My Day in Maximum Security, Part 1

Confession: I recently spent a day “in” prison. It was exactly and nothing like I expected.

Note: There is way too much to share for this to be a post people will actually read in one sitting. I hope you’ll indulge me to write posts 2 days in a row to get it all in. I have also changed the names of the people I met.

I went to prison last week. I spent the day in a maximum security facility for women. Maybe I should clarify in case you’re wondering what’s going on…though I’m pretty sure you didn’t assume I was there as an inmate. I went as part of a team that holds a revival at this prison every year. The weekend begins with each woman receiving a box of personal hygiene items provided by churches across the state. Though the items are basic things you and I probably always have on hand, for some of these women they were a luxury. It was a privilege to see the faces of the women who receive the boxes. But it’s really easy to participate in things like this and become very pious…to walk away reminded of how “blessed” or “fortunate” we are and how we “shouldn’t take things for granted.” Don’t get me wrong, that is a true statement. God has indeed blessed me and I need to be thankful for the life I have. But that wasn’t one of the lessons I took away from that day. Though I didn’t have many one on one conversations with inmates, I had a few and there was something to be learned from each of them.

Lesson 1: It is quite possible that I watch way too many episodes of Lock Down, Lock Up, Scared Straight, and Snapped.

My name is Alanna and I am a true crime/crime drama junkie. There. I admit it. This habit is why I say the day was everything and nothing I expected. All that I expected my experience to be was based on these shows. So, I expected at least some of the women to be scary and intimidating. I expected cells with bars. I expected people who looked nothing like me. What I found was women of all ages, some who looked so young as well as some with walkers or in wheelchairs. I found women with well-kept hair and make-up. There were wives and mothers. They were people just like me, though something landed them here, in confinement. But, as we also must do, they were living in the reality of their daily lives. Wherever we are, we have choices and we make choices. Sometimes they lead us to where we need to be, sometimes they lead us places we never should have gone. In reality, at my core, I’m no different than many of the women there. I hate to break it to you but neither are you.

Lesson 2: The choices and decisions we make today will determine the life we live tomorrow. 

After distributing the boxes to the ladies in the general population, I was able to go with a group to the lockdown unit. This is where they house those who are under mental health observation or 90 day administrative segregation, along with the death row inmates. They are in a facility with no air conditioning and only 1 hour a day out of confinement.
As we were handing out boxes, I came to the cell of “Jackie.” I said hello and she asked if I would pray for her. Of course, I did. When I asked her what I could pray for, she asked me to pray that she would be able to get herself together so she could get out of there. She told me that she has a 1 year old that is currently in foster care and she wants to be able to have her back in her care. For Jackie, getting out of “there” first means getting out of administrative segregation. She’s there for bad behavior and defiance. She’s there because of her choices. With each behavior report she gets in there, her 90 days begins again. Each time her 90 days begins again, she’s one step back from general population…and ultimately one step further back from seeing her daughter.
 

Let’s be honest, you don’t have to be in prison to experience this same struggle. With each negative thought I choose to entertain, I’m one step closer to negative words. With each fatty snack I choose to put in my mouth, I’m one step further from the weight and health I’d like to experience. With each dollar I choose to spend unwisely, I’m one step closer to debt. Though the behaviors may be different, they all stem from something I choose….something you choose. May we choose wisely today in order to live the life God desires for us tomorrow.

Join me tomorrow for lessons 3 and 4 from my day in maximum security.