We Once Were Human Too

By Amir

When an individual is incarcerated, it is a constant struggle to find and maintain a sense of self-worth in an environment where we are often treated as "less than", regardless of how much we may have changed for the better. These poems are reflections of my thoughts along the way of my personal journey while navigating the darkness behind these prison walls. They touch on a multitude of topics, including race, love, and life in general through the eyes of a man that has been caught in the clutches of a broken judicial system.
One of the biggest misconceptions about people behind bars is that we are all monsters who are incapable of change. This couldn't be further from the truth but because of the mistakes we've made, many of us are denied second chances at life because we are only seen as our crime and not the growth we've experienced since then. Having to endure the loss of loved ones, coupled with inhumane conditions, makes holding onto faith an everyday battle. But despite having taken different paths in life, we once were human too...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amir
• Release date: Oct 1, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005845063

Book preview

I Dedicate This Book To:

God…

My parents…

Aunt Pat & Uncle Emerson…

Algeretta, Lexi, Myeara, & Brittanie

Mrs. Rosemary Reynolds (R.I.P.)

Ms. Bertie Perham (R.I.P.)

Mr. Bai Ackridge (R.I.P.)

Aunt Beverly (R.I.P.)

Ryan (R.I.P.)

Jalen (R.I.P.)

The visionaries…

The doubters…

Those who are rooting for me…

Those who turned their backs…

And every person that has ever felt the dehumanizing effect of incarceration…

This Book Is For You…

Table of Contents…

The Scribbles on My Soul…

Dedications…

Acknowledgments…

About Amir…

Current / Future Projects…

The Dark Side of Light… (Sneak Peek)

(Un)Spoken Word… (Sneak Peek)

Letters I Never Sent… (Sneak Peek)

Prison Messed My Feet Up… The Mixtape (Sneak Peek)

THESE (definitely) ARE (not) POEMS… (Sneak Peek)

Contact Me

The Scribbles on My Soul…

From Squirrels to Coyotes… (For My Parents…)

Department of Corruption…

#FOCUSED

INVISIBLE me…

How Many More?

Door #2

First Week Out…

7,000 Watts

Walls Have War Stories, Too…

The Bloom: Part 3

Heroes…

Adjust Your Glasses…

I Apologize… (This Is NOT A Poem)

(H)is-taken Identity…

(Still) #FOCUSED

FIGHT!

TKO… (FIGHT! Part 2)

Imagining Forever…

Love, You TOO…

LOOK, but DON’T TOUCH…

You Don’t Want This Heart…

Lately…

The Min(d)field…

Conversations With The Mirror…

3 AM in 208…

STILL, I GRIND… (A Tribute…)

#8 For The Marathon… (A Tribute…)

you are HERE…

American Negro…

This Broken Mind of Mine…

A Word Is Worth A Thousand Pictures…

In Case I Don’t Make It…

Continue?

P.S.

From Squirrels to Coyotes… (For My Parents…)

I guess this poem will set the tone like a metronome…

My life drastically went downhill after I left from home; but your love is extra strong, you stuck with me when the rest were gone, and…

Sorry If I Drop A Tear was an impressive song that I had wrote for you; it was overdue, but never got released; nevertheless, I…

Couldn’t stop or cease, because I still remember those Saturday mornings you helped me lace up my soccer cleats; and my nights were not complete without you lifting me off my feet for piggy-back rides through the house; and…

As I grew older, I would sneak, being as quiet as a mouse, out to meet with friends; I’ve…

Got to reach within and activate my hidden potential; the decision was simple once I realized that my prison was mental; so I envisioned my Temple, but kept the floor-plans concealed until I began to build; and…

They thought I’d be standing still, but instead? I’M STILL STANDING; and…

You showed me the definition of a real family since my birth mother felt a closed adoption was her only option; but I still wonder about my brothers and what became of my sisters; and…

Use this poetry as my pigments when I’m painting the picture of prison, with all the gloom and the sadness and my compartmentalized emotions that I threw in the cabinets for the sake of preserving my sanity, so I just hope that you understand this beautiful madness that I drew on the canvas; because…

Out there? I had my issues, so I grabbed some tissue and blew all my chances; now I’ve been forced to function under new circumstances, and as I construct my new Temple I'm leaving room for advancement; I’m often…

Up late making Racks with the coffee; fantasizing, while strategizing on how to get back to Milwaukee; a "lost city, they say it’s doomed like Atlantis"; and…

I prefer my truth brutal and candid; when people saw me on this island, they just assumed I was stranded; but…

Strength can be found in solitude, so I knew the advantage and didn’t take my seclusion for granted; and because of my growth? My cocoon has expanded, even though my soul has been wounded and damaged; my crew? They had vanished, and this heart that beats in me was repeatedly abused, then abandoned; but I’ve removed every bandage, I’m no longer ashamed of the scars; I’ve…

Loaded this clip with hope, then I flicked off the safety so I could aim at the stars; I shoot at the planets; my success won’t be accidental; no, the truth is? I planned it; because…

You taught me to stay cool, never panic and to bloom where I’m planted; so when I hit rock bottom? I just grew through the granite to prove I could manage to make it out of this hurricane; yes, sir my plane flew while they landed; and…

I’m grateful for the unconditional love you have shown, and the fact that you’ve never left me to go through something alone; you laid a path in front of me, but I’ve discovered my own; and out of respect, I try not to ever cuss on the phone; that’s why I cringe when you hear my flows; because…

Sometimes I almost feel as though I’m that little kid from years ago, wearing Coke-bottle glasses and turtlenecks, still…

Way before I’d ever heard of X pills or had my first shot from a bottle; abstract thinker, every thought’s a Picasso; and if each one could be preserved in a rock, as a fossil, I’d start a colossal collection of all my projections to show the world how far your affection has gotten me; it’s true, and…

As I reflect, an apology is due for all the trouble I ever caused, for the charges on your credit cards, for the nights I was out late at parties and I never called; and…

For the girls I snuck in and slipped past your room, and for how I messed your car up when I hit that raccoon; and…

For all the lies I told and every dime I stole when you were only trying to mold me into a strong man, so I guess this was God’s plan once the law’s hands wrapped around my wrists; now I’m…

Surrounded by clowns in cliques; the toilet flushing to drown out the sound of piss hitting metal each night as I try to sleep tight while clutching a cheap knife; stuck in that street life, I was bound to slip down the cliff with a shovel to dig my own grave with; I was dough-chasin’ and didn’t have patience; so I…

Got transported to this plantation with no slave ship; some CO’s are so racist; this is a mess, but I’m trying not to live with regrets, just elevate until all you get is the best version of me; and…

You’ve always urged me to keep my eyes on the prize; life’s a roller-coaster, but you’ve been my guide for the ride; and whenever I fell down? You helped