I want to continue today's journal entry by sharing more about Jeffrey, a man in his early 50s...
Yesterday, he told me that he's scheduled to go into a shelter when he is released from prison this coming Friday. His sentence for assault has just about run its course, and now it is his time to be ushered out the front door of this facility.
Jeffrey will be required to take a Short Line bus from the local station in this area, directly to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City. He then will have to make his way to the Long Island Railroad to catch a commuter train for the City of Mineola, in Nassau County.
When Jeffrey gets to Mineola, he must immediately report to his parole officer, who will then escort him to a shelter for homeless men. This process has already been prearranged. Somewhere on Long Island, there is a basic military style bunk bed and a cramped space reserved for him.
The dilemma now, though, is that Jeffrey told me outright that he doesn't plan on staying at the shelter. He said that he was going to a certain public park he's familiar with to "sleep under the stars.” He made it clear to me that he despises a crowded and dehumanizing shelter.
So already Jeffrey is going to start his life over again on the wrong foot. He made it plain to me that he is not going to go along with the program his parole officer is setting up. I tried to dissuade him, but he wasn't listening to me.
Jeffrey has his own ideas about "making it" on the outside. And mind you, his previous plans never worked. This was his fourth time coming to prison.
D.B.
Jeffrey will be required to take a Short Line bus from the local station in this area, directly to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City. He then will have to make his way to the Long Island Railroad to catch a commuter train for the City of Mineola, in Nassau County.
When Jeffrey gets to Mineola, he must immediately report to his parole officer, who will then escort him to a shelter for homeless men. This process has already been prearranged. Somewhere on Long Island, there is a basic military style bunk bed and a cramped space reserved for him.
The dilemma now, though, is that Jeffrey told me outright that he doesn't plan on staying at the shelter. He said that he was going to a certain public park he's familiar with to "sleep under the stars.” He made it clear to me that he despises a crowded and dehumanizing shelter.
So already Jeffrey is going to start his life over again on the wrong foot. He made it plain to me that he is not going to go along with the program his parole officer is setting up. I tried to dissuade him, but he wasn't listening to me.
Jeffrey has his own ideas about "making it" on the outside. And mind you, his previous plans never worked. This was his fourth time coming to prison.
D.B.
