A NEW LIFE: The Day When Inmates Open up Their Minds

Sr. Sheila B. Manalo, SM writes about her six-year involvement in the prison ministry. She said, “I still wonder how the people at the jail survive inside their cell especially during the times they are locked up. Therefore, I thought that asking questions will help me in my inquiry. These responses from my friends in the Davao City jail (my suffering brothers and sisters) touched me deeply. The sad plight of the detainees, longing and hoping to live normal everyday life with their families and their loved ones moved me to help them as fellow human beings. Some are detained for petty crimes. Some have been unjustly detained for many years. Mostly cannot afford lawyers to help them.” Below are some exciting answers from my questions. Each answer represents an inmate’s thought.

If you could have lived in a different time in history, when would it have been, and why?

I would most likely live in the Medieval Era – time of kings and nobles, of knights and heroes. It really fascinates me how they live their lives in the hands of a single power and how they work for a common purpose. How they build vast empires out of courage and exploration are really inspiring.

If you could wake up tomorrow having gained one ability or quality what would it be?

I would love to have the ability to be in another place in a blink of an eye. With that ability I can go to places that I’ve never been, visit my family, friends and loved ones as quick as a heartbeat. I can be anywhere, but still can go back in the facility just in time for our daily “head count.”

What world event has affected you the most so far? How?

It is the Philippine’s People Power Revolution of 1986 that has affected, captivated and inspired me the most. That event taught me a lesson that no matter how difficult and hopeless your situation is, with strong faith, divine intervention and strength of heart, nothing is impossible.

What would you like to be doing in 10 years?

I would be living differently, far from what I used to be before. I will finish my studies, and then embrace a new sweet life. I will be busy rebuilding my broken dreams and will be striving hard to forge a fine future, which I am longing to have.

What if?

What if I have the power to turn back time? I would surely go back to my childhood era bringing all my memories of the future. It will give me the opportunity to fix my life back from the beginning. I will never let those circumstances that troubled my past arise again in any form.

Sr. Sheila and jail officers

Do you have anything humorous to share?

It was a cold October morning and I was waiting for my turn to call in our humble calling station here in DCJ when, a fellow boarder in a somber mood asked me politely, to let him make a call first. I was not in a hurry anyway so, I let him have my turn. He was already crying when the operator gave him the phone.

I watched him talk and tried to listen to their conversation, but he was just crying and nodding to that someone on the other line. Out of curiosity and sympathy, I asked him, “Imu tong asawa, bay? Unsa diay problema?” (Was that your wife? What is the problem?) He said shyly while still crying, “Huhuhu…wrong number.“

What is your most painful experience?

Being accused of a crime I never committed and to live each day with the prejudice of the world.

But, losing a lot of people I hold dear in the process is the worst ever. People I treasured and trusted, vanished like mist without giving me the right to defend my dignity. But thank God, she found the truth in the most unusual way. She is now lovingly joining my hopeful quest for justice no matter what.

Which among your experiences is the happiest?

Happiest are those when I found light in our God Almighty. Happiest are those moments when I can still smile even my work is turning upside down.

What would constitute a “perfect evening” inside the cell for you?

Perhaps, having a less congested cell and a soft bed to sleep on would be nice, a 42-inch flat screen television and a DVD player with lots of movies for me to enjoy. Or maybe a night sleeping with an “air conditioning unit” to make my dreams more pleasant. A night with good food for everyone in my cell to share would suffice. (Sr. Sheila B. Manalo, SM)