Maybe They Had a Reason

01/09/2020 -  Poem a Day Compilation



Maybe they had a reason

Maybe they had a rhyme

Maybe they just didn’t think

And now they’re doing time



Their bad boy look was fake

Their gangster vibe a fraud

Their criminal credentials long expired –

It was more than they could afford



They’ve got no one else to blame

They’ve got to take it on the chin

They’ve got 25 to life to ponder

Why they threw their future in the bin



There’s a monotony in their future

There’s a shadow over their past

There’s an emptiness in their here and now –

Who knows how long it will last?



They could’ve been so much more

They could’ve used the brains in their head

They could’ve made something of themselves

But they may as well be dead



The gates that keep them locked inside

The walls that imprison them here

The guards that keep the peace each shift –

All feed a hate and terrible fear.



They wanted to be the big man

They wanted to be top dog

They wanted to be something they weren’t

Now they’re a name on a log



Someone tells them when to eat each day

Someone tells them what to do

Someone tells them who they’re bunking with

But they don’t dare say boo



They’re the small fish in a big pond

They’re just trying to stay alive

They’re in over their heads

And trouble could add five



Their lawyer did the best he could

Their record was less than sublime

Their life of freedom was at an end

The punishment fitted their crime



No one could dispute the facts

No one would disagree with the truth

No one fought the justice system

Because they screwed up their youth



Once they’re on the inside

Once reality settles in

Once the cold light of day shines down

They see the consequences of their sin



Maybe they had a reason

Maybe they had a rhyme

Maybe that doesn’t matter now

Because now they’re doing time