i come from a ,strong house built on shaky ground where the cops quick to shake u down cause u fit the profile if your face is brown and u dress like the n*ggas that you hang around they'll take u down to the station try to get a statement by tellin you all about the time that you facin but some get complacent start cooperatin and i aint sayin dont snitch, shit im just sayin that karmas a bitch, and the playas keep playin and everyday n*ggas lose their space'n just get replaced cause the game dont stop like the hands on a clock and you can get clapped... just like that at the drop of a hat or better yet the drop of a dime or dropped over eyein the wrong dime's behind cause its a fine line between life and dyin its sorta like the curb it separates the street from the side walk and i was a nerd who stayed in beef cause how i talk smart chick, with a smart mouth never start shit but it followed me, when i stepped out the house and i tried to keep my hands clean i was into hoopin hoodlums told me doo the damn thing the good kid in the hood, ya girl went the book route tried to play the corners but i never made it higher than a look out i told them peeps when the cops was comin and in return them peeps they looked out for a youngen i went to the corner store, never paid for nothin stopped gettin jumped by shanika and her cousins and i loved it the hood taught me valuable lessons how anything you pick up in a fight is a weapon or a shield and dont be scared to take a punch to keep your lunch cause in a day, them scars will heal and if you pass the test then you will get respect but if you back down, then you gonna get messed with so when they knocked me down i would come up swingin not soft just because i had a good upbringing see moms and pops taught me not to be a slave that the system was corrupt but still get good grades got word from the teachers, that i was a problem but did their own research and wouldnt let em medicate pops worked for the city we wasn't on medicaid moms real gritty stayed schemin on ways of gettin paid they tucked me in with a hug and kiss from my pops i got patience, my mother gave me stubbornness streets gave courage and the fam gave encouragement between the two i got a double dose of nourishment double dose of knowledge from street scholars and college product of it all so all i acknowledge the diamond in the rough that got polished...