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Prose of a Con

Poetry and Prose by Russell Wardlow

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Shelled

June 19, 2021 by Russell Wardlow Leave a Comment

I’m simply
a mollusk
too soft for this world
so I’ve grown a hard shell
and I exist within it, always
to come out
would render me
prey, too vulnerable
to the predators of life
evolution is survival
therefore my ending might arise
if you request me to step out of which
I have lived by
sustained myself with
protected myself with
distanced myself with
disguised myself in
you may be asking me to risk
the very life
I’ve grown up
shielding you away from
parts of me you may never understand
those parts you may never accept
these parts, too fragile to be handled tightly
for I give in too easily
and so attraction has always proven to be
fatal, for people like me
so I move at a snails pace
to never stray too far, from my safe space

Filed Under: Inside, 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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  • Whose Mind is it Anyway June 30, 2022
  • Objects June 30, 2022
  • Same Thang, Different Name June 30, 2022
  • Optical Ill-lusions June 30, 2022
  • Hollow Symbols June 30, 2022

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