Behind the Bars, Beyond the Judgment

I am the wife of a prisoner, they call me by name,
They judge me, label me, and question my claim.
To love a man in orange, shackled and confined,
But they don't see the heart, the soul, the mind.

Behind those bars, beyond that cold steel gate,
Lives a man I know, who holds my fate.
They see only the uniform, the crime, the past,
But I see the love, the hope, the change that will last.

I advocate for justice, for the truth to be told,
For a system that’s broken, cruel, and cold.
They ask me why I stand by his side,
But they don't know the battles, the tears we've cried.

I know the man behind the orange, the one who’s kind,
Who dreams of freedom, of leaving the past behind.
He’s more than a number, more than a mistake,
He’s the man who makes my heart ache.

The world may judge, may cast their stones,
But they don’t know the love that’s grown.
In their eyes, he's just an inmate, a case, a crime,
But in mine, he's my forever, my love, my time.

So I stand tall, despite the whispers, the sneers,
For I know the truth that quells my fears.
I am his, and he is mine, through this storm we fight,
For the man behind the orange, my love, my life.

~DeAnna Epperson

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From Guard to Wife: My Journey in the Shadows of the Justice System

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