Good Word - by Suheir Hammad

begged mohammad for his help he let me know he don't deal with

no whores told him i was a virgin

but you got the heart of a whore, he said

begged solomon to put in a good word with fate

he said i'd have to marry him

replied that i was saving myself for another prophet

too bad he don't deal with no virgins

on my knees i pleaded to jesus

sorry i only deal with virgins or whores

well was born a virgin and plan to be a whore i promised

already got my two marys he called over his shoulder

buddha wasn't down with my troubles

he couldn't understand my intimacy problems

osiris couldn't hang with me

cause my temple didn't hang right

jehovah wasn't even trying to hear me

i was too far back on line

jah told me to smoke my trials away

but my lungs were too small for his divine high

my knees were bloody

from kneeling forever

pages of all the holy books stained my hands red

my eyes burned from the incense in all those temples

blood of all the holy wars stained my hands red

my eyes burned from the incense in all those temples

blood of all the holy wars stained my hands red

the prayer rugs were frayed and soiled

prayer beads were loose on the floor

slipping me up

no communion baptism nile libation

ain't no ritual around to cleanse me

of these demands

the prophets gotta pay the rent

they gotta get off too

the messengers gotta do what they gotta do

they gotta pimp and scheme just like we do

then they come to me

asking for a good word

from Tribes Issue 7