I got released today. When I walked out of the front door, I took a deep breath of the fresh, crisp air outside — I was free.

It felt weird to walk around with my shoes on. I loved how they gripped my feet and ankles. The noise and movement of the street and sidewalk startled me. All of the strangers walking around me and towards me, sometimes at fast paces, scared me. My shirt wasn’t tucked in — it didn’t feel normal. I instantly began to tuck it in, until I realized where I was.

I spotted my mom in her car. I walked up and hopped in. We drove off and began talking about the outside world. I couldn’t concentrate on our conversation; the speed of the car worried me. I told her to slow down. She gave me a puzzled look and seemed to speed up. My heart started beating faster. Was my Mom trying to scare me… or kill me? I was freaking out. I thought I was going to die in a car accident before I even reached my house. I quickly turned my head, studied the speedometer, and discovered we were only going 20 mph. I exhaled in relief.

We finally reached my house. I got out of the car and walked to the big iron gate in front of my house. I stood there with my back against the wall on the opening side, waiting for my mom to open the gate — another puzzling look from Mother.

The gate opened. I went upstairs, walked to my room, and sat down. The cushioned seat was unordinarily comfortable. I kicked my shoes off and reclined the chair. I sat back and looked around the room. All the books I saw began to worry me… there were entirely too many. I was only supposed to have a total of five. My heart nearly dropped when I saw a pack of cigarettes and a cup filled with pens and pencils sitting in front of me.

An alarm was ringing in my head, “Contraband! Room searches! Oh, shhh!” — until I realized where I was… again. My door began to creak open. I heard the doorknob turn and jumped to my feet, ready to be let out. It was my mom — and another puzzling look.

I was feeling lost in this strange world of freedom. It felt weird. It could take some getting used to, but that was something I was looking forward to.