Let Me Have The Courage
The Clanging of the Prison Doors
An Unlikely Couple, Part 2
Mike T. and Deborah Goodwin
(The Outlaw & The Lady) Creators of FB Group: Keys To Awareness 🔑🗝️ People Passionate About Compassion PPAC
“Let Me Have The Courage" (The Clanging of the Prison Doors) was written by a dear friend, Georgia Ann Yates, in collaboration with my late husband, Mike T., The Outlaw. It’s for all the prisoners who have been unable to prove their innocence, but because of what they know, can make the death walk "with heads held high."
As I sat in my cell made of steel and stone,
Looking for some happy thought to take me home.
They led a man by ten years on death row,
Shackled in chains except for his soul.
I heard the doors clang as they walked down the hall,
Counted each one ‘til they’d passed through them all.
Held on to the bars until my fingers bled,
One more innocent man soon would be dead.
I thought of what he told me the first day I came,
You have to prove yourself and play the game.
You got to give one, take one, double up or run,
There’s no room for fear in this place, my son.
So at eighteen in prison, I learned how to fight,
Defending myself, standing up for what’s right.
Did most of my time stuck down in the "HOLE",
And not nearly as brave as I was bold!
CHORUS:
NOW PRISON IS NOT A GOOD PLACE TO BE,
BUT YOU CAN GET BY IF YOU KEEP YOUR MIND FREE.
THEY’LL BREAK DOWN YOUR BODY AND MAKE YOU GROW OLD,
BUT ONE THING THEY CAN’T TAKE AWAY IS YOUR SOUL.
And as I sat there alone remembering his words,
I prayed, Dear God, let me have the courage
So when it comes time for me to die,
I can walk like he did, my head held high.
Yes, so I can walk down that long hallway WITH MY HEAD HELD HIGH.
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