Shared by Charles

My son was onceĀ  incarcerated and it is changed the way I now deal with him. Where in the past I have tried to protect him from these harsh realities, I now stress the importance that he not allow himself ever again become a part of the system. This is not to say that I didn’t do all of this before, because I’ve always tried to give him both of these lessons when he was younger. But after talking with him after his incarceration I can understand the loss he felt by my not being there. But now that he has seen and felt for himself all the things I tried to tell him about this place, he now has a better perspective and we have a better relationship. I’ve always tried to help the younger people find a way to escape this reality however I know have a better perspective of what some of the younger people who have mothers and fathers in prison seem to go through.

It also had the underpinnings of the loss I’ve also felt in morning or missing out on certain events with my family . Where as now this question gets right to the loss The loss I feel in having to endure the death of family members, in which I could not attend funerals. The loss I had to endure in a relationship with my now ex wife because of coming to prison, the fact that I can never really give the comfort a person would give to their family members when they are experiencing some form of hurt on their own because I can’t be there. These are but just a few of the things I have to endure because of this loss. -Charles

About Eric Okdeh

Eric Okdeh is a Philadelphia based muralist, who has been creating public art since 1998. After receiving his BFA in painting from Tyler School of Art, Eric chose to focus on mural work exclusively. Since 2002, in addition to his commissioned work, Eric has taught mural making classes to children and teens throughout the city as well as inmates at SCI Graterford Prison. The classes exist as leadership, teamwork, and skill building exercises which culminate in major mural projects. In an attempt to capture these significant community collaborations and interactions, Eric has developed this website and mural blog. The projects are journalized and documented in photographs and video clips to lend outside observers insight into the processes by which his murals come about. Eric has over 65 commissions throughout the city of Philadelphia and one in Seville, Spain. He has participated in mural projects in Tucson, Arizona and Los Angeles. His work is featured in four books about public and Mural art.
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