Incarcerated Scholars Conference Art Gallery 2024

This Island Is Alive With Love

Isaiah McDonald

Knox College Prison Education Program, student

Illinois

This island is alive with love,
For all the losses I had to endure
It’s a wonder my smile still appears,
Cast to the side and left
for only God knows what would happen.
Drifting through treacherous waters
Toward an eminent storm after another
Torrential rain violently beating my body
Stripping me bare,
Exposing my soul
For any voyager who passes and stares
This Island is alive with love. 
Far off in the distance 
miles away from a first glance,
That one lifeless plot ripped from its foundation,
Has grown to a sizable place to stand
Bearing fruit, spreading love and nourishment for all who visit,
The cast away you deemed hopeless has grown brilliantly exquisite,
This Island is alive with love. 

Artist Statement

The following statement has been provided with the piece - Isaiah joined the Knox creative writing and Inside Out class last Spring 2024. He has been writing prolifically. He is a wonderful spoken word poet. He wrote this poem in response to Native Hawaiian poet Brandy Nālani McDougall's "This Island on which I Love You." 

If you are the artist of an artwork featured in this gallery and want it removed, please reach out to alliance@higheredinprison.org