To be said that we are the dreams and hopes of slaves, is a proper gift in this uplifting book of poetry. After years of suppression and oppression, it is now time to stand and face the waters that have brought us to shore. For months our African ancestors would be carried on ships and thrown ashore but today, this day and those to come, we will head our future with the gifts given of our history and speak life into the dialect of the African American man, woman and child.