The movie, Flight, got under my skin. During the closing scene of Flight, when Denzel is writing at his prison desk, the Director pans the camera across his cell and his prized possesions. The book titled I’ll Fly Away was one such possesion. Certain this wasn’t by accident, I googled the book title. No accident. I’ll Fly Away is a collection of essays written by the women of York Prison, the only maximum security prison in Connecticut. These women are NOT who you think they are. Their stories are mostly extreme tragedies mixed in with a few triumphs.
Very few are hardened criminals. All are doing hard time. And, a full 70% are victims of incest and/or rape. Some landed in York after a single act of violence committed after years of predatory abuse. Some arrived as addicts, guilty for numbing the pain. This is not an easy read. It is real and raw. However, if you want to broaden your worldview and experience some good kinda correction for yourself, pick it up. My guess is, like me, you won’t be able to put it down. Remember, addictions are mostly a feelings disorder. Writing, really throwing it up on paper, can help you deal with your baggage, your mess, your abuse, and yourself. Writing helps humans lighten the load. I’ll Fly Away may be a heavy read, but for many of the authors you feel freedom in their words and stories. You feel them take flight.
Barbara Parsons served time from 1996-2005 for the murder of her abusive husband. Since 2005 she has transitioned back into community as a contributing worker and volunteer who trains special needs dogs for the disabled. “Writing helps me empty the file cabinet in my memory labeled ‘trauma’ so that I can live with some inner peace, ” Barbara has concluded. “I entered the writing class a broken woman with bleak thoughts about my future, but I eventually found my voice and reclaimed my life. I hope that by speaking and writing about my experiences, I can help other women find their voices, too. I am eternally grateful to Mr. Lamb and my peers at York because I honestly feel the class saved my life.”
There is power found in your pen. Writing brings clarity to big dreams like your OPUS. However, if you don’t clean up the mess in your mind you won’t feel much like dreaming big. Get the trauma out. Write. You gotta clean before you can dream. Clean before you dream.
Thanks Wally and women of York Prison. God bless you…
BUILT TO LEAD 