About the Poetry Blog
The poets featured on this page are currently incarcerated, and many of them are in federal prisons far from home. Your feedback is a valuable source of motivation and connection to the outside community. These messages will be passed on directly to the author. Comments may not appear immediately on the site, as our team processes them to mail to the poets.
Click on the poem title to open it up, and then post your comments, feedback, and encouragement in the space below the poem.
Ode to the Nameless Immigrant
By AC
Ode to you:
He, who seeks a better tomorrow
He, who is willing to leave in the past
All that he ever knew to be true,
All of the things, the faith, the hope and the dreams
That fit tightly in a backpack
As a souvenir
Of a life that just wasn’t meant to be lived
Ode to you, my dear:
She, who stares at death in the face
And says in a barely audible voice
Drowned by the cries and the tears:
No, I cannot be afraid
I cannot die, you see
Not now, not here, not today
As she keeps walking further and farther
Right through the hurt of all that she has known
She walks off the pain
And speaks once again:
I have children to feed
I have people I love
Who possess desires and needs
I must forge ahead on this path to the future
On this path where I’ve left
The tears I could shed
The sweat I could sweat
And the blood I could bleed
Ode to you, beloved:
Ode to the nameless immigrant,
Citizen of the future
Resident of today,
Who fights for a chance in the place
Where the milk and the honey
Simply flow down the street
A place that we know as the home of the brave
A place that we know as the land of the free
Good luck, happy trails, on your way getting here
May the weight of the heat from the sun
Caress your soft face with a touch that is gentle
Instead of pushing you down as you grasp for dear air
May the strength of the waters that run through the rivers
Keep you afloat long enough
For you to comprehend that there is hope
For you to see that your dreams
Were nourished enough to survive
All the tests, all the trials
All the ups and all the downs
It is people like you that we need
It is people like you
A trailblazer, a pathfinder
A true worker of lands
Who harvest the seed of faith that he plants
A warrior of sorts who knows no defeat
Who is unable to grasp the meaning that hides just beneath
The senseless definition of words such as quit
It is you who we need
Who Would Know?
By JH
Who would know I got my mind right?
It’s obvious that at home I was blind
But who would know I got my eye sight.
I have an L plus 50
Which means they want me to be locked up beyond life.
The food is so bad, you don’t want to know
What I would do for a Klondike.
Most guys finish school in here
They will never get to have a prom night.
I know you could give a lot of these guys another chance
But who would know that I’m right?
The case manager and parole board only sit down with you
Long enough to count to 5 twice.
So who would know if someone’s a different man
Or if that person wants to do and be better than?
Those that have that job
Don’t seem that interested in giving a second chance
They know they’re going to deny you before you enter the room.
They won’t even give your case a second glance.
You stay up all night, thinking about what you’re going to say
Just for them to give you that
Come-back-in-5-years dance.
I pray to GOD I make it out of here with my sanity
While my mind is clear and advanced.
But who would know?
I’m stuck in a live-right-and-positive-everything trance
Instead they judge you
Off of the vibe of everything past
And their excuse is to say
You haven’t changed, you have everything masked.
I realized now that they throw some of us in here
And want us to remain trashed
And that some people don’t care
That I’m a changed man
The fact is I had a chance
Maybe my first was my last.
The Author
By DT
I got your hug today
Not with your arms but my shoulders
As alway I’m astounded by how far
It raised my spirits and hopes
You crush the loneliness and sadness of being shut down
But also give me a high that you can’t but
Compare to the lost being found
A note to tell me that I am loved and thought of
A moment of your time to make my day
I thank you for your care and love
And that same love I convey
A love that break the barriers of aloneness
And causes my heart to remember:
Beside friends, God, and loved ones,
My life can go on.
I am never alone.
Best Friend
By MV
You asked me
“Where are you?” and
“Where do you live at?”
I don’t like to lie,
So of course,
I went around the question.
“I live over the mountains,
By the ocean, 14 hours away.”
“Do you live in a lighthouse?”
“You can say that, there’s
A bright light and a tower.”
All of your questions are valid
And I will always listen.
You’re my nephew and now,
My best friend.
I see my younger self
In your questions
I would ask your grandma
“Where’s my dad?”
“He’s in the sky.”
“Does he fly airplanes?”
“No son, he’s with God,
he’s watching over you.”
Death and prison,
Two things children can’t comprehend
Like teaching them calculus.
The only thing they understand
Is presence, or lack thereof.
The temptation is
To make me your hero
But time will only bring
Disappointment,
Like no one showing up to your game.
The grand image,
Evolves into something realistic.
My “lighthouse,” a prison,
My lessons, examples I never followed
The cape becomes
State blues,
The mask falls and
I’m just a criminal.
But for now,
I’m your best friend,
Your sounding board,
Your cheerleader,
Someone to trust
Someone you talk to
About building things and
Your joy in running,
And whatever else.
