Lost Souls
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About this ebook
Most everyone living in contemporary America has some awareness of the urban street culture that exists in many of our inner city ghettos. Pop rap has brought it into every living room. What seems to be missing from most of this musical genre, however, are answers to the complexities of poverty and racism; lessons in life that not only focus on the frustrations but teach better ways of dealing with reality besides violence, drugs and attitude.
In Lost Souls, Shawn Lytle takes his readers into that world of alienation and life out-of-control. He speaks through thought-provoking poetry, essays, and short stories of the harsh reality of the city streets; exciting, sad, confusing, yet always with a shred of hope.
Lost Souls is, as the subtitle suggests, “A bizarre voyage into the lives of the desolate that run wild in search of deliverance.” Mr. Lytle writes of his first-hand experiences in everyday street language. His unique insight provides understanding to the complex cultural issues facing our society, and how each of us can make a difference as we strive for a better future.
From an inside-out view of an anxious drug deal, to the loss of a close friend whose life was cut short without reason, Mr. Lytle speaks of his years living fast in the streets. Now and then, he punctuates his dark sketches of life with the lighter whimsical fantasies of a writer discovering his untapped talent. It’s as if he were saying, “writing was my way out, perhaps I can inspire you to find your way out, too.”
In Lost Souls, Shawn Lytle makes no excuses for choosing his roads of the past, but gives voice to the options we all have in deciding the future. His experiences empower others in the knowledge that anyone, at anytime, can turn around or select another path in life.
Shawn P. Lytle
Shawn P. Lytle is a South Carolinian living in his adopted home of Orlando, Florida where he splits his time between raising his kids and writing. He is an avid reader of fiction and philosophy. He is a graduate of Florida State University where he obtained his bachelor’s degree in English. Writing has always been his first love since his adolescent days. He learned to express his emotions through his poetry, his concerns through his essays, and his wild imagination through his stories.
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Book preview
Lost Souls - Shawn P. Lytle
LOST SOULS
A bizarre voyage into the lives of the desolate
that run wild in search of deliverance
An anthology of short stories,
essays and poems by
Shawn P. Lytle
Copyright by Shawn P. Lytle
Smashwords Edition
All rights reserved
PRAISE for SHAWN P. LYTLE
Shawn Lytle is a young writer on the rise, LOST SOULS is a young man looking at a cold and cruel world, yet, as he says, I love my people.
When you experience LOST SOULS, (read is just not a strong enough word,) you will understand why his people
— us, love him. It is such a good thing to see young men taking control of their thoughts and emotions and giving it back to us. LOST SOULS is a must.
— NIKKI GIOVANNI
Shawn Lytle is a young writer with unique insight into the human character and psyche. LOST SOULS, his most recent literary contribution, is an expose of the forces and parameters of the human condition. Lost Souls is a voyage by a young man buffeted and compelled by his circumstances to vent his journey through these pages.
Shawn Lytle is a voice in the wilderness crying aloud; he calls to us for recognition and significance, our answer must be, We Hear
.
— JOHN DELGADO, ATTORNEY AT LAW
Shawn Lytle brings a strong, fresh voice to today’s literature as he shares his unique insight into a word that is often exciting, often sad, yet always hopeful. Through his collection of thought provoking essays and short stories, young and old alike will gain a better understanding of the complexity of today’s society and how we can each make a difference as we strive for a better tomorrow.
— SHERRI LINSENBACH, EDITOR
CHASING WATERFALLS
They got me trapped, starring at the sky while my tears
try to find a home in the cracks of the concrete
My heart is beating fast trying to find a happy residence
in a sad environment while I watch the cops walk the beat
Shattered dreams paint the walls like graffiti when souls
depart
While Rest in Peace tags replace the Mona Lisa as
legendary art
Visions of making it are so close like the apple hanging
off the tree at the edge of the cliff
Should I reach for it I wonder
Hesitation like this has
left plenty brothers in the street stretched out stiff
It’s hard to find a direction, when the jail is on the right
side of me and the prison is on the left
Life is behind me
and in front of me is death
All turns can turn fatal so I’m running wild with pistols
tucked,
living life day to day and praying that I don’t get
bucked
Can’t find peace anywhere on this earth while these
helicopters are hovering over me
A reminder I guess, just to let me know, that if I try to
escape from Hell then they can capture me
It’s funny how we went from Easter Sunday speeches
to speeches to the judge that would decide whether
we would spend 5 or 20 years behind bars
We changed our suits to jump suits and gave up plenty
of our free time, in our quest to become rich and
Ghetto Superstars
LOOK INTO MY EYES
Look into my eyes and view the pain, can you see the fire
burning?
Depressed and stressed, losing sleep, in bed tossing and
Turning
Visualizing my brothers wasting their time in prison