Goin' Through It - Brother Ali

They say the C word eatin' his body up

He 20 and already runnin' out of luck

They shot him up with a pile of drugs

Ain’t been able to concentrate in about a month

In college with a full sports scholarship

First in the family with that exact accomplishment

Momma spent her young life caught up in the gig

To get up in a crib to raise a child up in

He told me, «Most people never live.»

Said that death is liberating if you just admit

Every second is a gift, our denial is deceiving

They don’t even believe it til the moment that they leavin'

Please, Uncle Ali, don’t you dare cry for me

You don’t know nobody probably as alive as me

My eyes finally open wide enough to see

The sacred vibrations surroundin' me

It ain’t the medication talking, I’m not crazy

I already done started walking, y’all can’t save me

The greatest gift God ever gave me:

All this pourin' out and my home-girl's baby

My people are goin' through it, through it

My family goin' through it, through it

My loved ones goin' through it, through it

I don’t know how they do it, do it

My people are goin' through it, through it

My family goin' through it, through it

My loved ones goin' through it, through it

I don’t see how they do it, do it

She got off all the drugs that did, did

It’s borderline amazing that she lived, lived

Husband and a couple healthy kids

Feel guilty for the ones that never made it through them years

But she said detoxing ain’t the worst case

It’s only so long that the physical hurt stays

Once you get 'em out your system

Now you’re forced to revist all the reasons that you did them in the first place

They don’t leave

You may try to evacuate

So you escape

Go ahead and hit that, you straight

You make your bag 'fore it’s too late

Surprise, guess who’s waiting right there for you when you get back

Years since the last hit of anything

Every now and then, still feel ashamed

And still self-medicating by a different name

Really hope the baby don’t inherit that specific pain

I can’t lie, sometimes I wish I didn’t exist

I think of all the flyness that I would’ve missed

I put that on the love of the kids

I wouldn’t trade one minute of this

My people are goin' through it, through it

My family goin' through it, through it

My loved ones goin' through it, through it

I don’t see how they do it, do it

My people are goin' through it, through it

My family goin' through it, through it

My loved ones goin' through it, through it

I don’t see how they do it, do it

They had an anniversary to celebrate

It’s gonna take a lot more than a dinner date

Forty years in the game, their feelings still the same

Chill and wave goodbye and hit the interstate

How them old school couples do

Bangin' all the music first fell in love to

Think of all the experience they hung through

Somethin' all them years strugglin' can’t undo

He woke up to a close call

Drivin' through the night and he musta dozed off

Swerved to the right, lost control of the car

Hit a patch of ice on the road and rolled off

Last thing he remember is the car rollin'

Everything started happenin' in slow motion

When he woke up, the whole fam' standin' over

Nobody had to say it, it was all on them

He attended the funeral in his wheelchair

He told her, «Ma, I’m still here.»

And if you remain patient through the pain

When it’s through doin' it’s thing, the gratitude remains

There’s very few things sweeter when your love is your wealth

I knew that woman longer than y’all have known yourself

There are no mistakes in beginnings and ends

So long my sweet friend

Until we meet again

My people are goin' through it, through it

My family goin' through it, through it

My loved ones goin' through it, through it

I don’t know how they do it, do it

My people are goin' through it, through it

My family goin' through it, through it

My loved ones goin' through it, through it

I don’t see how they do it, do it