The last time I reported, it seemed we had many skeptical prisoners taking seats in our Path of Freedom classes at the Rhode Island ACI. The notes from our team Reporters indicated that prisoners had a lot of questions about what meditation was and what it would do for them.
The reports coming in now have a distinctly different flavor. Prisoners in the class have had some practice with mindfulness by now. By their quotes, they are showing faith in the process and openness to authentic results.
Here are some of the things they say!
From Francesca’s notes: “Working with this is showing me where I want to be in life – before I wasn’t aware and would get caught up in the day-to-day drama. Now I have a vision of how things could be better in my life.”
From Linda’s notes: “Can’t fool me – hold your seat really means shut your mouth!” And then she went on to say how helpful it was to remember to keep her mouth shut for a few breathes before she reacted.
From Paul V’s notes: “I felt sad, then meditated. I still felt sad but I accepted it.”
From Annice’s notes: “My breathing through an emotional problem helped me not go off! I worked with it for 3 days and felt some relief. It helped me stay in a mellow place.”
And
“I have problems meditating but I walked for an hour outside these past two days, using the breath. I was achey but I embraced it and thought about it in a new way because of this class.”
From Michelle’s notes: “The hard part is forgiving myself.” And “After this class, I’m not so quick to react.”
From Ralph’s notes: “I couldn’t notice anything because all I did was think.”
The honesty and vulnerability reflected in these quotes leaves me optimistic that the spirit of Path of Freedom is taking root!