“Sy”, if you’re going to build,
Become a master of foundations,
So that you’ll build
As high as you wish
Continue training for stamina
So that life’s race
Will never wear you down.
And know, your best friend
Is here always.
Free Mind
By TL
I got a Free Mind, full of lots of thoughts and ideas
My body locked up in the pen, but my mind is not here
I know I’m finally coming home at the end of the year
Every time I think about it, my eyes almost shed a tear
I can’t wait to ride foreign, push start, switchin gears
Nice clothes on my body, diamond studs in my ears
Only focused on my future, leave the past in my rear
It used to be a little foggy, now my future seem clear
Coming back to the system, only thing that I fear
I wanna make my mother proud, keep her from shedding a tear
I learnt some lessons on my own, some things I ain’t wanna hear
They left me froze up in a police light, stuck like a deer
Emotions
By JS
Everyone has emotions, whether they are good or bad.
Sometimes we choose to hide them…
Is that good or bad?
We’re all humans and come from the same path.
Some goes left / others going right
But our emotions are all the same,
Some up or down or in between
Having feeling means you’re human and not a lame
Express how you feel and don’t feel ashamed
Always keep in mind that emotions cause pain
Let them all out to remain sane.
They Don’t Hear Me
By JR
The sound of my mother’s voice
“J.R. you are not dumb,
just pay attention”
as I sit staring at the math problems
the tutor has in front of me
but they don’t hear me
I’ve always had a mind of my own
ever since I was able to stand on
my own
but they don’t hear me
As a baby I tried to tell people
what I wanted
and didn’t want
but they don’t hear me
I would see my older brothers and cousin
run out of the house when my back was turned
because they knew I’d
follow
I would tell my little legs
to move
but they don’t hear me
The sound of my mother’s voice
“J.R. you can do the work”
but they don’t hear me
Imagine being unable to express what you’re feeling
I am still that baby who is crying inside trying
to tell the people
that I know
what they don’t
but they don’t hear me
Here I am today still unable to tell my mom
how I feel because she’s passed on
However I still find myself talking to her
hoping that she can hear me
Because I can now tell her that
I don’t know how to do
what she wants
but can only do
what I can
BUT THEY DON’T HEAR ME
We See Nothing Wrong
By TT
Patching up holes in “old” drywall,
Sanding down all that lies rough,
Painting over mistakes with white paint…
Left me with a “spot” of new.
Like a full moon in the night,
A reminder of the damage I caused.
Catching my sight every time I turn,
But these people pass by oblivious…
Still, I anticipate the scrutiny ruefully.
Finally questioning “doesn’t that spot bother you?”
A white spot on an old wall…
And they say “we see nothing wrong…”
Maybe it’s time to forgive myself…
Me and My Pen
By DA
The bond we share is unbreakable
The love I have for you is not overrated
The feeling I have for you is real
The energy you give me is good
Whose, Who
By BW
Can you see, see?
Whose really free, free?
We are caged, people are caged, animals are caged
This keeps me so, so raged!
Because the plague, plague raged, that, that
Caged, caged…
Counties, communities, cities, countries
All plagued, plagued, even the dead
Rage that ignited rage, that swept, kept
Many caged and when we turn the page…
We see, see, so many have aged from being caged
People urged to stay caged from the plague that
Swooped in like the rage, and ate away the aged
Rage that invades men, women, children, and moves
So rude, that the people intrude—intruding –
They storm, swarm, and looking enraged…
Trying to overturn and overhang
Now they too are among the raged that is caged
From east to west, to north to south
From shelter, to apartment, to house, to hospital
To nursing home, to jail cell, to prison cell
All feeling like hell, in the midst of this spell
That has left the rest in a shell, telling tales
We’re all caged, with rage, all on edge
Wonder, wondering when, when, when, you, me
And we can be free, free, free…
We all want…
Can you see, whose really free, free, free or do you see?
Story of My Life
By CM
My life is like a notebook filled with empty pages
Bitter words and blank statements
I stare at the pages and try to picture
What should go in these spaces
When I can’t get my own, I take from others
And try to replace them
I’m not being a follower
I just use the leader’s example as inspiration, persuasion
And sometimes motivation
Convincing me to keep the ink on my paper
These bitter words are like lemons and grapefruits
If you put enough sugar on it, it will taste true
People sell it everyday like Minute Maid
But a lie will stay sour until it’s lemonade
These statements I make that seem so bold
Are often the ones that make my heart
Look so cold
See and Be Seen
By MR
My creativity revealed the
Viewpoint for integrity & identity
In the world where Black artists
Can struggle with partial justice
And support my strange response
Could help power our community
With social love
But a struggle to deal with spiritual formation in America
Are traditional standards
Embracing leadership features unique strength
On him who apply reflection then sureness
Across the land
I’m beautiful
Respected in visual art for a lot of soul
Corporate characteristics
Successful me