Cash Credit Soul
Cash credit or soul
Cause it’s the only currency that is currently available to you if you want to see your child grow
He replies
No I gave you cash last week
The quality of my credit runs deep
And my soul weakens at the notion that I only get a few moments on the weekends to spend raising my child to the best person that he or she can be
See a child needs a father just as much as a mother
Although there are lots of brothas who do not cherish this responsibility, I'm telling you straight up that that ain't me I wanna be there I wanna see the victories along with the defeats
Together we can raise a child who understands that love is more than skin deep
She's blinded by the pain of the division confused by the tugging of emotions
Hurt speaks the loudest
Anger does the most damage
Selfishness makes all the choices
She yells
Cash credit or soul
The cash you gave me is done
I'll take the credit as the only one financially capable of loving this one
Gave you my soul
Had it returned in pieces
So excuse me that my lease on life is trust no one
Life taught me that disappointments come
But I got tired of that familiar feeling
Feeling like I gotta always protect my child from the dangers of this life
Feeling like I gotta consistently take back the knife
Feeling like at this point we can just let the courts decide
Knowing full well that the courts usually fall to the mother's side
He's feeling rage and sadness inside
Formally oblivious to the detrimental
Emotional collide
Two people,
Two paths
Growing a part
Creating a natural divide
Leaving only one left on the ride
Reminiscing on childhood memories
His wisdom provides understanding that a child thrives in organized co-parenting But how do you parent open wounds?
How do you restore order where fear and distrust loom?
Leaving barely enough room to focus on priorities
Morals,
Belief,
Education,
Celebration of life and freedom
Freedom to break free from a soulless society
Withholding Knowledge Sobriety
It's the reason why she seems to ask the same question
Cash credit or soul
Without any profitable goal
He caves in
Knowing in the end
He only wants his child to win
This might be his greatest sin
Deliberately choosing to do everything
He solemnly whispers
Soul
Hoping to lessen the toll
Of a stolen childhood
Reflection & Context
This piece was written from the fracture line of broken trust, co-parenting, and the invisible negotiations that happen when love has been wounded but responsibility remains. It speaks to the tension between protection and partnership, between fear and faith, between choosing what feels safest and choosing what is actually healthiest for a child’s future.
It names how pain can harden communication, how past betrayal can distort present decisions, and how two people can love the same child yet stand on opposite sides of unresolved hurt. At its core, this poem is about the weight of choosing maturity over resentment, stability over control, and God’s guidance over emotional reaction.
It asks the deeper question: when history is heavy and trust is fragile, what does it mean to parent from the soul rather than from survival?
Reflection Prompt
Where has hurt shaped your decisions more than healing?
What would it look like to let wisdom, not fear, lead the way when the future of a child is involved?
Original Performance
This piece was originally performed as part of the Lips & Poetry series, where spoken word meets lived experience. Watch the original recording below to hear the rhythm, breath, and emotion that first carried these words.