Welcome to About Time

About Time is the national newspaper for Australian prisons and detention facilities

Your browser window currently does not have enough height, or is zoomed in too far to view our website content correctly. Once the window reaches the minimum required height or zoom percentage, the content will display automatically.

Alternatively, you can learn more via the links below.

Donations via GiveNow

Email

Instagram

LinkedIn

ISSUE NO. 21

April 2026

Donate Here

Poetry

Apocalypse of the Mind

By

Emma-lee

Emma-lee writes from a prison in QLD.

Akram Huseyn via Unsplash

I sit here watching the second-hand ticking by

as it slowly keeps passing my time...

And just as I thought the world can’t be changed it an apocalypse of the mind,

Like a spark causes a flame, then a light will ignite,

Then suddenly I’m pulling a ton of stress with me,

Seems these days all I’m trying to do is get people to help me to forgive myself,

Now I should have seen the signs it’s an apocalypse of the mind,

And don’t have me mistaken I would have pressed rewind if I could,

But it seemed fast forward was just as good.

And don’t have me misunderstood I would’ve pressed stop if I could,

I’m so sick of being sick,

So sick of doing shit wrong,

Seems like the best end is a brand-new beginning,

The opposite to a life full of loss, is a brand-new life full of winning,

Cognition destroyed and re-designed it’s an Apocalypse of the mind,

Every breath a blessing,

Every step a gift,

Seems these day’s people forgetting how precious life really is,

Now I could sit back and say I’ve had it rough,

But really it’s 2 in 3 that have it tough,

You can sit there and deny,

But I’ll walk through life with my head held high,

Time to stand up and identify,

I was always too nice,

Didn’t think I could suffice,

No more listening to bad advice,

Gotta step up in life,

Become a mother and a wife,

Put a footprint on this reality,

Make for a better society,

Because seeing that smile embraced on his face,

Is all I need to rid my mind of the world’s disgrace,

No point in me sitting back and having a cry,

About all the things in life I cannot rectify,

So sick of being sick,

So sick of doing shit wrong,

Sometimes the best end is a brand-new beginning,

The opposite to a world full of loss,

Is a world full of winning,

Cognition destroyed and re-designed,

It’s an apocalypse of the mind,

So no matter what I might know,

No matter what I might say,

I’m just a matter of words,

In a matter of thoughts,

So prepare to have your mind blown.

I sit here watching the second-hand ticking by

as it slowly keeps passing my time...

And just as I thought the world can’t be changed it an apocalypse of the mind,

Like a spark causes a flame, then a light will ignite,

Then suddenly I’m pulling a ton of stress with me,

Seems these days all I’m trying to do is get people to help me to forgive myself,

Now I should have seen the signs it’s an apocalypse of the mind,

And don’t have me mistaken I would have pressed rewind if I could,

But it seemed fast forward was just as good.

And don’t have me misunderstood I would’ve pressed stop if I could,

I’m so sick of being sick,

So sick of doing shit wrong,

Seems like the best end is a brand-new beginning,

The opposite to a life full of loss, is a brand-new life full of winning,

Cognition destroyed and re-designed it’s an Apocalypse of the mind,

Every breath a blessing,

Every step a gift,

Seems these day’s people forgetting how precious life really is,

Now I could sit back and say I’ve had it rough,

But really it’s 2 in 3 that have it tough,

You can sit there and deny,

But I’ll walk through life with my head held high,

Time to stand up and identify,

I was always too nice,

Didn’t think I could suffice,

No more listening to bad advice,

Gotta step up in life,

Become a mother and a wife,

Put a footprint on this reality,

Make for a better society,

Because seeing that smile embraced on his face,

Is all I need to rid my mind of the world’s disgrace,

No point in me sitting back and having a cry,

About all the things in life I cannot rectify,

So sick of being sick,

So sick of doing shit wrong,

Sometimes the best end is a brand-new beginning,

The opposite to a world full of loss,

Is a world full of winning,

Cognition destroyed and re-designed,

It’s an apocalypse of the mind,

So no matter what I might know,

No matter what I might say,

I’m just a matter of words,

In a matter of thoughts,

So prepare to have your mind blown.

‘Love is Rebuilding My Life’

By Phillip

There’s irony, hypocrisy, fallacy, a vast ocean of distance to cross. The “saint”, the “sinner”, it’s lunacy, that the ignorant could save the lost.

Creative

ISSUE NO. 22

2 MIN READ

Methfairytale

By Karie

I’m not belle of the ball, not the very least, but we have something in common, I’m in love with a beast. But the beast is not a person but a drug that I call meth, I’ve been talking to myself for hours, I’m running out of breath.

Creative

ISSUE NO. 22

1 MIN READ

Nostalgia

By Dennis

Nostalgia is a gentle haze, a soft and fading, golden maze, where time itself begins to blur, and memory’s touch is sweet and pure.

Creative

ISSUE NO. 22

1 MIN READ

Art From Inside

By Lanie

Our team was blown away by this beautiful painting.

Creative

ISSUE NO. 21

1 MIN READ