IT ONLY TAKES A LETTER

My daughters and I never realized what a difference a letter could make in the life of a man or woman in prison that had been completely forgotten by family members or friends.  We found out just how much a letter means to them when we started writing about five young men in prison, and learned about them from one of the young men.

These men are incarcerated due to making wrong choices in involvement with drugs, and have paid dearly for those mistakes.  Some of them never would get any mail if we didn’t write them.  They feel they have been forgotten, feel lost, and hopeless.  In our writing to them, they have made a remarkable turn-around and are now positive, cheerful, and looking hopefully to the future when they will get out and plan to turn their lives completely around.  They treat us like we were their family now, and write return letters faithfully.  Each letter is full of enthusiasm and expresses a desire someday to come and meet the ones that have faithfully written them.

We have been fortunate in the people that we have been writing; however, this is not the way this undertaking should always be done.  If you feel in your heart that you could make a difference in even one man or woman’s life that is incarcerated, and would like to make an effort to write to them, I’ll give you a perspective on how you could do this. It is not necessary that any one of them know where you live.  You could call a prison of your choosing and ask to speak to the chaplain.  Ask him if he could get you the name of someone he feels needs this kind of encouragement and contact.   Then he could write and give you this information, and you could write this person and mail the letter back to the chaplain.  He in turn would give the letter to the inmate and let him decide if he chooses to write back to you.  If he does, he gives his finished letter to the chaplain and he mails the letter on to you.

In this way, you may be changing someone’s life without even realizing it.  So many of these inmates never receive mail, and have nothing to look forward to; each day the same as before.  Some of these men and women are not criminals, but have made stupid mistakes in their lives, and need counseling and rehabilitation, not incarceration.  Just imagine if it was one of your friends or loved ones.  You would write them often and offer words of encouragement and hope.  Their lives in these places are miserable, and they always have to be careful of being drawn into a fight.  No, it’s not a pleasant place to be, so that is why we try and make a difference in their lives, and help them to think positive.  If you choose to write someone, you too will be changing a life for the better. Anyway, just think about it.  Below is a poem I sent to them, and it has made a real difference in their lives.  In fact, one of them has it read periodically in group meetings.

Looking To the Future

If we could look into the future,
and see what lies ahead,
how would we face the future
with hopeful hearts or dread?
Would we be determined
to work hard to succeed?
Or, would we feel the world owed us
our livelihood instead?
Would we pursue our goals in life,
with courage and with hope?
Or shake our heads ‘that life’s too hard,’
and sit around and mope?
Would we set plans to help ourselves
and, in turn help others too?
Or would we expect a handout
feeling there is nothing we can do?
Remember to believe in yourself,
so, don’t falter or give up.
Just dig right in and you will win
and find yourself on top.
The way we live our lives
determines how it will end.
Will we be remembered for our accomplishments,
or, for our lack of them instead?

Helen L. Price