Category: Piece of the Week

by Carlos, Santa Clara One important man in my life is my father. He always tries to push me to do better than I’m doing. He is also a motivational speaker, always telling me to think ahead. He means a lot to me because he makes me re-think my actions and consequences.  We always have a good connection but not when I’m in trouble. He likes to say if I get in trouble then he doesn’t want anything to do with me, but I feel like he only says that so I don’t get in trouble.  He really pushes me

by Abraham, San Diego My family realized that when I was in kindergarten I had talent. I remember, every other kid would draw sticks and dots as their characters, but I drew body parts in my art. I would draw ears, eyes, a nose, and lips.   I grew up watching my father tattoo all sorts of people in my momma’s kitchen. I would sit there spaced out in my own world, blurred vision because I needed glasses but I still drew.  I never paid attention in school because I was always too busy drawing something, whether it was my

by Shasta, San Mateo Anger to me is defined as a fire in my mind that is fueled by negative thoughts. It starts off small but grows quickly into more vicious anger. Most of my anger used to come from my previous drug use. I didn’t see it as a problem until after I stopped using.  If you’re curious on what my drug of choice was, it was Xanax. It affects your mind at such a rapid pace that you don’t recognize the problems it causes until it’s too late. It definitely affected my mood and caused me to lash

by BrokenHeartedYouth, Santa Clara  I had a co-visit with my mom the other day and we had a powerful conversation. It wasn’t your typical conversation that you’d have with your mother. Forgive me, but it’s still hard to talk about. I told her how tired I was, and she asked me, “Why mijo, did you sleep late?” It took me a while to answer her question. How can I tell the woman that brought me into this world and gave me love and life that I no longer wanted it?  I told her how I was feeling, and she broke

by JL, Santa Clara  My struggle is a beautiful one, many try to replicate it, but can’t do it right! I go and learn from all my mistakes on a daily basis. Some lessons are harder than others, but I’m proud of who I am becoming. I’ve been through it all and I can say that my loyalty still hasn’t wavered. I can die today and be known as a real standup dude!  I can’t let the poor decisions my peers made affect me. I can’t blame them for acting differently because we aren’t cut the same. I’ll continue to

by ES, Sacramento This week has been a rough week, but I did hear some positive feedback from a few people. It was from one of my fellow peers, his name was J. It was said a week or two ago during a basketball game.  It made me feel unquestionably good considering everything going on in my life now. He said I was going crazy which meant all in good terms. I was playing basketball and crossing people up like no tomorrow.  When it comes to hard work, I feel like you must be truly pushing yourself to the max

by AS, Sacramento Freedom to me is being able to do what you want, when you want. I got no freedom in here. I’m being watched twenty-four-seven. Freedom is when I was out and being able to go to the places I want.  If I’m hungry, I can go out and get a snack I want. I can be on social media talking to my friends and girls, but I’m not. I’m in here, incarcerated. I lost my freedom. Now I’m on a path to get it back. Since being incarcerated, I reflect on all the little things I miss

by L, Santa Clara Through those trials and tribulations, I’ve become a threat to society. See I’m not talking about being a strong heartless malicious gangster either. I’m armed not with a gun, I’m armed with knowledge and the thought to learn more.  They continue to throw big numbers at me to scare me but I’m different from my peers, a life sentence, couldn’t change the man in me! Regardless of what happens, I will continue to grow and become a role model for my young ones and continue to make my predecessors proud.  They’ve paved the way for success

by W, Sacramento My favorite view is LA because it’s my home and everything about it is amazing. I haven’t been to LA in a minute, but everyone loves to go there. I would say it’s very well known. My parents moved to LA and that’s how I discovered this amazing city.  I love going to Hollywood. The view is just not like others. You can go to the top of the hill and you will see all the city lights. You will see all the traffic lights and all the building lights. To get there, you have to drive

by AC, San Mateo My relationship with my parents is really good and strong. We’re always just talking, cleaning and chilling together either with music or with the TV show on. I know mostly everything I wondered about my parents because I asked them and then we go on talking for hours while they cook or just sit on the couch. I love how our relationship is strong because we really don’t know how much we’ve always struggled, but we managed to get through it as a family. So, I’m thankful for that.  Our bond has always been good. We