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I Am Tired
Loneliness is in my bones
  Because of my different skin tone
  Isolated and controlled
  As if I have something to owe
  My soul is crooked like my back
  Is it because I’m black?
  I seem as if it doesn't bother me
  I try to act tough
  But in reality
  Everyone needs some love.
  
  Hello
  I am Crooks and I am black
  Love and care is what I lack
  I am treated like dirt
  They hurt me while they smirk
  All night and day I stay alert
  For their hate is what I try to avert
  
  I am tired
  
  Like an animal, caged away
  I rather have death come my way
  I cry and cry with all my might 
  I seek for God
  But He is nowhere in sight
  
  Why must you desert me when I need you the most
  You are supposed to protect me
  Guard me
  Insulate me
  Like a winter coat
  But rather than helping me
  I only see your ghost
  
  I am tired
  
  If my skin turned red in the sun
  My suffering would be none
  If in the cold I became blue
  I am sure I would be loved too
  Why must I suffer this way?
  I have no clue
  I feel their hatred deep in my bones
  My heart is now turned to stone
  
  I am tired
  
  I am here alone
  With no company but my own
  All I hear is the sound of my own heart
  But I refuse to let my loneliness tear me apart
  
  At times I feel strong
  Head held high
  Chest wide and broad
  My pride shields me from their words
  As they yell at me, all I hear is humming birds
  
  But my strength disappears when I hear them say
  The word that takes my name away
  The word that makes my soul decay
  As it pounces on me as if I were its prey
  The word that weighs a thousand pounds
  And crushes me into dust and mounds
  
  I am tired
  
  Chained to the past
  My life is hidden within the shadow that it casts
  Each time I close my eyes, I ask
  How long will this pain last? 
  
  Each day at dusk I find myself on the floor
  I want to cry
  But my eyes tear no more
  I no longer fear their mouths and fists
  I have become callous and emotionless
  
  I am tired
  
  I am drained of all hope
  With all my might, I hold on to life
  As if it were a rope
  But I can feel my grip slowly loosening
  The voice in my head tells me to do something
  
  I pray that someone will hear my signal of distress
  But as time passes
  In my pain, I see no progress
  Praying will do no good
  I am alone in this world
  Alone I stand
  Alone I stood
  
  When will this end?
  Although strong and unbothered is what I pretend
  My heart remains a place where happiness does not attend
  
  Take a look into my life and it’s not a pleasing view
  For a stray dog gets more affection than I do
  Although my life is not a tale I would like to conclude
  I am for certain that when I pass
  Heaven will be my refuge
  
  I am tired
  
  Tired of it all
  Sick of their abhorrence coming down like rainfall
  How can they not see
  They have stolen my dignity
  They have beaten my soul down to debris
  I wait for the day I see the light of mercy shine on me
  But for now,
  To you who reads
  I repeat
  
  Loneliness is in my bones
  Because of my different skin tone
  Isolated and controlled
  As if I have something to owe
  My soul is crooked like my back
  Is it because I’m black?
  I seem as if it doesn't bother me
  I try to act tough
  But in reality
  Everybody needs some love.

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This poem is specifically about Crooks, the african-american character in the book Of Mice and Men.