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Prose of a Con

Poetry and Prose by Russell Wardlow

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Trying to keep Hope Alive

December 1, 2017 by Russell Wardlow Leave a Comment

I never dared to have faith while in prison,

death is so poetic here

And so is the contradiction of living between walls.

I never thought much when I saw an old candle with a bright flame,

until a few days ago

I spoke with an old man adorning a young spirit.

Charismatic, confident, and motivated

Outwardly overly optimistic

But I looked into his eyes for the first time the other day

As he spoke about the grandeur coming if we were to meet once free

I was took distracted by the way his irises are beginning to grey and yellow at the edges,

Product of 30-40 plus years in prison

His dream, amongst other things, is to become a producer

The paradox of hope inside of hell, he continues to amaze me

but I saw something deeper and more morbid deep in his focus

He played me a slew of beats, to which he has a few hundred created on his keyboard

But I sat there distracted

All I could think about is how thin of a thread he is holding onto

And one last rejection of freedom may cost him his most important beat of all

His heartbeat

Trying to keep hope alive

Filed Under: Inside, Mercy, Spirit, Trauma

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Prose of a Con

Prose of a Con is a collection of Russell Wardlow’s prose and poetry written entirely behind bars. Through writings on family, spirituality, freedom, love, justice, redemption, and vulnerability, Russell seeks to show the humanity and hope of individuals like himself who are incarcerated.

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