The peak of teens, a bundle of ideas and then the judgment of punishment! I have not done any crime, performed no disobedience but somehow found myself sitting among many persons such as me on a bright warm day. I realized I am serving a sentence for a crime I have not committed. Sent to a hideously horrifying shelter of cruelty at an age which is too tender to bear all those actions, I for one was going to change my life forever.

Cultural Shock

Obviously coming from a normal society the prison life was definitely shocking. Convicts all around, minding their own business and carrying a face around with an evident fear. I ask myself.. fear of what? Well my questions weren’t left unanswered for long as the truth I was seeking for soon caught hold of me. The more experienced once came upon like hungry hyenas. I was lost, confused and had absolutely no idea how to deal with this life. It was like leaving a lion in a cage but still asking him to rule the jungle. I seldom could be myself as in prison they say you need to live by rules. The question kept knocking the door of my think tank as to why I was convicted?

As I keep counting my days, I never got an answer.

Innocent Face with a Retarded Mind

A year passed and I managed to survive in the new life I was given to live. Many things changed in me in the past one year. Made friends who were thinking the same way as me, made companions who were in search of the answer of the same questions I had, learnt how to fight against what supposedly was not good for us, relied more on impulse than practicality. I believed I was getting stronger smarter and rebellious. But there was one particular aspect that I was still carrying from my past.. my face. Now people often told me that I had a face which may not be believed to be mischievous. As for me, I was hell bent on changing that notion.

I ridiculously fought against everything. I was not following the norms of the jailer, as I was smart I managed to find the loop holes of the system and started taking advantage of them, was not answering the letters of my parents and made them feel they are the reason for me going through this hell and finally I did the worst mistake of falling in love with another inmate. There was no proper pattern or symmetry in how I was functioning. Things just were happening around me and I was sitting by just to make sure I quietly do my time.

Internal Manipulation, External Stabilization

It was only after 3 years passed, there was the first instance of insight. It came out of nowhere but it sure sunk deep in my thought. It doesn’t matter how long it takes for me to get out, what matters is how well I am in shape when I get out. My mind was no more rebellious, it was surprisingly calm which was pleasant. Now I knew how I worked, there was a goal and that goal was the light at the end of the tunnel. It was just a small shimmering light but light nevertheless. As with all the old habits I still had the hangover of the attitude of the raw convict full of cruelty. Time and again there were phases of the attitude bursting out only being subdued soon. There was a bigger ending, a bigger picture to the suffering, a larger good! It was hard for the mind to accept the changes as the body already gave in. It’s the subtle change that is more difficult to make than the big ones and this one sure was subtle.

When finally that day came where I was told that I can see day light, there was joy. A relief set into me which was of a mine-worker who has spent many a day in the dark caves of the earth’s crust. The labor that boys have gone through to become men, hardship that give strength to much more than just muscle, the sight which is gained to appreciate daylight! I walked out of those prison gates after 6 years with a piece of paper which certified me as a man who is ready to take on the biggest challenge called ‘Life’.

CASE FILE

Case: Education – most commonly committed crime by teenagers. It is the biggest conspiracy as to no one has ever been able to bring a generic output to the crime. It is a paradoxical crime as some consider it as good to the society and some consider it otherwise. The reality check gives shocking results as it is often misused as a crime once acquired.

Convicted for: Lack of clarity in choices…

On the charges of Pursuing Engineering: Found Guilty

 Sentence for Crime: Decided by the criminal. It’s not about the time. It’s all about realization.