Creative Commons License

Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.

An overhead light illuminates three seats in a waiting area
Photo by Arne Wambeke on Unsplash

I’m so tired
Things just never change
I’ve been breathing
Hate and sorrow
Joy that disappears
And so so many
Inadequate things
For too long now
I’ve been stuck
Trying to make the best
Behind these walls
Of oppression
Of relentlessness
That hold me right here
Unable to feel
What others do
I’m just broke
And I see no way
For any of this
To matter
At all anymore
And so so many
Completely lost things
Just slip away
So I’m tired
So tired of trying
Is it so wrong
To just give up
Even after all
The joy disappears
No one needs me but
I’ll be right here

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.

Adam Hotaling is a poet incarcerated in Texas.