Joshua Keziah

Believe

July 27th, 2012

I want people to believe in me again.  I’ve spent the last 42 months learning from my past.  The rights and wrongs of every possible situation I’ve encountered.

Growing up my family and collages both believed I could get out of the hood, by simply playing the game of football.  I played football because it was a fun way of expressing my anger and frustration.  It was the only legal way i knew of that you hit somebody with all your strength and never be imprisoned for it.  No matter what I believed the sport could do for me, people believed in what  I could do for the sport.

When I became a Hustler/stickup kid, the streets believed in me.  the money came quick, people got victimized but the streets believed I could succeed.  everyday i would say “$25,000 and I’m out”  I believed this was building my Reputation and setting me up to leave the hood.  Actuality was it built me an Avadavit and a state prison incarceration.  No matter what, jail or death which h ever came first, the streets believed in me.

2007 I became a father to my first baby boy.  I was only 19, but my family still believed in me.  My newborn baby boy became my motive to work hard.  I promised never to leave.  when the tough got going i fell apart.  My family still believed in me.

Now 42 months into a 84 month prison sentence, no one believes in me.  I’ve earned my GED yet no one believes in me, I’ve held a job for 2 years straight, no one believes in me .  I’ve apologized a million times.  Yet no one believes in me.

Wait, thats it!

I never believed in myself and my potential.  now today, I start believing in me.

-Josh