Poems

So far away from home

I’m just cold and alone

With no place to go

So far away from home

I take my mother’s phone

When I ran from home

I put a note on her bed

And she thought I was dead

So far away from home

Why it feels like life is like an elevator
It goes up, then it goes down
Sometimes it gets stuck
Like it is having its own technical problem
I wish I could fix it, why I couldn’t be like a mechanic
Guess I’m just a passenger, trying to be patient
Wish it was a race car, why it can’t start racing
Things in my mind won’t stop me from reminiscing
My thought feels like an anchor falling deeper and deeper
In the depth of my mind, it’s getting deeper than the ocean
Still waiting to move on forward
Why it feels like life is playing on slow motion

Locked away deep down inside
Is where my treasure lay
And my secrets hide
So dear, sacred to me it needs two locks
Not when the most sneaky could pick pock
I let my feelings collect dust there
Just so I won’t let ‘em show out here
The code to the vault is truth, however
I’m scared to unlock it
I wish my feelings, pain, and thoughts that’s in it
Could take off in a rocket
But it can’t so my secret storage will have to do
That’s how I deal with things, how bout you?
So when I have bad things happen or bad thoughts
It goes in the vault

My time locked up was a lesson learned
It really gave me a wake-up call to open my eyes
And look at the world different
I know sometimes when you’re locked up
It seems like no one cares and no one’s there
But you have to be strong
My time locked up
I’ve grabbed hold of all the knowledge I can get
To stay mentally stable
Because of these conditions we’re in
It can really damage the brain if you let it
I have always been told
Once you get caught up in the system
You will get lost in the system
Now, still this day I’m striving to make it out of this
system
So to all of my brothers that’s going through this
system with me
I just want to give a word of encouragement
To keep your head up

And always remember
It’s a way out
You just have to help yourself find that way

We wanted to share this card with you all, because it is your support that makes Free Minds a reality. The text reads:
“We really appreciate what you guys have done for us.
It really means a lot.
Thank you for keeping us strong, focused, and our mind independent.
Remember that you will always be in our free mind for Forever!! 🙂 ”

The two artists were careful to explain their illustration as well. “It’s like a metaphor, but with drawings,” they said. Here they have depicted a brain with a superhero cape (a Free Mind) beaming through a book to attain the ultimate goal of knowledge (portrayed here gleaming on a pedestal). Below, it has a flashlight and the words “U show us light!”

Dear Friends of Free Minds,

We were uploading poems this week and realized that this is our 100th post! In honor of this landmark, we wanted to take a second to give a shout out to all our poets and writers, readers and commentators, supporters and friends- everyone who has helped make this project happen.

The poetry blog grew out of a desire to build bridges across communities that are often kept separate. For many of the writers whose poetry appears here, it is the first time that they have been told that their voices matter. For many of the commentators who offer their positive feedback, it may be the first time they have seen young people in jail as writers with talent and unique perspectives. While both sides are anonymous to each other, we have been amazed at the power our small blog has to connect, educate, and inspire.

This Tuesday, we handed J, a 17 year old in DC jail, a piece of paper with feedback on his poem written by a volunteer in Massachusetts. He was delighted. “It makes me feel good to know that people like my work enough to write back,” he said. We talked for a while about how incredible it is that there is an international group of people committed to hearing and supporting the positive voices of the Free Minds young poets, and then asked if he had anything he wanted to share on this 100th post. He considered carefully, and then said:

“Thank you for letting me know that somebody is acknowledging my words, and taking the time to read the writing of young incarcerated people.”

When we deliver that piece of paper with your thoughtful feedback, comments, and encouragement, it is concrete evidence of a community support, of a network of people that believe in these young people’s ability to change, envision greater possibility, and write new chapters in their lives. It is hard to overstate the impact that this has.

So keep those comments coming!

With gratitude,
The Free Minds team

You told me,
“I’ll hold you down, I got your back, I’ll be here until the end”
“No matter what, thru thick and thin, I’ll always be your friend”
“When times get rough and things go bad, you can always count on me”
“Just trust my word, have some faith, and my promises I will keep”

But you let me down, you left be hanging, I thought you were my friend.
Thru thick and thin, no matter what, I thought you’d be here until the end…
When things went bad, and times got rough, I really counted on you,
I trusted your word, had faith and your promises never came true…

Then you told me,
“If ever you’re lost, just call and I’ll guide you thru the maze”
“My love and support will always be here, every single day”
“And when there’s danger have no fear, I’ll never leave you stranded”
“Whenever you need me, I’ll be right here, you’ll never feel abandoned”

But I called when I got lost and you didn’t even answer,
Your deceiving and deceitful ways are killing slow like cancer…
You left me stranded, I feel abandoned, every single day,
What did I do to deserve those lies? Why was I betrayed…

I rise to the sky
I rise to education
I rise to my dream
I rise to become a man
I rise to respect
I rise to my highest level
I rise, I rise, I will
Someday rise, Yes I rise

I forgive my dad for walking out on his only son
I forgive the people who think they get over
Because they assume I’m dumb
I forgive life for dealing me this hand
I forgive my inner boy for not becoming a man
I forgive the man who bumped me
Because he couldn’t see
I forgive…
I can’t forgive everything…
Because I’ve yet to forgive me…

Forgiveness starts with oneself. Once we’ve forgiven ourselves, we can forgive everybody else. Forgiveness isn’t hard, so the next time a situation calls for us to forgive, give it a shot.

~Words from a forgiver~

Is life a game
Is life a movie
Is life a story
I don’t know
To me, life is a game
One day you here
And the next you gone
People killing each other over money
Cars, girls, hoods, shoes, looks, fights
Life is hard
Especially if you doing life behind bars

I get mad when I wake up
out of my sleep
Because I be in my dream
world
And it really hurts me
When I wake up
Because it seems so real

I cry cause I’m mad
I cry cause I’m sad
I cry because I’m locked up
This s**t make me want to
throw up
This place I will never see
again
That’s why I will never cry

again