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Prose of a Con

Poetry and Prose by Russell Wardlow

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Russell Wardlow

All ‘Things’ Decay

April 6, 2022 by Russell Wardlow Leave a Comment

temper, temper, temporal
temporal, temporal, temporary
temporary, temporary, tempting
tempting, tempting, temple
temple, temple, timber!

Filed Under: Spirit

Fluidity must be the Way

April 6, 2022 by Russell Wardlow Leave a Comment

to solely be
subjective,
with objects

and objective
with subjects
misses the mark

if the objective
came forth from
the subjective

then at the polar extremes
of any,
and all themes

is where the aim,
measure, and life
is lost

the calling gone,
unheard, deafened by
the noise of the herd

as sound struggles
to break through
reinforced concretes

so one must be
that which sound
goes through, per-sona

you conceive
through the person
you perceive

which sound are you
if balance is found
in the give and take?

fluidity,
must be
the way

Filed Under: Spirit

Even in Prison there is a Circle of Life

April 5, 2022 by Russell Wardlow Leave a Comment

I watch fat birds
flying free
in my misery
getting full
from food
we refuse to eat
our neglect feeds
life is complete
even prisoners
give life
when it’s only death
that we see

Filed Under: Inside, Trauma

Phenomenons of Thought

April 5, 2022 by Russell Wardlow Leave a Comment

there is no phenomena
in cause and effect
it is mere natural law
a phenomenon of its own design
what then is phenomenal
is the idea preceding both
to rave about the form
is to lose the primal substance
making “divine presence,”
mundane and monotonous…
a gross sin,
of error and blindness
all of its own

so take heed
to the seed
that which is thought
will be

Filed Under: Mercy, Spirit

What’s Being Learned From and Who is Considered the Learned?

April 5, 2022 by Russell Wardlow Leave a Comment

I heard from a fellow convict:
“history is about knowing and understanding what happened, why it happened, so it won’t be repeated”
this is how life is built on
so there can be lesson in avoiding it
yet a poignant one in being so steeped in it
but all I see is it being a point of judgment
instead of wise instructions
and the prevailing discernment
but when I learn from mine
you still seem set on defining me by it
while avoiding your own
and that of the world’s
I strongly question what you assert as wisdom

Filed Under: Inside, Trauma

Relativity Speaking

April 5, 2022 by Russell Wardlow Leave a Comment

being
a bigger person,
is absolutely
irrelevant

being
a better person
is absolutely
relative

to living real life,
absolutely
more relatively
balanced

Filed Under: Spirit

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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.

Read More

  • 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

Themes

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