Many older incarcerated people love National Geographic magazine.
There are quite a few back issues inside the state prisons I’ve been in. It’s funny how all the older guys here take really good care of these types of magazines — kind of strange because some people in prison are known to have a destructive nature. I’m just saying!
In honor of our prisons’ National Geographic magazines, I did this watercolor painting from a picture in an older issue. It had to be from the 1970s or the early ’80s. Unfortunately, the incarcerated fellow who owned that issue was transferred to another prison and took it with him. From what I can recall, the story was about nomadic Arabic tribes from a vast desert somewhere. I took quite a bit of liberty with the photograph to make it much more colorful and not so drab.
When I saw the photo, I knew I had to paint it. I immediately identified with the feeling of being on a long journey like the people in the camel caravan. Incarceration is brutal at times. But other times, it has brought me enlightenment, and in some very strange ways. I’ve been taught many life lessons in prison.
For instance, I’ve learned that I’m the one who makes all the decisions in my life that really matter. I’m also the only one who will be held accountable for my decisions, and I will have to answer for any bad decisions I make. In my journey, I must continue to learn and grow spiritually and mentally so I can become a truly good person, and be the best me I possibly can.
My journey has been longer and more brutal than most because I have made some really bad choices in my lifetime. My desire, my obligation, is to warn my fellow travelers to be very careful, and take each step with circumspection. All it takes is one stupid mistake, one bad decision, and the long, lonely journey will become the journey of a lifetime.
