Hey America,
I have been "out-of-commision", "under-the-weather","incognito" (Yes, I know what it means). But I haven't been under the weather all this time. I can say I was trying to be "under-the-radar." I miss writing, and its really been too long.
Prison life is hard! Period! Sure, its been 27 years now & I should have the hang of it. I generally think I do. I even hate to complain because I know there are people out there that are not in a physical prison, yet they are trapped in painful unedifying situations. So I try to check myself & remember that at least I'm in America, and it could be much worse than it is.
I've learned something recently. I picked it up from the bishop T.D.Jakes, the Christian T.V. evangelist & show host. He taught me that when you are getting better (Read: Stronger, Smarter, Developing your skills and talent) your opposition increases, kinda automatically. I had been waiting for years for things to settle-down so that I can apply myself and bring forth all my best. But I've finally come to understand it in a way that frees me to defy this inertia & move.
The Object of the opposition - whatever form it may appear in - is to stop my progress & productivity. When I stand up inside myself & defeat the demons of excessive deliberation & all the other forms of procrastination, the forces that had been holding me down must increase. Its been 12 yrs now that Ive been singing in prison. I always sang. But once they outlawed cigarettes I found my golden voice. I'd always been a reasonably well-liked & respected individual. But I must tell you: Now I understand why all the rappers talk about "haters."Its true! It even states in the "48 laws of power" that people with a natural talent or gift often make the naive mistake of showing it in its full color, thinking it wins them friends & admirers. But actually people are starting to hate you. Its just not something I would've been aware of. And I'm quite the "sensitive guy," so the shift in the way people treat me has been unsettling, to say the least. I know, I know, "Boo-Hoo," Huh? But, its real! No one teaches you how to adapt when guys you've known for years & got on good with are now acting like you've done them some kind of wrong that they know but cant tell you.
Anyway, that's small potatoes. The real problem is that when a guy who is a feature in the prison yard's cult of personality gets it in for you, his influence will hold sway with a lot of lesser lights. Even, at times with the C/Os. Enough of that, though, my problem now is basically what its always been: I am in prison & its not supposed to be enjoyable. The reason its been so hard to stay focused and continue to write is that Ive been too uncomfortable, because of an endless parade of long emergencies.
So very much has come to pass since I last put pen to paper. I don't really know where to start. How about I start from the end and work my way back towards where I left off.
Tonite Donald Trump launched an air-strike on the airfield in Syria when the plane took-off that dropped the chemical attack - allegedly. I sincerely hope that America will follow thru in all of the right ways. I hate war. But America promised the rebels that she would help them if they rose up and challenged Assads Regime. But then America let more than 5 yrs go by before they even helped with supplies. Im not certain of the time frame. But I do remember it was a shameful deception. Arab Spring was a spreading fever & America urged it on to the utter detriment of those brave souls who tried to follow the example of others who sought & attained their freedom from oppressive despots in the past. And, just yesterday, Russia said not to jump to conclusions about who was responsible for the chemical attack. Its hard for me not to applaud President Trump's resolve though. I agree with him that when President Obama said there was a red-line not to be crossed, in fact, something should've been done to punish them for using chemical weapons. Also, it seems to me that America (At least, some factions in government) have been pushing toward a war with Russia.
This happens at the same time as North Korea provocatively firing-off its missiles.

OH SHIT, I'VE GOTTA GO,
I'LL WRITE AGAIN, OVER THIS WEEKEND
GOOD NITE & UNTIL THEN
DIAMOND
Z