New writing from Abdur Rahim Ambrose

We are delighted to publish some new work from Abdur, direct from Parchman Farm:

Cellmate Silence

The bars hum softly in the night
A lullaby of iron and fright
I count the cracks along the wall
In this small space, I feel so small
The world outside, it moves so fast,
While here, the minutes barely pass.
My name replaced by numbers cold
A life forgotten, stories untold.
In silence I remember days,
Before the chains, before the maze.
But now I live in concrete dreams
Where hope is found in muffled screams.

The Yard

The yard is where the days bleed slow
Under the sun’s relentless glow
We pace in circles, ghosts in flesh
Caught in a loop we can’t refresh
Some talk, some laugh, but most just stare
At freedom’s tease, beyond the air
I see the sky but touch the ground
In chains that echo, tightly bound
Yet here amid the dust and sweat
I search for moments to forget
A bird flies by, its wings are free
Reminding me what I can’t see.

Guilty Unit

The gavel fell and so did I
Judged before I could testify
They said, “Guilty” in a crowded room
But never heard my soul’s own gloom.
The truth got lost in echoes loud
A lone voice swallowed by the crowd
And here I stand behind this gate
A life defined by someone’s hate
But deep within I hold my light
I’ll fight for justice day and night
For though my body’s locked away
My spirit rises come what may.