There was a time way before you said hello to me. br You were tall and (short) thin and beautiful. br Make-up touched your skin with the stroke of a brush. br You were light skinned (and) br Another dark both in love br With men you’ve never even noticed. br Before I came to you and called you grandma br You were my mother and my father’s mothers. br Before you called to come to dinner br You were struggling with work, aching feet, and toes. br There was a time way before this br When you weren’t a mother or grandmother. br A time you were a kid yourself you couldn’t br Decide your dreams or your favorite ice cream. br A time when you could laugh and play br Back in Mississippi and Missouri. br Before you had a home of your own br You were dressed in your mother’s clothes br Staring back at a mirror that could stare at you br Before you were a woman you was a child too.