ISSUE NO. 3
September 2024
ISSUE NO. 3
+
Sections
September 2024
Donate Here

Letters

Reflect and Change

Anonymous

The author is writing from Metropolitan Remand and Reception Centre in Silverwater, New South Wales.

Credit: 'Depth IV' by Spectrum, $400, #5064, 76 x 60cm, acrylic on canvas. Available to purchase at https://www.nsw.gov.au/arts-and-culture/boom-gate-gallery

I’m an inmate who spent the last 20 months in MRRC. I was 24 when I was under arrest. During this time, I lost everything I valued before. I lost my reputation by news, which made lots of friends leave this ‘horrible’ me. I borrowed and spent all my money on a lawyer, I also was expelled from school in my senior year. I went to the worst situation of my life.

I know there are many brothers who also struggle in the same or worse situation as me, but I got something many brothers didn’t get during this time. It’s changing from reflection.

Nobody would like to be pushed to change, including me. Sometimes reflection and changing won’t make life easier, even harder. We have to come out from our comfortable zone to some strange and unfamiliar lifestyle. We have to put in a lot of effort. But you have to know all this hard time is temporary.

First, nobody wants to come back in jail again. You have to do the ‘surgery’ and ‘cut off’ your issue. Of course every surgery is hurt, but without hurt we could never be better. So it can also help us to come back after jail. That’s how reflection and change benefit us.

Who else would benefit after we change from reflection? It’s people around us. Family and friends also could get a good inspiration.

Yes, we may have a bad history but it doesn’t mean we cannot have a good future.

Treating others well is a big step for a new ‘nice guy’. We could make our family and friends get some relief, their life is also tough because of us. Please remember this, we should use our good behaviour to treat them well. How to behave well? That’s from reflection and changing.

Last, life is a long journey. As I said, there will still be a good future for us. Everyone’s journey will get setbacks, so do we. Please learn from this experience.

What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger no matter what situation is in front of us.

We have a responsibility to our life. It’s never too late to make change. We should make our future better, that’s why we have to reflect and change for our long life journey.

Brothers and sisters, please believe in me, and believe in us. We could make a big change for our beautiful life in the future from reflection. Some of us lost everything. We got nothing to lose, but to try and change from reflection.

Good luck.

I’m an inmate who spent the last 20 months in MRRC. I was 24 when I was under arrest. During this time, I lost everything I valued before. I lost my reputation by news, which made lots of friends leave this ‘horrible’ me. I borrowed and spent all my money on a lawyer, I also was expelled from school in my senior year. I went to the worst situation of my life.

I know there are many brothers who also struggle in the same or worse situation as me, but I got something many brothers didn’t get during this time. It’s changing from reflection.

Nobody would like to be pushed to change, including me. Sometimes reflection and changing won’t make life easier, even harder. We have to come out from our comfortable zone to some strange and unfamiliar lifestyle. We have to put in a lot of effort. But you have to know all this hard time is temporary.

First, nobody wants to come back in jail again. You have to do the ‘surgery’ and ‘cut off’ your issue. Of course every surgery is hurt, but without hurt we could never be better. So it can also help us to come back after jail. That’s how reflection and change benefit us.

Who else would benefit after we change from reflection? It’s people around us. Family and friends also could get a good inspiration.

Yes, we may have a bad history but it doesn’t mean we cannot have a good future.

Treating others well is a big step for a new ‘nice guy’. We could make our family and friends get some relief, their life is also tough because of us. Please remember this, we should use our good behaviour to treat them well. How to behave well? That’s from reflection and changing.

Last, life is a long journey. As I said, there will still be a good future for us. Everyone’s journey will get setbacks, so do we. Please learn from this experience.

What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger no matter what situation is in front of us.

We have a responsibility to our life. It’s never too late to make change. We should make our future better, that’s why we have to reflect and change for our long life journey.

Brothers and sisters, please believe in me, and believe in us. We could make a big change for our beautiful life in the future from reflection. Some of us lost everything. We got nothing to lose, but to try and change from reflection.

Good luck.

An Idea to Reduce Drugs and Violence in Prison

By Melissa

I have been in the system a long time. I believe that we as prisoners should be heard a lot more.

Letters

ISSUE NO. 20

1 MIN READ

We Want to Get Healthy in Prison – So Why Can’t We Buy Protein Powder?

By Joeby

Here at MCC we are limited to weight bags and medicine balls. We cannot purchase creatine or protein powders, training gloves or any other essential items that other prisoners at other centres can purchase.

Letters

ISSUE NO. 20

1 MIN READ

First Time In Prison, 3000km From Family

By Deanno

I just want to get back to my home state WA so I can do my time with my family support where I’m happy and have all my supports.

Letters

ISSUE NO. 20

1 MIN READ

Discovering Buddhism in Prison

By Chris

Buddhism teaches that pain is a part of being human, not a failure. Thoughts are not who you are, change is always possible because nothing is permanent. There is beauty in the idea that peace isn’t something you chase, it’s something you uncover when you stop clinging.

Letters

ISSUE NO. 20

2 MIN READ

Welcome to About Time

About Time is the national newspaper for Australian prisons and detention facilities

Your browser window currently does not have enough height, or is zoomed in too far to view our website content correctly. Once the window reaches the minimum required height or zoom percentage, the content will display automatically.

Alternatively, you can learn more via the links below.

Donations via GiveNow

Email

Instagram

LinkedIn