Lanre Onigbinde-Bey
27th LETTERS
ABOUT THE BOOK
A note from the author:
Family is my backbone. I always knew that about myself. As far back as I can remember, taking care of my family was my equilibrium.
When my daugher, Tatiana was born in 2001, my focus on family shifted a lot. Making ends' meet became my priority. At this point, my parents had separated and my mother, who had been my pillar of strength, had lost interest in life. With an 11 year gap between my siblings and I, they also became my responsibility.
The years rolled by and it was 2005 when I served my third year of a life sentence in the J unit of Millhaven Institution in Bath, Ontario. By this time I had not seen my daughter for over two years and communication between myself and the mother of my daughter was non-existent.
A friend who was also doing time, suggested that I write to Tatiana. On December 27, 2005 I sent my daughter her first letter.
There were many factors affecting how I was able to maintain contact with my daughter, but the letters remained my truest thoughts, coming from a father who did not know when he was going to get out. To the best of my ability, through these letters I conveyed to her how important she was to me during my darkest days.
The letters speak to everything from the lighthearted topics of games and movies to heartfelt subjects and spirituality. My daughter was only four years old when I started to write these letters. As she aged, our communications broadened and developed deeper layers of meaning.
Through 27thletters.com and with your support, we reached the goal to raise enough money for the independent publishing of 27th Letters. With proceeds from the book sale, I have been on a book tour which I hope fosters a reconnection of us as neighbours living in this global community. I strongly believe that we as people should have an invested interest in the future of our community and this world through our children. Like the rain, parenting does not fall on just one person’s home.
I welcome you to read the letters that have inspired the creation of this book and invite you to purchase a copy of the publication through Amazon or Creatspace.