This is the only OT tasked again with bringing you the message for the week. First off plenty of blessings and love sent to each and every one of you. The advice topic was really popular, and I had a feeling it would be. All you readers, young or a little bit older, said some great things about who you take advice from. You even detailed situations, and many of you shared an example of a time you took some advice. I was really inspired by all you guys and gals, writing, that I want to go ahead and touch
Continue ReadingAuthor: mpau@thebeatwithin.org
A Surprise Trip
-L, Sacramento When I was like ten, my whole family took a surprise trip to my family’s home town in Mississippi. My dad never told me or my little brother about the trip, we just woke up early one morning and we went to my auntie’s house. Then, we got in a big van with the rest of my family and we started a long drive to my uncle’s house to pick up family, and even then my dad still didn’t tell us where we were going until we got to my uncle’s house. After the long three hour and
Continue ReadingMy Joy Is on Mondays
-Spaz, San Francisco The joy in my life is that you guys come every Monday and we write about different topics so that we can express ourselves. It helps me express myself and I can show my ideas to other counties and places. Maybe somebody reading will like my writing and sponsor me. I like to read the magazine when it comes. I like to see who has Pieces of the Week. I like to see when my pieces are in the magazine, they are usually in the front. I just try my best every week so I can get
Continue ReadingBelieve in Yourself
-John Sherwood, Correctional Facility in Pound, VA Young princes and young queens, you are so much more than any struggle you’ve gone through. You are so much more than the difficult circumstance that you are dealing with. You got to believe in yourself. Even when people that are supposed to love and provide for you are unable to help you in the way you may need or desire them to, it doesn’t lessen your worth. There are many people in society that are trying to help you. Most importantly, you have to help yourself! You got to admit that what
Continue ReadingHello My Young Friends
-Phil D, Avenal State Prison in Avenal, CA Just a reminder to you all that things may not look too good right now while looking out the cell window, but I promise you that things will start to change when you look within yourself. My life was a mess for over forty years, till I got arrested. Everything I ever had was stripped away from me, and I was at rock bottom. So I started to take advantage of all the help I could get, especially the mental health programs. They help me to look back and see why I
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Volume 29.33/34
Please contact Lisa Lavaysse if you would like to purchase the full PDF or a printed copy of this issue.
Continue ReadingEd Note 29.33/34
We welcome you readers back to another double dose edition of the one and only Magazine that’s being published every other week. It’s the one and only OT tasked with bringing you guys the golden message of positivity this week. I was planning to give my opinion on a couple of these weekly topics, but because one of you amazing young people wrote about something that really struck a chord within the strings of my heart so I’m gone take a different route. Take a look at where you’re at. I take a look at where I’m at every single
Continue ReadingHomelessness
-Zion, San Mateo An important issue in the world is homelessness. Many people in Cali face this problem due to being unable to get accepted by jobs or having family issues as little kids, and not having the resources to help them survive. You can see more than five hundred people downtown in the city on crack, meth, pills, and other stuff toxic to the body. Even myself and my grandma faced being homeless many times due to her health issues, which stopped her from working and me being unable to provide for her because the jobs I would apply
Continue ReadingRinse Repeat
-DC, Sonoma When I was locked up in the county jail, it was essential to keep myself busy because you’re locked up in a cell for twenty-three hours a day. I would start my day at five am sharp and have the “mod workers” pass me some steaming hot water so I can drink my morning cup of coffee and get my day started. Before I drink my coffee, I make sure that I drink two large cups of water and pace my cell back and forth so I can wake up. I enjoy reading the press and saving the
Continue ReadingCherish Life
-JSM, Sonoma My most cherished possession is life because no matter what there is always something to gain, negative or positive. There is always something to gain. No matter what you gain it can be a new lesson, skill, new anger cooperating skills, or whatever. Life is always full of amazing, exciting ideas, stuff, and adventures. Just take advantage of it, have no regrets and don’t put life to waste. There is a lot of time, but not a lot of life.
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