Chapter 15: BREAKING BIAS
February 2016 and another birthday in prison. When I first arrived to prison it had been March. I’d had an entire year before my first birthday there and I had watched all year, interested as other women celebrated birthdays and tried to make them special....
Chapter 14: SURPRISED BY JOY
I think of this as the beginning. I was asleep, maybe dead all my life, before 2016. I was 40 years old. “Mom, I’m not sure I believe in God anymore,” my oldest son Noel explained on the phone. It was October 2015, and Noel had just turned 21. Trying...
Chapter 13: WHERE’S MY SON!?
“Come work with me!” Jae urged. “We need another tutor.” I shuddered at the thought. “Not a chance,” I threw back. Jae was a tutor in Adult Basic Education (A.B.E). It could be argued prison has neighborhoods – UI (the...
Chapter 12: LAST CALL
“Mommy? Do you still love us?” Vivi’s little voice sang out across the phone lines. Summer 2014. Timmy, under supervision of Child Protective Services, was in foster care. My heart ached as each month new reports from Social Services arrived...
Chapter 11: UNINTENDED IDLE (AGENCY & DEHUMANIZATION)
My youngest son Tim, aged 11, was in hospital for emergency surgery. Scared, I had many questions. My caseworker had no information. It would be many days before an update.
Chapter 10: SEX OFFENDER (SO) TREATMENT
Told the program would remove barriers and open doors to privileges, I began in December 2012 with an attitude problem. The intake process began with psychological testing. Afterwards I sulked in the treatment director’s office, arms crossed, sullen. Noticing my...
Chapter 9: NO PIE & SIX MONTHS NO SHOWER
(09) NO PIE & 6 MONTHS NO SHOWER From Surviving to Living Serial Audiobook https://episodes.castos.com/659ef4b1483350-07089036/1665930/c1e-4p0xgc4934wam5wz4-romjo887f07-paxsjn.mp3 It was January 2012 and I worked in General Assembly inspecting gaskets at base pay,...
Chapter 8: RING TOSS & DOPPELGANGERS
I began my job in General Assembly the end of November 2011. Also called Rubber, it was housed in a large warehouse building shared by several educational and industry job opportunities. There were 2 main jobs – ring inspections and cutting rubber. Rings were...
Chapter 7: General Assembly (Burning Rubber)
It is November 2011. I finished the WoW program and became eligible for the workforce. Nervously I checked my mail daily, waiting for a job assignment. I’d been fired from my last job so I could not choose the next one. It would be assigned to me based on the...
