They say you can’t lead a horse to water then force it to drink,
Such a saying done forced yours truly to sit down and think,
Better to teach one to fish than catch it for ‘em every day, to take them under your wing until they can spread theirs then fly away,
But resistance is a possibility and in this case it’s kinda scary,
When they ain’t open to learning ‘cuz a free ride’s appealing,
When there’s zero progress because they couldn’t care less,
When the entitlement is such that they’d rather you do the rest,
To hunt and gather day after day to get them a good feed, shoulder the heavy loads until those joints creak,
Give them an inch and they’ll give you a mile, such sentiments rings true,
Tired of pulling their own weight, for all the hard yakka they’re turning to you.
Seemed like a dream when we’d finally reconnected,
Residing in different parts of the ocean, low-key forgot that the other party existed,
One big happy fam again it seemed, the honeymoon period seemed never-ending,
Should’ve done this sooner, the lateness now yours truly is regretting,
The turning point seemed innocuous but should have braced for impact,
Looking back should have severed ties there and then, that’s a sad fact,
You asked your boy for a hefty favour, even through drastic means,
Even if it meant a potential run-in with the authorities,
Opened the floodgates, others rushed in with so-called favours,
Quickly became clear that one man alone bore their expectations,
That’s to be the payroll, no ifs or buts, time and time again,
No problem too big, let him foot the bills, dude be living the life and they all want a slice,
Promised to reimburse but ain’t nothing guaranteed, funny how when it’s time to collect they suddenly disappear,
They think he got it figured out, that he’s swimming in green,
Such sentiments couldn’t be more wrong, let’s make some things clear.
They say you shouldn’t judge someone by where they came up,
No two origin stories are the same, to make assumptions would be insane,
Applies, too, to those they say got all the breaks,
Ain’t just dudes from the ‘hood slapped with labels insensitive and crude,
Some folks seem blessed many times over, the ones that fortune smiled upon,
But they, too, aren’t immune to struggles, bad luck strikes ‘em now and then,
You’d think they can escape any trap unscathed but that’s where you’re mistaken,
Could fumble the bag at any time, perhaps burn priceless bridges while they’re at it,
Health could slide at any moment, not to mention the all-conquering rising costs of living,
Hate to break it to you but that money pit ain’t as bottomless as you think,
More to the point it ain’t yours to abuse, no one believes a liar crying ‘wolf.’
Got your back should you ever run into strife,
By that we’re talking ‘bout the catastrophic type, those that require an army by your side,
Yes, your daily struggles dwarf those of the ones that you’re begging from again,
But it would be a stretch to suggest that yours are situations that are life and death,
If anything you embellish the truth just to get that loot so you can live large on someone else’s funds, read that again and tell me it ain’t fucked up,
We’re giving you plenty yearly so what’s your damn hurry?
Please don’t say you’d burned right through the last damn bags already,
Never needed handouts prior, did this renewed connection change things?
Live within your means if you want to live like kings and queens,
It’s strange how you remain invisible unless you need some bread,
Was contact initiated purely to keep those ever-expanding bellies fed?
Sorry, but it doesn’t work that way,
If this is a game your boy ain’t gonna play,
You ain’t keeping me boxed up in case of emergencies only,
Trapped in a lamp like your very own genie,
Got my own problems like the rest of ‘em, can’t take on too many external burdens,
Take responsibility for your own and face ‘em, like you did back when we were virtual strangers.
Hate to sound callous but should you reach the end of this rope your boy ain’t hanging on ‘til his palms rip, he’s letting that shit go,
Got no use for leeches that try to drain, life itself’s already a pain,
Those that ride with you should be ones that revitalise and empower you,
Flip the script and see how you like it, you really don’t want such problems,
Folks you know made it on their own, why not follow their examples?
You descended from hard-workers and survivors, why not use them as a personal reference?
You’re still better off than others where you’re at yet you’re ducking responsibilities like a brat,
Get up from your knees and hustle, keep moving and moving ‘til the wheels fall,
The view atop that mountain will be sweeter than if you got there on someone else’s time and effort,
That’s enough ranting for today, ain’t nothing personal unless you make it so,
Really hope we can stay on course, but if not it’ll be your fault, Sorry but this bank’s closed.