap,

He'd fall asleep with you in his lap,

You couldn't move or you'd get a slap,

I remember

Remember when you had to be home before the street lights went out,

You couldn't talk back without a smack in mouth,

Your mom would say I don't care what other kids do,

Bring your behind in this house before I slap the black off you,

Remember eni meani moe,

Catch a monkey by his toe,

Where did all the fun games like freeze tag, red light- green light and wall ball go,

These kids today don't even know,

Remember when going to church wasn't a choice,

You'd go home and imitate the preacher’s voice,

Wandering why we had a pacer and he drove a Rolls Royce,

Remember when we said I'm sorry not my bad,

When you actually held a conversation, not tweet on your Ipad,

When mad really meant you were really mad,

When you gave a handshake not a pound when you met her dad,

I remember

Memories sometimes that's all you got,

I've had some bad ones, but those I forgot,

I hope I brought some of your memories to light,

I hope most of your memories are bright,

So don't you forget to remember?

Terrill Snead