Fragments: Creating Manhood from Pieces

By Mandrile Hose Young

FRAGMENTS has several musical influences. As you read through its pages, my love for music will jump out of several poems. The intersection of my writing and musical lyrics really gives this work a very unique voice. Songs for all of us bring back a flood of memories. These unique pieces were meant to merge your memories with my voice to maximize the effect of the poem and the context in which I chose to use the lyrics.

" So instead of looking for what a brother has,
Concentrate on his potential; focus on what
You can build together, even in stormy weather,
Which poses a question, "Can you stand the rain?"
I guess you answered that when you decided to leave.
Told me I was missing the picture. On the contrary,
I was missing from your picture. The pick-ax on your
shoulder should have clued me in when I met cha, and you
wonder why they call you bitch, I bet cha."

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Mar 19, 2006
• ISBN: 9780595834402

Mandrile Hose Young

Mandrile H. Young was raised in Varnville, SC and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History from Winthrop University. FRAGMENTS was written from his life experiences and deals with childhood acceptance, family, and people opinions on who he was. He currently resides in Fort Mill, SC with his wife and son.

Book preview

Copyright © 2006 by Even Flow Publishing

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

iUniverse

2021 Pine Lake Road, Suite 100

Lincoln, NE 68512

www.iuniverse.com

1-800-Authors (1-800-288-4677)

ISBN-13: 978-0-595-39050-2 (pbk)

ISBN-13: 978-0-595-83440-2 (ebk)

ISBN-10: 0-595-39050-1 (pbk)

ISBN-10: 0-595-83440-X (ebk)

Contents

The Package

The Rain Is Coming

Can You Hear That?

The Ballerina on 7th

Sentence Structure

No Ordinary Prose

A Moment

The Hip-Hop Judge

The Jones’

Hey You

Welcome Aboard

Plain Jane (inspired by Keb Mo)

Enjoying Time

Bottles and Cans (inspired by Angie Stone)

Into Words

Brown Baggin’It

The Car Wash

Parkers

untitled

Gravity

Morning/Mourning

Roots

Waiting to Exhale

Grateful (To Jocelyn)

Doc. Thompson

Uprooting the Family Tree

This Man

The Talented Tenth

Your Wish

The Perfect Choice

Common Knowledge: I’m the Shit!

Love Sick

Blue Eyes

Lord Knows

Questions

Locked In

Dark Clouds Are Above

Baby Boy

Matrimony

My Vow

Call Me Whomever

Perspective

Disguised (Inspired by Lauryn Hill)

Love in the Ghetto

My Long Distance Valentine

Last Night

Flowers

Brothers

A Cold Night

Onyx Softness

Confirmation of a Feeling

Comments to a Cheating Lover

Go ing On

Loving to Death

Dear America

The Long Way Home

Sight Blocks Vision

Senses

What a Brutha Gonna Do?

Verses of Degradation

Testimony

Twilight

Tantalizing the Soul

The Quickie

The Loom

The Creation

I give this book back to God, the one who has given me my voice, and who has mercifully kept me through all of my experiences in life. Without his understanding, patience, guidance, and unconditional love, I would be nothing, and still broken.

Fragments is dedicated to my first-born son, Reynolds Jackson. RJ, you are the best part of me, and the perfect manifestation of God’s love. I am so please with you, and blessed to be your father. To my grandfather Norris, you have always encouraged me to do the unthinkable. I thank you for your wisdom and guidance. To my brother Davey, thanks for being a true brother, and listening when I needed to pour out my soul. We all we got!

A man that finds his wife finds a good thing. To my wife, a woman that knows I have always had big dreams, and who gives up her time with me to allow me time to pursue those dreams, I dedicate Fragments to you. Thank you for following me even when you would prefer not too.

Last but not least, this book is dedicated to the memory of the late Dr. Dorothy Perry-Thompson, my mentor and past English Professor. She was the one who taught me to love writing, and the one who taught me that it was okay to march to a different drummer, even if that drummer was off beat.

The Package

And I roam aimlessly

Looking for a piece of me,

Hoping to find the address of my consciousness.

I have no mail, but the hope of you keeps me

Checking empty mailboxes.

The Rain Is Coming

I wanted you