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Glowing red heart shaped walls inside the Antelope Slot Canyon in Page, Arizona, United States.
Photo by tobiasjo on iStock

So hope was interesting, but I’m cool.
My pockets don’t even have lint,
and others have sunshine.
Shades + Dim Future = Fool.

Expectations are like assholes.
Yep, everyone’s got ’em;
a lot of people are them.
Are yours under control?

Wants disguised as needs, and needs need.
That which we require can be assured,
but our great trial remains, refrain.
Maybe satisfaction is simply belief?

Love isn’t fate but choice.
It definitely doesn’t solve all,
and the supply’s way behind demand.
Without some form, life’s a void.

To exist doesn’t mean to live.
We walk, a host of ghosts, blindly searching
for something to bring us to life,
that which only another can give.

Disclaimer: The views in this article are those of the author. Prison Journalism Project has verified the writer’s identity and basic facts such as the names of institutions mentioned.

Davel Walker is a poet incarcerated in California.