One Life

[Verse 1: Last Emperor] 1993, shortly before Thanksgiving I got the call, she said, "Jamal, Derek is not longer living" Softly she spoke, is this a joke? Man, you gotta be kidding As my question was raised, this explanation was given A meaningless death made me question the meaning of life Does my body remain at rest like when I'm sleeping at night? Will I burn in eternal Hell or will I find paradise? Be rejected or ressurected like the body of Christ? Is it like purgatory, the story described by the Catholics? Or Nirvana that Buddha sought in both theory and practice? Like I studied in my college philosophy classes Or do my molecules and atoms travel back to the gases? I mean, what I'd like to know, is where's my spirit go? After the curtains close, on my final show? Is there a pain it brings? Enjoy my favorite things? Visit ancient kings? Hear the angels sing? "Who'll answer these?", said the great MCs My man Grym who's battling a debilitating disease He said, "You see, a brother like me is willing to fight And everytime I question death my only answer is life Nigga fight!" [Chorus: Esthero] One life, yeah And my God will set me free Am I living in this moment? Am I living righteously? It gets hard But I know I got to keep on I'm trying so hard to be strong [Verse 2: Poetic] Paralyzed on the bathroom floor by pain Last month I endured, but now I can't ignore Feels like railroad spikes being stuck in my liver Am I dying? Eyes crying, body starting to shiver Crawl upstairs from the basement, calling my sister (Sniff) "Dawn, help me, I ain't feeling too healthy" Stomach walls burning, head spinning and turning Waiting for the EMS; 3:10 in the morning Rush me to the emergency screaming like a newborn The pain's too strong, maybe my soul's trying to move on They hook me to the I.V., put me through some X-Rays Gave me Demerol to kill the pain, that was the next phase Early the next day in the hospital room Moms and Pops in the room, three or four docs in the room Uh; test results suggest your colon and your liver Is so cancerous you got three months left Me and Death is playing chess ever since then My strength is the Most High, my fam and close friends The Last Emp and Set Free blessed me with a verse Staying healthy comes first, look at me, things could be worse [Chorus: Esthero] One life, yeah And my God will set me free Am I living in this moment? Am I living righteously? It gets hard But I know I got to keep on I'm trying so hard to be strong One life, yeah And my God will set me free Am I living in this moment? Am I living righteously? It gets hard But I know I got to keep on I'm trying so hard to be strong