I have been blessed with a friendship with a prisoner on death row in Nashville, Tennessee. Long before I ever met Akil, he was a young black man, in the wrong place, at the wrong time, and in Memphis. Now, nearly thirty years later, he has learned how to live the good life in the bleakest of conditions. I am so proud of him.
Our friendship is carried out via snail mail, and mostly through poetry. I did once have the honor of visiting him. Links to my experience at that visit are provided below, especially in the post titled, simply, Freedom.
Here is Akil's most recent poem to me. His cell window is a narrow vertical slit in concrete. I wish we could all see the wonders of life as easily as he does.
spider webs are covered - with
morning dew.
shrubbery. The birds are playing
what seems to be a game, of
peek-a-boo.
time. I imagine myself growing
smaller, as a fiber being carried
by the wind.
I've written about Akil and his dear friend, and mine, Abu Ali Abdur Rahman, a number of times before. Please read about these wonderful men!
All of Akil's and Abu's works are reproduced here with their permissions.
How I have not collided with the above reads is such a mystery right now! I love inmates and ex alike. What a beautiful way to free himself, themselves, inside such lonely spaces. Thank you so much for sharing this... Strength to each and every one of your friends ❤
Oh thank you for reading about them. That means a lot to me. Their imprisonment has freed them from what we perceive as our freedom, which is increasingly becoming slavery. If they were given public voices, the death rows of the world could lead us merely mortal beings out of this mess. They are the first and last censored voices.
Oh it's my pleasure. I have served a term so I understand exactly what you mean as I spent most of sentence with death rows. The little freedom I am enjoying today came from women in the largest correction facility in Eastern Africa hammering inspiration stuff my time there. I wouldn't miss their liberated thoughts for anything!
Ah! Here's backstory I do not know about you! I know where you go in the present, and there is usually some very heavy burden. Is it freedom that is so onerous for you?
I asked Akil what he thought about the fear of death that is so fashionable these days, and he said "to not share company with other humans IS death" or something like that.
I hope I don't pry too much. are you on discord?
Yes. Here tezmel#4157 :)
hopefully later. I need to get off this computer now!!!! Ridiculous how much time I spend sitting here.
I sent you a friend request.
Your comments are as beautiful as the post itself, and the poem.
This is too big for me to contemplate at bedtime. I love the blue flower on the red background - and love seeing it in your newsfeed, knowing who will be the topic of the post!
Whatever came of the fundraiser or video project from last summer...?
I don't know what happened. I never heard anything about it again.
I'm delighted that Akil's drawing is familiar to you!
My comment to tezmel was a freewrite. Good stuff comes out when I'm freewriting!