Many people say music is their escape. Well, poetry is my escape. It was my way to escape from the cage I was in at seventeen. Most seventeen-year-olds are chasing

females or preparing for the big game. I was preparing for prison. I am not suggesting this is something to brag about, but it's my truth. While stuck in a cell with nothing inside of me but anger, pain, loss, and betrayal, I needed to escape and release. It came in the form of writing. I wrote these poems to articulate my story about my successes and failures---some that could have been avoided and others that couldn't. But that's life. You live, and you learn. My escape through writing gave me peace and made me sane in insanity.

Now, you may be wondering why you should read this book. Well, if you were

ever dealt a lousy hand or ever dealt one to yourself, I believe you'll honestly be

able to feel my heart beating through these pages. These pages share real experiences and the battles that some of us face. Being alive and well to write about this proves that we can get through even the unthinkable. Poems "The Soul Speaks" is not just a book title, but it's also a state of indecisiveness

that I lived in when these poems were written. It stands for someone standing

at a crossroads, deciding which way to go. I genuinely believe I am who I am and not who others think I am. I dare you to find your release on these pages. I am you, and you are me when "The Soul Speaks!"