The cell was sparse
Florescent lights
Sleeping platform
Stainless steel toilet and sink
But the walls
They were covered in other people's stories
The wall above the cot had been decorated in crayon
A large, pink pointe shoe
Someone's broken dream on display
Doodles and hash marks
A newspaper clipping of a local sports team's championship win
So many names so the walls would recall their existence
So the next inmates had connection to the ones who came before
I sat alone with their ghosts
Waiting for my turn to leave part of myself behind

-gws