Statue of Peace in the Plaza La Paz, Guanajuato, Mexico.

Note the dismayed soldier at the base of the monument, who is out of work.

 

THE OPEN ROAD

peace, love, happiness & understanding

 

February 6, 2025

 

The earth is all before me: with a heart

Joyous, not scared at its own liberty,

I look about, and should the guide I chuse

Be nothing better than a wandering cloud,

I cannot miss my way

 

—from The Prelude by William Wordsworth (1805)

*

 

I love Love—though he has wings,

And like light can flee,

But above all other things,

Spirit [of Delight], I love thee—

Thou art love and life! Oh come,

Make once more my heart thy home.

 

—Percy Bysshe Shelley, “Song” (“Rarely, rarely comest thou,/Spirit of Delight!”)

*

 

We got a long letter from Rocky Hutchinson in early January. Here are some excerpts:

 

12-27-24

 

Dear Johnny & Nancy

 

Well, it has been the best year of my whole prison set. Since I’ve been here life has been richer. But the next step will be even better than this one….

 

While I’m waiting [to be transferred] I’ve been working on this packet that I was given a few months ago. The class is called: “My Personal Values and Ethics.” These are the topics that it hits on:

 

1. Determining 5 to 10 core values.

 

2. Select my top five values and prioritize them. I felt that my top 5 were: honor, ingenuity, continuous improvement, love & positivity. But I also flipped it & chose 10 things I want to get better at, to be a stronger and more ethical person. They are: Discipline, Growth, Continuous Improvement, Balance, Serenity, Leadership, Self-reliance, Confidence, Diligence, Obedience.

 

3. The areas in my life I want to focus on are: partners, family, friends, careers, intellectual & personal growth—contributions to community & humanity.

 

4. My areas of strength are: Art, music, problem-solving, foresight, insight, intuition, love, acceptance, kindness & defusing conflicts (“mediator”)!

 

5. Dreams: If it was my last day on Earth, what would I regret not doing, seeing, or creating? 

 

        My choice for “Doing” would be regretting that I did not ever share my whole self completely with at least one person. I truly in my heart, mind & soul believe that we should have one person we can trust to completely open up to in our life, without fear of judgement or ridicule. We would grow as a person, I feel.

 

        My choice for “Seeing” would be two things: seeing the pyramids in Mexico & the Aurora Borealis in its peak season…both with my wife “if I have one!”

 

       My choice for “Creating” would be: to create a setting or event for my closest, most dearest friends that is breathtakingly beautiful & peaceful for no particular reason…well, it would be made out of the deepest love I have for them.

 

6.  Skills: What are three areas I strongly want to cultivate skills in that will in some way enrich all of my life experiences? I said: 1) A greater & deeper sense of taking in & expressing Empathy. 2) Verbally explain how I see the beauty of the world & in people. 3) Adapt to social situations better.

 

This is as far as I’ve gotten so far. Here are the other pieces of the curriculum:

 

7.  Profession: What are the things I must do to feel fulfilled in my work?

 

8.  Draft my Personal Vision Statement & how to develop it.

 

9.  When to use my life vision & how to use it.

 

10.  Three Essential Self-Development Tools for Lasting Change.

 

I don’t know when I will be leaving, but I do have things to do while I am waiting. This seems to be more productive than crosswords or video games. It also gets my mind off of other things.

 

The last few months I’ve had some lessons taught & they’re the kind that stick. They’re also the kind I don’t like because it makes me think & feel ill towards others. Before, in my past life, I would have reacted with violence. In a more recent, but past, life my reaction would have been anger, verbal confrontation and acting out. But now it’s almost a comic sense of approach to things. Now I keep my head & keep my peace in this type of situation. You teaching me to see them as children has helped out in every way! Now all of this makes me laugh.

 

No one, not even myself, is going to rob me of my peace & joy in my life anymore. I really do feel that due to the fact I’m always 90% of the time in a positive upbeat mood, that it has placed a target on me! LOL I don’t have time to care at all about it, if it is the case….

 

12-29-24

 

Well, I’ve come a long way from where I was in 2018.  Looking back on the whole picture, the situation “prison” is somewhat the same, but I’m in a healthy environment here. No drama really, no violence—it’s good. Myself…well, I’ve changed and have grown happier & have overcome some trauma that played a huge role in “Everything!”

 

Recently, though, I have discovered a few things about life…my self…my life. I love the little simple things that people do, me included. A smile, a look, small talk, etc.

 

I do not like negativity at all! I used to be able to tolerate it, but now at all costs I try to avoid it. By making a greater effort to do so I have noticed I’ve been spending quite some time all alone. LOL I myself have spent too much time living in and with negativity.

