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I smell a rose in the melody
of freedom and hope.

Cell Time

As I sit in my cell, I wonder.
I wonder about my future,
about what God will bring me.
As I sit in my cell, time goes by.

When I think about the melody of love
and what God brings me,
it feels like a butterfly
flying with freedom.
I smell a rose in the melody
of freedom and hope.

As I sit in my cell,
everything smells like
the rose of freedom.
Freedom moves in and out
of the melody of love.

I always wonder
about the melody of love,
as the butterfly flies
in the air of hope,
freedom, love, and understanding.

I pray for our freedom
with hope, with love,
with the rose and melody
that God gives.

I haven’t written to you in a while.

Your friend,
Lee Roy

📬

These stories arrive by mail.

Every month, a physical envelope arrives at your door, postmarked from San Quentin Village, California. Inside, you will find original artwork, writing, and recipes from real contributors, along with a personal letter from me, Diane Kahn, founder of Humans of San Quentin, about the people who made them. You read it. You keep it.

Every piece comes from someone serving a sentence. Every piece reminds you they are so much more than that.

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