WHAT IS FREEDOM AND WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU?

WHAT IS FREEDOM AND WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU?

I recently obtained a copy of PEOPLE FOR CHANGE which was dated Summer 2012 while I was looking for a kite at the Corrections Officers desk. THE PEOPLE FOR CHANGE Newsletter is a collection of writings that are written by various prisoners in TOLEDO CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION and circulated by the staff and students at the UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO. I took it back to my cell and once the cellblock became quiet I began to peruse through it out of sheer boredom. I was instantly drawn to the writers as they shared their experience within the walls of various prisons. It was as if I was being drawn to the magnetic quality of each mans writings on a deeper level. One of the writers was a man I had grown familiar with from doing time around him at other institutions. He had a unique name so I was sure it was him when I read his piece and saw his name after the material. I stopped him one day on the way to the chow hall/cafeteria and inquired as to how he had gotten involved with writing for the newsletter.

He gave me the knowledge and told me to write something and give it to him for him to present to the people that had put the newsletter together. I reread the material one more time to get a feel of how it was formatted. The particular issue that I had came upon ended by explaining that the next topic for the newest newsletter would be "WHAT IS FREEDOM AND WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU?" with that title fresh in the chambers of my minds eye I turned out the lights and just began travel through myself.

See, I know this topic well because Freedom is a word I've grown very familiar with over the last 10 years. I've envisioned having access to it consistently everyday as my goal for the last 10 year, 20 days, 5 hours, and 45 seconds as of this writing. The dictionary defines Freedom as: exemption or liberation from the control of some arbitrary power. I define Freedom that way in a physical sense but the element of Freedom transcends the Physical form to me. I say this because a person can be physically free but in a state of mental bondage due to the lack of knowledge of him or herself. Though many don't realize it, both have toxic effects though they might manifest in different ways. I find it interesting that a person can sometimes have to lose their physical freedom to gain mental freedom in form of self awareness. It's like they have to free their dome or mind into a state of awareness to begin to see clearly and become capable of grasping things that are affecting them and their loved ones.

One of the biggest lessons that I've learned from my experience of being confined in Ohio's Industrial Prison Complex is that a man only learns what he teaches himself. It took me years of experimenting with High Explosives in the laboratory of Life to discover that freedom is a jewel that comes in degrees. Even in prison a person can still be place into deeper degree of confinement such as segregation, 23 hour lock down etc...

Although a person’s knowledge of the law and its application determine if that person can born the circumstances to change their outdate a person can decide to free themselves from being a slave to a mental death and power just by deciding that they no longer want to accept being in that state of mind. To me this where true freedom starts before it can be projected into a person’s outward reality by their mental concentration and focus.

Once a person obtains the proper knowledge of self they are now equipped to free the domes of other mathematically by taking them thru the same steps of enlightenment which is what civilized people do once they truly understand what freedom is anyways. This is how I learned the value of this jewel and that to reap the benefits of having it I would have to give it away. Too bad it took me so long to get it but better late than never.

"Proper education always corrects errors."

BORN

Toledo Correctional Institution Toledo, Ohio