A few weeks ago, I spotted this weird fungus on the Loropetalum ( jazz hands )- the 5 ft. bushes that dazzle the back of one of the little gardens I keep here, in the center of the compound. It was the beginning of our holiday and the mishaps surrounding the weeks leading up to Christmas- and so I didn’t act on it as quickly as I should have. The truth is, they had such a fierce dirt dobber situation all summer, this could have been prevented, had I been more intimate with the shrubs all season. Alas, I did reach out to research the situation, knowing that as soon as I was able, I would address the problem.
The research shows that I need to completely cut out the infected areas, which in this case, will take the entire hedge out and leave bare sticks. I talked them through it all day. One by one, I stripped the beautiful and sick branches. I took my spade and scrapped out the blackness. ( that sounds like from a book by Toni Morrison )
They recommend Neem or copper based fungicide, that will never happen. I have tried to get Diatomatious Earth for years, to no avail. So it’s up to me to be so diligent, but honestly, it’s deep in the branches and my best hope is to strip it to the bare bones and hope we have some hard freezes. I am going to spray the roots with a frankincense mist ( the only thing i have like neem ) All the mulch has to come out of the bed too. There are 8 rose bushes, some rare bulbs and painted daisy that I can’t have affected.
I have never been so grateful to have two young helpers in training!
On the flip side, I had the best Christmas! I don’t really celebrate Christmas so what the days mean to me, especially Winter Solstice, is a time when I don’t have to work, I can have all my notes spread all over my bed and I have less distractions, as we are often locked in…..to me, this means the perfect time to do yoga, meditate and manifest- channel an energy that responds with clear, beautiful plans for the PEER SUCCESS PROGRAM or the next phase of my life.
I start the DOULA PROGRAM in two weeks, so there is no time to waste!!!
And so it happened; I have been working on some ideas that combine 8 dimensions of wellness, goal tracking with incentive based progress tracking.
One of the problems I have found, in the mentor program that I created, is the accountability. This proves to be one of the words that gets muddled here, like the word trifling.
Here, the word trifling is used- perhaps throughout the prison system ?- to describe a person who is nasty or dirty.
I have always love the word, as it was used in old movies, to describe when a woman, who had no power in her life, in her household etc.. would do these little tricky things, in sort of a passive aggressive manner, to feel empowered, like putting a broken chair under a drunk, abusive husband.
trifle as a noun :
1) something of little importance
2) a dessert of many varieties topically including plain or sponge cake, sherry, rum, or brandy , jam or jelly, fruit, custard, and whipped cream.
3) to some small degree, slightly
trifle as a translative verb:
1) a.to talk in a jesting or mocking manner or with intent to delude or mislead
b. to treat someone or something as unimportant
2) to handle something idly
: to spend or waste in trifling or on trifles
trifling adjective
:lacking in significance or solid worth: as a : frivolous
and there it is at the very end
c: chiefly dialect: lazy , shiftless
But what we are really discussing is accountability. Here, I have struggled with the mentors thinking that this word is best suited to prompt someone to take responsibility for their crimes by telling why they are here in a bio. I stress that this is not that.
To me, it is not relevant what someone did 10 or 20 or 3 years ago, but to measure how they have changed, if this is what they wish to do.
Accountability is the measurement of goals. Accountability or a self documented scale of time and accomplishment of CHANGE. In the case of the PEER SUCCESS PROGRAM, change from an old unhealthy or unproductive behavior to a new method of operandi that is conducive to good health, better relationships and a solid plan for the future.
By doing INCINTIVE BASED CHALLENGES FOR 90 DAYS, hopefully, we will gain this much needed accountiblity.
In dog training, there are dogs that are treat motivated, some perform more for affection and some want praise.
The warden is going to give me a space to post the winners, we will find prizes to give, and everyone will clap for them apon recieving their certificate!!! We will cover all bases. I have clicker trained someone to learn multiplication, so there is something to the parallel.
If you have been paying attention, you may recall, I have the gym at my disposal every quarter for 3 hours. Previously I did a PEER SUCCESS TRAINING EVENT ( when Michael Santos came to help kick off the program!) then, I hosted a DOMESTIC VIOLENCE event. Each time, I have been using a method that I sort of crafted- where I take the gym and place 8-12 circles of chairs and have each circle be a workshop. Everything flows together so beautifully.
So picture this: The end of Jan. event is going to be a 90 DAY CHALLENGE KICKOFF; the circles will be areas of the wellness wheel where we can sit and set goals to challenge ourselves to improve, learn or change a behavior over the 90 days which follow.
Budgeting- learning how to prioritize financial decisions and stick to a budget
Re-entry Planning- taking the time to actually plan out the next phase of life after prison and determine what it will take to get there- creating a resume, claiming a personal mission statement, doing the research and mapping it all out
Fitness Challenge- not based on loss of lbs… or inches, but based on a fit test for strength and endurance
Spanish Challenge- learn Spanish in 90 days to increase employability
Parenting Challenge includes jounaling to children and or keeping up with a baby for 90 days!!!
Sobriety Circle- where we will give incentives that help people fill their locker the hygiene’s that they have neglected to buy due to their poor choices!
btw- the circles are based on projects that my think tank members are already involved in on a smaller scale, for the most part. All I have to do is put it all together !!!
Finally- I am hosting a writing challenge. I am partnering with The Prison Journalism Project, where I will ask participants to make monthly submissions based on the prompts I give them.
I am not naive to the fact that the average women here lacks the abilty to sit through an entire movie and so asking them to do something for 90 days is stretch- fortunately, we have the in- house mentors who can do 30 day check-ins.
I have a meeting with the warden next week to see what incentives I can offer…. I firmly believe that by giving the right information and simultaneously incorporating positive behaviors, a person’s life can change EXPONENTIALLY.
