Your story is a beautiful and powerful example of how a person can find themselves and realize their goals in the midst of what seems like disaster. I cling to the words of Rudyard Kipling who instructs us in his poem, “IF”, to treat triumph and distaste as the imposters that they are.
At the very beginning of my sentence, my mother told me to do my time with grace and dignity. I realized that having received a 30-year sentence for a drug conspiracy as a result of allowing a divorce to send me into a tailspin, I needed to do some serious work on myself. I recently took a deep glance back at the time I have done by creating a timeline of my accomplishments and extracurricular activities and I was amazed at how it all looked when written out on paper. I have been so grateful for my stay here. I was able to take RDAP at the beginning of my sentence! I was able to fill a tool belt that has served me well in so many tricky situations. I was also grateful to attend the INSIDE OUT PROGRAM and then I was a founding member of the first female THINK TANK, VOICES UNITED. I have written for FAMM and the APPALACHIAN PRISON BOOK PROJECT for a number of years and I have also written and collaborated on other projects. I was a painter, and artist, as designer- prior to coming to prison- here I discovered that I could use words to heal and grow, IN THE ABSENCE OF PAINT.
And so I wrote a self-help book of my journey to better health, wholeness and total self-love. I called it IN THE ABSENCE OF PAINT. My most recent accomplishment is my favorite. It began this way: You see, I have worked for the captain as the landscape orderly ( planting, tending the small but lovely gardens here ) and I have often pitched to her ideas I have had for projects here- so one day she asked me, ” what are we going to do about the drug problem here? ” It was probably a rhetorical question, but I began to really contemplate some ideas. Creative solutions have always been my specialty. As with yoga, all things can be done little by little- in breathing it through. Piece by piece we are able to put things together.
Day after day, I meditated, sat in my yoga poses and contemplated my own journey to wellness and sobriety and finally I was able to put together an answer to Captain’s question- Peer Led Programming using mentors to foster the 8 Dimensions of the Wellness Wheel. We have 12 pods here and so we were able to find 12 strong leaders, one from each pod- to direct the mentors who each have a role in helping their community to realize the spokes of the wheel that they are most gifted in.
For instance, in each unit, there is someone motivating the women to foster the physical spoke, another is helping the women to parent from prison, create a budget, find a greater closeness to their creator or higher self etc… Which brings me to the reason that I reached out to you.
You see, I have already done all of the things you are recommending a person do. (A Beautiful Path btw )
One of the foundations of the PEER SUCCESS TEAM PROGRAM is that the women who are participating must be working on a RE-ENTRY PLAN. After reading your email it occurred to me that I could help you to reach your number of 10,000 by referring our participants to you.
I have been finding ways to serve my community here for a number of years and so I can only speak for the women whose needs are likely different from the needs of men. Women come here flooded with Cortisol, often traumatized from the abuse they have endured ( often at the hands of their co-defendant ) they often suffer from body dysmorphia- and they are literally sick from being separated from small children in an unnatural way. This is why I have focused on helping women to become stronger, mentally and physically and as often as I can, I help them to heal through creativity.
And each day I ask them, ” ARE YOUR ACTIONS TODAY IN LINE WITH YOUR GOALS FOR TOMORROW?”
Hopefully, we can work together,
with gratitude,
Celeste
