Freedom Ain’t Always Been Free

This good stuff is so soft and smooth. I can even eat it when I get thirsty. I ain’t never seen anything like this down in Florida.

I ask once more, “What’s it called again Harriet?”

She says back quietly, “Snow. In this case, the white parts are better than the colored. Be careful and remember to cover your footprints as you go.”

A life as a slave ain’t no life at all. I wish I could just play in the snow like the white children. I guess I’m too black for fun. Kids that look like me start workin’ before we can even put a thought together.

We’re escapin’ to the north, so we can be free from slavery. It ain’t right, but it’s the way things are, so I gotta do what I gotta do to live another day. Mama taught me how to pray when I get worried.

Harriet is takin’ me to a safe place in Maryland to hide until we can continue our journey all the way to New York.

I ain’t ever been there, but I hope my Mama will be there too. I don’t know if she’ll recognize me, but I’ll sure know her if I see her. I still remember the way she smells and how she wrapped her hair every night with a sheet.

The snow has frozen my feet, but there ain’t time to warm them up. The dogs will be after us soon, and I really don’t wanna die.