109

I’m probably just famished

searching for meaning, because I’m lost

But, I’ll be damn if anybody tells me Nipsey wasn’t a Boss

Not because he told others what to do,

but instead he helped people,

and mastered knowledge of self

It’s evident in his philosophy about gaining wealth

Jesus died at the age of 33

Anybody dying at that age doesn’t unsettle me

Tell me that the person who died

Strove to help his community

Set examples for future leaders

And invested his money wisely

Then you at least have my attention

Because those lofty goals match my ambition

And when I heard about Nipsey dying at 33

I was unsettled because he was so much like me

Not his life’s trajectory

Not his gangster proclivities

Not his swagger

Nor the fact that he was a young Crip respected by OGs

But, I identified with him because he was an American Black man who strove to determine his own destiny no matter if he was set back physically or mentally

And then there are the parallels between Nipsey and Jesus that have me scratching my head in disbelief, explain, Let me see if I can

Yashua Ben Josef was betrayed by a man and later killed by his enemies, the Romans

And American Blacks are killed at the hands of our enemies, we call them police

And I can’t stand to see

Images of us being murdered on TV

yearly

monthly

weekly

daily

So witnessing Nipsey murdered by a traitor made life seem so unfair

Especially because we know the story of Jesus being betrayed by Judas

And Nipsey’s murderer went by Shitty Cuz

Jesus cavorted with prostitutes who in his time were the lowest of low

In modern times many equate gangbangers as the equivalent of those

So even if a savior can be made of one who stooped down

Remember this so as not to be too quick to judge those who wear the crown

Now Bethleham is not close to but not far from the region where an ancient biblical kingdom from which Asghedom traces back to Punt and Axum, modern day Eritrea, Habesha, Once ruled by Queen of Sheba

Religions were all birthed from Africa by original Hue-mans

For instance, Jesus is mentioned more than Mohammad in the Qur’an

Also, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, are one and the same

Even though the Prophets have different names

John Henrik Clarke spoke against religiosity

He said putting religion down increases spirituality

And Rastafarians believe Haile Selassie was a reincarnation of Yeshua Ben Yosef

And maybe, just maybe Ermias Asghedom was also a deity

Ya’ll probably don’t believe Nipsey was a divine spirit, and aren’t trying to hear what I have to say, But I’ll give it a shot anyway…

A day in the life of a legend named LARRY

Do you believe in coincidences?, don’t be scary

Just because I’m talking about an omen, you might think i’m joking

but i don’t give a fuck, it’s just some shit that I noticed

Now this is how I do this, when checking a grip

All these instances are spooky, please don’t trip

We bustin’ funky compositions as smooth as prism

so check it as I kick it to this funky ass rhythm

109LAW2 is how my car’s license plate used to look

Pockets empty, no job in LA, it was time to book

I traveled overseas, arriving at a new country

hopped off the plane, got handed some house keys,

settled down, and got started earning a salary,

Come to find out, my birthday’s a national holiday

1-0-9 on my mind, I was fine, I thought

Until I started waking up at 10:09 on the dot

multiple times, then it hit me

these numbers keep coming to visit me

even when I bought a train ticket my seat would be 10 or 9 respectively

It was even my group number, which I thought was assigned randomly

Cut to the day I was at Addis Ababa University

Learning Ethiopian history,

Went to the bathroom,

on the second floor

Yup, you guessed it,

109 on the door,

And who knew?

Anwar said I can connect with Inca spirits in Peru

I was told listen and they will speak to you

Nipsey rapped Hit him “like an Omen seize the moment Hussle why wait”

I ascended Montana Machu Picchu that morning around eight

took a look around enjoying the view, it was great

I checked my watch it read 10:08

To stay within tradition (righhhht)

a minute later at 10:09 I started my descent

And while in Havana, Cuba one night

reading About Revolutionary Che’s life, Imagine the sight

When I learned he was shot on the 8th

of October but lost his life on the 9th

After these 109 coincidences

I told myself that I was imagining things

So when I tried to forget them

I was surprised to keep seeing them again

Got off the plane in Saudi Arabia

I whistled for a cab and when it came near

The license plate started with 109 and it had me feeling weird

If anything I can say this cab was rare but I thought

Man, forget it, yo holmes, I’m not scared

Guess these coincidences are signs

Why else would a man’s death coincide

with the same week as is celebrated Mohammad’s rise

In other words that same week Nipsey perished

Muslims celebrated Mohammad’s ascension to Heaven

It’s funny how every seven days leading up

I was greeted by a new revelation

I posted a picture of a goat to IG

because I felt as if that mofo disrespected me

by stepping on my new blue laced Nike sneaks

I was trippin’ like Boogaloo from Do The Right Thing

Then after seven days I posted a photo

In which I wore one sock on my right foot

While I laid in a tent reading a book

Another seven days later it all became clear

That day I received news I didn’t want to hear

After Seeing the burning bush

Moses Led Israelites from Egypt to Canaan

This story is retold in the Book of Exodus

Which Christians are familiar with

As this story has been retold many times

But not like this

Let me attempt to surmise

Stranger than fiction

Ermias means God Will Rise

Lend me your ear and I will explain why he is beneficent

For starters, like Moses, 109 has me feeling ancient

But ya’ll think I’m crazy if I told you leave LA

Board planes and relocate to Shashemane, Kumasi, or Mekele

But check it, I awoke and looked at my feed on IG only to realize

That a friend of mine

Who rarely posts photos had posted a photo to my surprise

I read the caption and began to cry

That was how I learned that Nipsey died

I felt lost

driving to work, a truck cut me off

I saw the license plate

What can this be?

A Calm came cover me.

It read 1090

Once again, 7 days later an Omen appeared in the sky

There were chemtrails up there, don’t ask me why

I live in Oman’s former capital, Nizwa

Few planes fly overhead so this was irregular

It wasn’t the chemtrails that had me at a word loss

Rather t’was the sight of the smoke forming a CROSS

I guess it’s fair, Rochelle told me that I was tripping and she didn’t want to hear about it, she said 10 and 9 are everywhere

And I believed her especially when I went to the Apple Store where every device is set to the same score

But when the first friend you make

After the first international trip you take

Shares the same birthday, you wonder anyway

Plus one week after posting a pic to IG

I saw that video of Nipsey carried out on a gurney

He was wearing a sock on his left foot

I felt shook, seven days before his body went limp

I was wearing one sock on my right foot eating oreos in my tent

Written by Larry Wiggs II

Click here to view the book, 109