Through With Thursdays!

These are the final days, and as today passes, I will be officially through with Thursdays of my incarceration. The prospect of me being released next Wednesday is really sinking in. Next Thursday, I will spend 24 hours as a free person. That is such a wonderful feeling knowing the end of this journey is quickly approaching.

I really don’t have much to report as everything is virtually the same as it was yesterday. I witnessed a fellow inmate become very upset when he was told he had to go back to Jamestown for medical issues. I empathized with him so much as the last thing I ever want to do is see Jamestown again. The unfortunate part for this inmate was he had no recourse and had to make the long bus trip back. Hopefully, he will have the issues taken care of quickly, and he will be back next week. I have heard and witnessed horror stories regarding other inmates who went to Jamestown for what seemed to be routine medical issues, and they stayed there for months. As I watched this inmate stress, I realized how important it is to let go and let God. This sounds so simple and seems so simple when witnessing others go through difficult situations, but I can say first hand that this concept works very well. This inmate spent some time speaking with my roommate and me. I felt very bad for him, but it is part of the process. Things like this happen, and going with the flow does help. As he departed early this morning, I realized I would never see him again because, if he does return next week, it will be on a Wednesday, and I would be long gone by then. Once again, the reality of my release date came up.

My roommate and I are having a good time these last few days as the laughs continue. He proposed something to me yesterday which would have us altering our releases for the next six months. The thought it would a good if he were to be released instead next month but only for one month. Then he would come back, and I would go out for the next month as so on. As much as I like my roommate, this doesn’t sound like a very good proposal because, once I drive down that windy road with my wife next week, I am not coming back. My roommate was only joking, but it was worth a shot!

My roommate came back to the room with several editions of the L.A. Times, and we read through them last night along with today. It was nice to read a newspaper with substance. I am very grateful for the local newspaper, but it does lack substance. I took my time and read a few news articles that were good. This morning arrived much earlier than normal as we headed out to the weight area well ahead of schedule. The workout routine was once again excellent, and after helping clean the bathrooms, I had time for a 12-mile run. That was really the extent of my day, and I suspect the next five days will be identical.