Dear Sis~
I'm sitting here on my bunk only half-heartedly watching the Dallas Cowboys play the New York Giants on Monday night football; I'm not really into the game because my mind is on the upcoming November 9th execution of a friend of mine, John Yancy Schmitt. That's only 17 days from now and it's hard to get into sports or any other entertainment when the guy a few cells away from me will be dead in a mater of days. Yancy is a young guy too, only 33, which is way too soon to die. When I think back at how little I really knew at age 33, and how far I've evolved since then, it just reinforces how there is no substitute for time, and the experiences it yields, in this endeavor we call life, this struggle we endure in Schoolhouse Earth (that reminds me of an old proverb: "Experience is the fruit of the tree of errors.") You know, I've seen a lot of death in my 34 years in prison - too much death - and yet the fleetingness of human life still astonishes me. Yancy, for his part, is taking his eminent death like a trooper, with a fine-tuned mixture of stoicism and humor ... I'll write again, Sis, when I can better get my heart into it. Meanwhile, keep a smile on your face and joy in your heart!
Love & Peace, Bill
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2 comments:
Dear Mr Van poyck
I just finished reading abook written by Xavier Waterkeyn. After reading the chapter about your experience i decided i had to check out your blog. I was pro on the death penalty (im aussie, we dont have these laws here anymore) but after reading this book and reading much online i find these laws are simply wrong. I wish you all the best in your mission to change you sentencing, you have been treated unfairly, i will check your blog as often as possible (yes im a net junky- so ill be checking almost everyday.
I wish you all the best
good luck
Claudey
Yancey was indeed a trooper and your words with a mixture of stoicism and humor where very fitting for the person that Yancey was. I am glad that you called Yancey your friend, for he truly was a good person.
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