Category: Piece of the Week

by Lalo, San Francisco I am writing this letter to share my sincere apologies to you for the incident on February  2021. I am really sorry for what I did. I feel your struggle and pain and I’m sorry for putting you and your family through these moments. I didn’t want to do what I did and I wish I could take the day back and things would be different. That night, things happened so fast that I did not think. I just acted. At first, I thought I had killed you and I panicked. I remember when I got

by JU, San Francisco If you can use one word to describe who I am right now, I would say I am ready. I am ready to push through whatever I need to. I am ready to do whatever I need to do to get through the next phase of my life. I’m ready to knock the rest of my sentence out, and ultimately, I am ready to get out and be a productive member of society so I can provide for my family. I want to put an end to all the stress I have caused from being locked

by Jeramiah, Albuquerque, New Mexico The hardest task that I had to do was getting my high school diploma. I say this was the most difficult task for me because I would never try or push past my limits. It took many sacrifices and being in trouble for me to realize that I need to get my life straight. It was not easy, but I got through it. I thank my mom and family members so much for their support. If I didn’t have them around, I don’t think I would have made it this far. I also had many

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