Summer school ended today for me. I was cleaning my room, doing all my stuff I gotta do to shut it all down for a while. I remembered one of my girls still had a book of mine. I had lent Amy "Atlas Shrugged" a while back. I asked Carla if she had returned it to her room. Carla said she did, but she gave it back to Amy cuz there was a essay contest for college money based on "Atlas Shrugged" she wanted Amy to try for.
So I thought about it and decided to just give the book to Amy. She turns 18 this week and will be gone from our facility before I go back to work in August.
Amy kinda teared up a little when I told her I was giving her the book as a gift. She made a motion like she wanted to hug me, but hesitated as she wasn't sure it was appropriate. I reached out and motioned it was ok. Cathy, her embroidery teacher, was there, so it was all kosher. No touching without witnesses. She asked if I would write something to her in the book. I did. Something about her being a better reader than me for getting through that book!
Amy has served approximately 2 years of a 40 year sentence for helping her boyfriend kill her mother.
Amy isn't her real name.
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4 comments:
Yeah, I was racking my brain trying to remember Amy. ;) That was nice of you.
Talk about real life smacking you in the face with all its ugliness. I guess when kids leave your facility it doesn't necessary mean they go on to college and do good things - how naive of me. You and all invovled should be proud of yourself for seeing the good when there's not too much good to go around. Hopefully she'll get a college education regardless of where she's at.
That's why I am proud to call you my sister (among many other)
I'm not proud of you for giving up on it. One of my best friends out here just finished (and just recently started) the copy that I bought for him over 2 years ago and he said it was the most influential book of his entire life, helped him be sure of his career plan and he thanks me for giving it to him all the time. I've heard of surveys where people list it as the second most influential book in their life after the bible.
Often in life the rewards are appropriate to the challenge.
I'm gonna buy you another one.
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