Death Row - Blue and Purple Iris

Clifford's Irises are Blooming!

I'm sure none of you even know who I'm talking about. There's no reason you should unless I tell you. My dear activist friend Charlie Sparks www.pennpals.org however will know. Charlie is like me ..exactly. We both are insane and we both fight for the underdog. Charlie's underdogs however for the most part are on death row in one hell or another. I thought I was the only one on the planet as crazy as I am and then I met Charlie. Could be he's worse than me. Even more driven if that's possible. Charlie has been very influential in many of my life's decisions in my quest for following my Calling'. Sometimes, when God taps a sinner on the shoulder and says, say, how about accepting this calling right here?' you can get a little confused as to how you should do things. In my case God has about worked me to death, but I have loved every painful second of it except those torturous moments when I had my head down in my hands, beaten like a drum, broken down, hopeless, in tears (yes, ME in tears), humbled beyond all means of humbling, practically lifeless from the stress of this struggle'. Well enough of that .anyways, it is very hard with very few rewards that anyone else ever sees, except a smiling beaming God with his fists waving in the air saying YES! YES!'

So one day, I get a letter from Charlie an email. I read it and my heart sunk. Tears filled my eyes and I kept on reading until I had to pick up the phone and call Charlie. The email was from another inmate Charlie helps. His ministry' it is a ministry, he just doesn't call it that .is to help inmates who the world has locked away and thrown away the key. The worst the very worst creatures on the planet on death rows and in administrative segregation (total solitary) confinement. Charlie wanted those guys to be able to have a chance to have some mail and for them to have some sort of presence in the free world via the internet.

He out of his own pocket slaves to send all those guys letters from people and their letters to others. He does so much.

Well this one inmate, Clifford Boggess, was an artist. A great artist, but what he was trying to sell was art about the images of death row. A greeting card with the lethal injection gurney was one scene. I guess when they arrive there, they take them to see where they will die and believe me he had captured every gory square inch of it in perfect detail. He had others of persons visiting through the grated metal on the phone. Really sad pictures. No one on the planet I figured would ever want a post card like those artworks. They haunted me and I love prison art and art in general.

Clifford had a cause. His cause was he was trying to raise some money to be buried in a real grave. Not just have his body thrown out back in the pauper inmate's graveyard with a number on it. Another horrible thought. Clifford had a friend that was selling his art for him and helping him to get the money for his burial, but it was hard for them to do it in time.

His time was near and getting closer.

One day, Charlie called me. He was so happy, yet sad. He said that he had told Clifford he would try to take care of some last minute details for him before they executed him. He had called the prison to ask about some of those things and he was told that Clifford was standing right there going through some last minute paperwork and procedures and that if he would like, he could talk to him!

What a joy, yet what a terrible conversation to have. I cannot imagine it. I only know how moved Charlie was that he had been able to be a servant to a man in such a horrible situation.

Well, I followed the news, and I saw it. Clifford Boggess was to be executed on a certain day. I also was following Charlie's emails about it and how it was affecting him.

The day arrived and punctually, Clifford Boggess was executed by lethal injection.

I received an email that same day. It was from Charlie.

It said that per Clifford's final request he was sending out his final letter to all he loved and who had been there for him. More tears filled my eyes as I read this man's final words to us .on the internet. Yet so helpless to have been there in his life to have prevented whatever caused him to kill from doing so. My heart was really heavy and my mission to continue fighting to prevent things like this from happening to others became even more determined.

As I read on, Clifford said he loved so much Blue and Purple Irises. He said they were his favorite flower and they brought him so much love and joy. He asked that those of us who cared to do so, please plant blue and purple irises in his name so that even after he is gone we would still love and enjoy them and think of him.

Well this is the first spring that Clifford's irises have bloomed. They are so gorgeous as they graciously ring a tree Kat and I planted together our first spring here together. She came running up to me the other day and she said, Del, come look .Clifford's irises are blooming!'

What a wonderful way to be remembered long after you are gone.

In Peace, Del

Source: Del Hendrixson - Website "Bajito Onda"