by Virgil Jason Clarke What is truth? Truth as defined by The American Heritage Dictionary is as follows: Conformity to fact or actuality. Reality actuality. A statement proven as accepted to be true; but what is it really? Truth is listed as a noun meaning it is a word used to describe, an action. So truth is not just a statement of fact, it’s a way of life. How we live determines our truth thereby giving light to who we really are inside. Truth is when we first take a look in that mirror and face the ugliness inside of us. Coming
Continue ReadingYear: 2019
Volume 24.33/34
Please contact Lisa Lavaysse if you would like to purchase the full PDF or a printed copy of this issue.
Continue ReadingEd Note 24.33/34
Welcome friends to yet another fabulous one of a kind issue of The Beat Within! This latest issue is sure to not, we say NOT, disappoint! Double issue 23.33/34 is loaded with plenty of writing and art by our young and old contributors who share their truths with the goal to inspire, teach, challenge, encourage and even make you laugh, or for some, cry. In the end, there is nothing like The Beat Within and the great work we have been putting out as a magazine since September of 1996. We can’t thank you all enough for taking the time
Continue ReadingThe Echo Chamber
by Mikhail Markhasev I came to America at the age of ten. I could be whoever I wanted and whatever I chose. The problem was that I didn’t know who I was, what I wanted, or where I was headed. Less than a decade after coming to America, I was in prison, serving life without parole. How did I get from a good and humble kid, “fresh off the boat,” to a violent knucklehead who turned his back on his family and harmed innocent people? My path to prison began long before the dope or the homies or dropping out
Continue ReadingKilled by The Police
by Tyrone March 7, 2012 my oldest brother was killed. He was killed by the NOPD (New Orleans Police Department). Coming home from school March 7, 2012, my oldest brother and his friend was sitting outside. They were just chilling and talking. Once he saw my siblings and I get off school bus, he told us not to come outside until we finished our homework. I told him “OKAY” and we walked past him to the front door. First thing I remember doing was going to my mother’s bedroom to start my homework. As I was doing my
Continue ReadingFresh Starts
by Brianna Ramirez In February 2011 I went to jail for assaulting a man at the group home I was placed in. My mom and I had planned so much before I became incarcerated so to her it was yet another monumental disappointment. I had been taken out my home initially because of the toxic relationship I had with my parents. I had disobeyed her numerous times and she had every reason to leave me in detention. I knew that jail wasn’t the place for me. I was taught better than to get myself into situations where I was locked down
Continue ReadingVolume 24.31/32
Please contact Lisa Lavaysse if you would like to purchase the full PDF or a printed copy of this issue.
Continue ReadingEd Note 24.31/32
We would like to welcome you readers to yet another fantastic double edition, 24.31/32, of the one and only The Beat Within! Once again we bring you the powerful OT, who truly plays a role in helping us put this publication together. We are grateful for his immense commitment to The Beat Within, as much as we are to you readers and writers who step up to share your stories and art. As most of you know, there is plenty of great writing to be read in this latest issue so have at it, but allow yourself to start with
Continue ReadingA Moment Alone with Steve
Angel Delara The hard wood of the bench is uncomfortable. It feels unforgiving beneath my butt as I sit there, slouched forward so that my lower back is pressed against the gray, cement wall. On either side of me, my palms are flat on the seat, while my fingers are curled over its edge, gripping it not too tightly. Affixed to the wall above me there is a metal box with a metal cord attached to a large, plastic receiver. A phone. A sad, sad reminder to me of my brother Steve. I feel like I let him down. 323 – 335…
Continue ReadingWalking Away
by Michael Mackey Walking away may at times be one essential way for having a wise life, but on the other hand it may not be, depending on what it was you walked away from. Sometimes walking away is the path to freedom. Walking away from the hopes, the fears, the pain, the past, and the stories that have a hold on us, allows us to quiet our own minds, and open our hearts in a positive manner. Never be scared, or have too much pride to walk away, trust and believe that with the courage you have within you,
Continue Reading