[Verse One: Big Pooh]
Life is based on sacrifices
And I don't know about guys that's like us
We always felt that drove you crazy
The oldest son beatin' on the youngest baby
No intervention
So much work is what started the tension
Lack of attention for the details
I suppose, time rose that cross roads
Of learn and pa**, we both failed
Set sail
And blaze trails on our way
The sticky fingers of my day
Gettin' my pay, my way
Independence leadin' to the highways
The bi-ways, via the closet storage
The only logic for adolescent youth
Smellin' my pits denying the truth under your roof
Never
And so you lashed out
Kicked his a** out
He mashed out
Returned on the humble
We all stumble was the antidote
Till he chopped soap
It kept the glucose knockin' at your front door
We ain't front poor
We struggled through
Three kids, one mother
Minus three pop dukes
Lack of child support and money too
You made sure we never went hungry
As long as we in front of you
For three seasons you rocked the same coat
And spoke broke but found plenty at the holiday season I guess
It's from you I get my structure and my reason
Moms I thank you for believin'
[Hook: Phonte]
Now love is
12 hour shifts and sacrifice
And love is
Runnin' in back and switchin' the prices
Now run it down
Cause love is everything that you do
Now love is
Bouncin' checks to send me on school trips
And love is
Drawing retirement to get me a whip
Now run it down
And love is everything that you do
[Verse Two: Phonte]
Yo, I was lookin' at a blank page
Tryin' to think of words to describe you
The pain we shared and the drama we survived through
The times you cried when you was lied to
Single handedly raisin' a son before you graduated high school
The situation, kinda wild I presume
15 years old and had a child in the womb
And the whole town cuttin' eyes and gettin' mad at you
But f** all y'all n***as was your attitude
That's why the teachers used to frown at me
Because that same attitude you pa**ed down to me
Cursin' in cla**
They called me a deviant kid
But stayin' after school cause wasn't sh** to eat at the crib
But you kept believin' in me
That's why I give you mad props
Even when our front door got padlock
And I was outside feelin' like a have-not
You taught me happiness, regardless of the backdrop
And yo, I know I don't say it
Thanks for all the times you made sure my work was punctuated
Even though your income fluctuated
I still wonder how the f** we made it
And that's why I'm singin' this
[Hook]
And love is
Keepin' my words and my grammar precise
And love is
After school, come home with no lights
Now run it down
Cause love is everything that you do
Now love is
Child support checks at the first of the month
And love is
Summertime goin' out for free lunch
Now run it down
And love is everything that you do