Because of Rehabilitation through the Arts, Takia Parham had the opportunity to take poetry classes in Bedford Hills Correctional Facility. Her work has since been published in Duende Literary Journal’s “Incarcerated Writers Feature,” and Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors, Vol. 5, an anthology from Southeast Missouri State University Press.
Since being released from prison in December of 2016, Parham has lectured on the transformative power of the arts at The New School, Marist College, and Hunter College. Parham is working toward her bachelor’s in theatre and new media at Marymount Manhattan College and teaches youth through the Arts 10566 theatre program.
“Year 1”
My feet made of bronze in the morning
wishes the groundhog of this monotonous day wouldn't see my shadow
letting the day die young and tender
before the routine of heating my hot water in a hot pot
brushing my teeth in a faded mirror
occurs
Die tender
yes
swollen with hope
plump with future potentialities
Before the shadows come
Beneath eyelids sunken
heavy
ropes with burden lines
blurred over time lends me age.
Days gone by aching to be filled
deep.
It is year one and preparations for my appeal merge with r.e.m.
sleep awake
shock
noise trauma
flash bulbs of horror no one knows
no one believes
so I persist like a toddler on wobbly legs
I'm too green for the high grass to know what lies ahead in my journey.
Sun yet still shining on my face
I envision palm trees
I can smell them in the breeze of the yard air
beyond wired fences
my moment of freedom
when my shadow has yet to surround me