Community

We came back inside after getting high together and sat across from each other at the table. Everything was hilarious; we laughed way more than we should have. We kept meeting eyes and laughing all the more... but there was more to the look; we were sharing something together... nobody else at that moment was sharing what we were sharing.

I hear so many sad stories.

Stories of abuse. Stories of heartbreaking loss. Stories of people who have, in one way or another, experienced hurt.

Sometimes I think that is what eventually connects us all; our pain.

However, in the telling, each sad story becomes a story of possibility.

When I share my pain I am declaring, "I will not believe the lie that I am alone."

 It would take a lot for me to believe that someone belongs in prison; even more if that person is a youth. Yet, Canada has had a history of high youth incarceration rates, even higher than in the United States. All the experts know that prison will not rehabilitate and is no place for a young person. That is why we continually rework the way we deal with young offenders in Canada, the most recent being the Youth Criminal Justice Act which desires to keep youth out of prison and in good community programs.