Please contact Lisa Lavaysse if you would like to purchase the full PDF or a printed copy of this issue.
Continue ReadingMonth: June 2019
Ed Note 24.27/28
Greetings friends! Welcome to double issue 24.27/28! This week we welcome to our editorial pages another stellar pairing of reflections by high school students, this time from San Francisco University High School. In her reflection, Rania offers honest insight into her own development of resiliency, and critiques the function of American prisons versus prisons abroad. Lukas thinks critically of his role as the “gatekeeper†of Beat Without writing, and asks a lot of great questions around artistic agency and editorial guidelines. We appreciate the hard work of both Rania and Lukas, and the brilliant reflections that they’ve had on our
Continue ReadingToday
by Osvaldo Vasquez After many years in prison and many self-help groups, I realized my thinking had degenerated drastically from what is acceptable in order for my life to get to the place where it was okay in my head to steal and kidnap somebody. Today, as a result of my personal self-analysis and use of the principles of the 12 Step Program (Humility, Honesty, Open-Mindedness, Responsibility, Willingness, Forgiveness, etc.) I realize, thanks to my sobriety (six years clean) and good judgement, that all these things were contributing and causative factors that led to my life-crime. My recovery and rehabilitation
Continue ReadingFreedom Isn’t Free
by Ryan All of us want freedom. We want to be able to go out and do whatever we used to do. But freedom isn’t free. I hear a lot of people blaming others for their incarceration, but the truth is, you did this to yourself. Your PO didn’t just pull up out of the blue and decide to arrest you. You decided to risk your freedom and now you’re paying the price. It’s no one’s fault but your own. A lot of people also don’t really think about the idea of freedom when they’re out just enjoying life. A
Continue ReadingH.O.P.E.
by Jose H.O.P.E. means Healing Of People’s Emptiness. In the Bible, it says to forgive yourself and Christ will forgive your sins. Hope means second chances that you collect and deserve. I’m filled with hope and second chances. This essay is for the people like the Declaration of Independence. It’s only different because those who feel lonely don’t feel free. Those feelings should change with the powerful meaning of hope and forgiveness. Hope will heal the person’s soul, body and mind. Forgiveness will clean out the sin of the blood, which will let you be cleansed out like the Holy Water.
Continue ReadingTime of Change
by Lisa Strawn Second chances should be a mandatory part of everyone’s lives. As a kid I loved to write and it was my favorite subject in school. Truly, now my writing has changed me into a truthful, grateful, person some fifty years later. In prison being transgendered, my writing has helped so many transgenders to see the beauty in their freedom. Being able to celebrate who you are everyday is something I embrace everyday. Life experiences that I have faced have given me a second chance to say it’s okay to be who you are, even in a men’s prison. I believe that we
Continue ReadingVolume 24.25/26
Please contact Lisa Lavaysse if you would like to purchase the full PDF or a printed copy of this issue.
Continue ReadingEd Note 24.25/26
The power of expression is loud and clear in our latest double issue of The Beat Within, 24.25/26. We are incredibly impressed by all our amazing contributors who courageously share their truths and art each week in our one of a kind writing workshop sessions. The end result being published in our national magazine, The Beat Within, which reaches those (young and old) in the community and local schools, to those in custody (around the country). We hope you enjoy this latest issue! Now as the school year comes to a close, for this week’s editorial note, we’re welcoming the
Continue ReadingCarelessness
by Harry C. Goodall You never really realize what you have until you lose it. My life, and freedom was just as that. Freedom is something that I had placed no value on. There has been nothing I have been more careless with than giving away decades of my life. Can you imagine someone that got good grades in school, and excelled in sports, only to leave it all behind to feel a part of something else. Basically, I was chasing love and attention in the streets I grew up in. When in reality all I had to do was
Continue ReadingA Second Chance for Change
by Jesus, Santa Cruz Have you ever been in any kind of situation when someone or even yourself is asking or even begging for a second chance? I’m pretty sure we all have at some point in our life. We all make mistakes that we will regret at some point. I have, and I’ve been in so many different kinds of situations where I’m the one asking for another chance or for forgiveness. The most common situation that we all have as humans is in relationships. This situation can happen to us at any time, and more than likely it will
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