Tutoring in the Jail


"When we choose actions that bring happiness and success to others, the fruit of our karma is happiness and success."   --Deepak Chopra

Since I’ve lived in Kennewick, I have been tutoring youth who are under eighteen, that have been incarcerated. I’ve only tutored boys because in fourteen years there have been no juvenile girls who have been placed in the jail. All of them have been most appreciative to have a tutor who comes in to teach them, we are just about the only people they can meet in person besides the officers, lawyers, chaplains and nurses.  The one thing we can always seem to agree on is that they have all made some unfortunate choices. I instruct them in math and in English, and help some of them in preparing to take the GED. Some students are able to complete the "one more class" they need for finishing high school, and then a small graduation ceremony takes place.  I believe that my positive attitude in helping them face their situations, is the best thing that I can do to help them.

Actually, our attiude plays a big part in everyday life as well. I love Churchill's quote, "Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference." It's always a choice of how we respond to everything that crosses our path. If something unfavorable presents itself, we can react in an explosive way, rant and rave, and fuel up the negative energy around us; or, we can respond in a calmer fashion and be a positive catalyst to what has occured.  A calmer resonse is probably much more effective in the longrun, since what has happened has already happened and we can't change that fact. 

That has much to do with my interaction with tutoring the youth in the jail.  Let's forget the mistakes of the past and move on to what we can cgange in the future. Be safe and happy during this autumn season, and remember that Suday, November 6 is the day to set your clocks back.

"We always have much more to be grateful for than we ever have not to. Even having a positive attitude in the tough times makes those tough times shorter and it makes them happen less often."  "Life's Garden Grows"       --Sandra Lindsey Smith

What things in your life are you grateful for? Loving friends, a car and a roof over your head? In some countries water is in short supply-be thankful that water runs our of your tap when you turn it on. Be the blessing, and you will see the blessing.

Love and light,

Sandy Smith



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
 BE KIND TO YOURSELF "Things always get better. When you believe this, it becomes true. In the same way as you don't believe it doesn't get better, it doesn't get better."   Sandra Lindsey Smith, -- "Life's Garden Grows" Have you ever noticed how readily we rush to forgive other people for the minute, negative observations they say about themselves, but it is much more difficult for you to forgive yourself for the very same tiny thing you say about yourself? All the, "I AMs" that come out of our mouths are packed with the potential to show up in our lives exactly as they spring from our mouths. So, no: "I am so stupid"; "I can't get my hair to look right; or, "why do I even go in for this job interview, I can never express myself well under pressure" NO! Those are not the, "I AMs" that you want to spring from the depth of your soul. Instead, "I could have done that a different way", "
Read more
Image
  RELAX INTO THE FLOW "A good diet, refraining from excessive desires, and daily meditation all lead to peace of mind, and this peace of mind is beneficial."     Little Book of Inner Peace,    --The Dalai Lama What happens when a person is caught in a rip current in the ocean? A lifeguard would tell you to swim parallel to the shore and that would break the hold of the current. When panic sets in it is sometimes very difficult to remember that idea of relaxing enough to swim parallel to the shore. Isn't that true about the challenges that we go through in life? We get caught in the idea of events becoming more than we can handle. When it occurs to us, that  Spirit surrounds us, moves in, through, and as us, we can remember to relax into that Divine Presence, and a shift happens. It allows us to respond, rather than react to the situation. There are many times that I have been so focused on the problem, that it takes me a little time to say, "God, I could use a litt
Read more
Image
 ON THE WINGS OF DECEMBER “Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love.” –Hamilton Wright Mabie Gary and I are back from Thanksgiving in New Mexico. This is a shot of all the people who sat around the dinner table, and then took an hour's worth of pictures (sound familiar?). Now comes the time to start getting ready for Christmas. I think the general public started getting ready for the season in October, whereas most normal families are getting ready right now. Since our place is small, we have a Christmas peacock on our patio. Indoors we have a thin but tall tree (pictures to follow in my next blog). We all have our traditions around the holidays, homemade stuffing, cornbread, cranberry sauce, yams, and some kind of meat or meatless protein (many more vegetarians than there used to be). As I go to buy groceries or shopping centers I wish people "HappyHolidays", acknowledging that we are a collective of beliefs; we may call Spirit by many
Read more