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.
Rise Above
By MD
YOU DON’T KNOW ME
You see that I’m locked up & think I’m going nowhere in life
You see that I’m caring & think I’m sweet
But you don’t know me
You would know me if…
You knew how hard it was to be called a crack baby growing up
You knew how I feel when I think people don’t care
You knew how much I wanted to go to the NBA
(more…)
Livin’ in a World
By MM
Livin’ in a world
Where if you snitch you hot
Livin’ in a world
Where dope dealers on the block
Livin’ in a world
Where the youngins totin’ glocks
Pain to Power
By AR
I was 14 when I watched Ky die
When I seen him fall back and close his eyes,
I wanted to die
I didn’t want to believe he was dying
So I ain’t cry
I just talked to his boy like he was alive
(more…)
Life is Too Short
By TE
Sentenced to 7 years in prison at the age of sixteen
Life is too short to be sitting in prison
Holding grudges on a person is a waste of time
People change and things go wrong so quickly
But that’s a part of life
Life is too short to hold grudges
Always forgive but never forget and have no regrets
Life is too short to be unhappy
Smile when you are sad and laugh when you can
Because life is too short
Livin’ in a World
By EW
Livin’ in this world
Where things too turnt
When people can’t learn nothing
Because they too burnt
This world is so filled with hate
That sometimes I just want to vacate
(more…)
A Moment of Doubt
By ZJ
I feel unsure about being in jail
I don’t belong here
It makes me feel like a slave
Home is where I belong
I feel good when I am home
Because I get to chill with my family
And smell the fresh air
I am positive about what I’m meant for
Going to college and getting a good job
And no longer feeling doubt
What I Wish for You, Mom
By MC
I would love to see you happy
I hurt to see you cry
You deserve high praise
I don’t want you to leave this earth
I wish for you to stay forever
I believe you can love me like a mother
Don’t be afraid of life
When I imagine you Mom, I feel happy
You are the best
I wish for you to love me to the very end
For My Fellow Brothers
By MD
I would love to see you prevail
I hurt to see you fail
You deserve the best in life
I don’t want you to live in a cage
Inside someone’s jail
I wish for you to be free
I believe you can soar
Like an eagle high in the sky
Don’t be afraid of being different
Or being called a misfit
(more…)
Gift to Moms and Grandma
By MM
I wish I can give my mom my freedom
Walk out jail gates then I see them:
My grandma and my moms
Holding them in my arms
Heart racing, feeling alarmed
Mom cries tears of joy
Happy to see me, her oldest boy
Now I’m feeling real proud
To once again make them smile
I Wonder
By CE
Sometimes I wonder why I was put on Earth if everybody has to die
Or why should I love someone that can be gone in a heartbeat
They say it a crazy world
But to me it’s f*cked up to have a life but can’t cherish it
I wonder if Adam and Eve never disobeyed God, would we have eternal life
As well, if there wasn’t no disease, then can life be a fairytale
But sorry to say that that’s a book we won’t never get to read
But honestly, would you want to live in a fairyland?
‘Cause you have to have a bit of pain or sadness
To bring the true meaning of life
Because life is an element of free will
Before you can reach paradise