By Lisa Huddleston

 

In prison by 18,

In the gang section,

In the hole when he got in trouble.

In the hole a lot, I think.

“Couldn’t work on my GED.

Too busy just trying to stay alive.”

Sad and wearied eyes rest on big hands.

 

Now he has a 10-year-old, a daughter,

And he wants to learn to read.

So we begin,

“This is a bird with a long tail and a round body.

‘B’ looks like a bird with a long tail and a round body.”

And it looks like hope.

 

At the end of one hour and three lessons,

We shake hands,

Mine swamped in his,

And look forward to next week.