 

My time in here has changed me, no doubt at all & my time is soon coming when I can truly get to choose who I want to spend time with & how I get to spend my time. Long meaningful talks about things that don’t pertain to prison. Adult conversations that…we grow from. Normal and non-stressful conversations with girls & not be judged for them!? I just realized how crazy that sounds as I wrote it!

 

Life is coming, my friends, & I’m truly happy and ready to live & to give of myself. I’m ready to apply myself to life in positive, productive, kind, loving & fun ways.

 

Wow, this letter got long! I might be gone by the time you get this letter. To be honest, I’m a little surprised that I’m still here. Man, I hope I get to see you guys soon. Till then…

 

All my Love

Rocky

 

[Editor’s note: Rocky was transferred to Powder River Correctional Institution in early January, 2025.]

*

 

This essay from Jude’s arrived a teency bit late for the January issue, so here it is in February:

 

The Kindness of Conservatives

 

Do those words even go together? You be the judge.

 

Our next door neighbor is conservative—-very. He hung his flag upside down until Trump was re-elected. Obama wasn’t born in the U.S. Had I known about the 2000 Mules? Hunter Biden’s laptop!  You name it, if it came from Fox ‘News’ it was true.

 

They invited us over for a winter solstice party on December 21st, which we went to, as civil neighbors do. I can be neighborly, which I was, all the while seething inside. Their house was festive, and I commented on it. I told them that I was so exhausted from trying to manage our new rescue dog we’d adopted that we hadn’t even put up a Christmas tree—-for the first time in my life! So their decorated house was a welcome sight for me.

 

The next afternoon they called and said they’d bring over the dishes I’d left there. Fine, thanks. Mid-afternoon I opened the door and there they stood with the dishes and a wheelbarrow. In the wheelbarrow was a 3’ high fir tree planted in a 10 gallon pot. It was decorated with twinkling lights, spiraling red ribbons, and about two dozen silver and gold Christmas ornaments. It was heavenly!! They smiled and said, “We thought you shouldn’t be without a Christmas tree this year.”  They’d gone up into the woods and dug a tree, planted it and decorated it for David and me. I was so shocked and moved; I burst into tears. “This is the kindest thing anyone has ever done for me,” I burbled. And it’s true; I still love Christmas and all that goes with it. This gesture was the essence of Christmas, and somehow they knew.

 

We carried it into the house, plugged in the twinkly lights, and the house and my heart lit up and glowed.

 

Their family is scattered around the country, so they were spending Christmas day alone. I invited them over for Christmas dinner and they accepted. We spent four hours eating, drinking wine, and playing board games, with the Christmas tree sparkling in the background. 

 

He will always be conservative and I will always be liberal, but this year peace, love, happiness and understanding prevailed.

 

—Jude Russell

*

 

a gift from Pablo…

 

Poetry

 

And it was at that age…poetry arrived

in search of me. I don’t know, I don’t know where

it came from, from winter or a river,

I don’t know how or when,

no, they were not voices, they were not

words, not silence,

but from a street it called me,

from the branches of night,

abruptly from the others,

among raging fires

or returning alone,

there it was, without a face,

and it touched me.

 

I didn’t know what to say, my mouth

had no way

with names,

my eyes were blind.

Something knocked in my soul,

fever or forgotten wings,

and I made my own way,

deciphering

that fire

and I wrote the first, faint line,

faint, without substance, pure

nonsense,

pure wisdom

of someone who knows nothing;

and suddenly I saw

the heavens

unfastened

and open,

planets,

palpitating plantations,

the darkness perforated,

riddled

with arrows, fire, and flowers,

the overpowering night, the universe.

 

And I, tiny being,

drunk with the great starry

void,

likeness, image of

mystery,

felt myself a pure part

of the abyss.

I wheeled with the stars.

My heart broke loose with the wind.

 

–Pablo Neruda, translated by Alistair Reid, from Isla Negra: A Notebook

*

 

While in Mexico, inspired by Pablo Neruda’s odes, I’ve written some odes. Here are a couple of them:

 

Ode to Cardinalito

 

Little red bird,

every time I see you,

like right now,

I am suddenly

immensely happy.

Thank you.

I hope you enjoy

your evening meal

of bugs.

*

 

Ode to a Gym Teacher

 

There is an outdoor playground

at the Ignacio Allende school

across the way.

For many years

the same gym teacher

has been organizing games

for children

of different ages.

He knows 

the games

that the littlest ones

and the biggest ones

love to play.

All day long

every school day

shouts of wild delight,

the ecstatic screams

of little girls

can be heard—

year after year.

Who is this guy?

I don’t know his name.

His job is:

THE HAPPINESS OF CHILDREN.

And he is a maestro,

a saint,

a bodhisattva.

I love

the sound 

of his voice.

 

While some geniuses

are deciding

where to drop

the next bomb,

he is watering the seeds

of joy

today

and for the future

of the world.

 

—Johnny “Juanito” Stallings