A Visit to Jail

             Visiting jail is not like visiting prison. Yes, both are correctional facilities but, prison is serious stuff. A visit to the jail is usually one night a week for 2 hours at the most. There are long lines of anxious people following written and unwritten protocol. Sign a form, show your driver's license and wait and wait and wait. When you are called back, you get to visit through a glass divider. Some jails have a phone to communicate with the inmate. I always wanted to wipe it down with Clorox wipes, but you can't take anything back with you. So you talk and you smile and blow kisses, but you can't touch.

             Occasionally, you meet a guard who enjoys his job. Those are rare. Most appear in a bad mood. Maybe it's a way to tune out the sadness. If I were a guard I would feel sorry for every person that walked in to visit. I really do now that I know what most are going through.
             No one ever told me what to expect. It is bad enough facing the consequences of what your loved one has done, but there is so much added stress in not knowing what to plan for at a visit. It takes courage to ask complete strangers where to sign in or where to sit. I once got reprimanded by another visitor because I unknowingly broke in line. Evidently there was a certain seating order and I sat down ahead of my turn. I just wanted to rest my knees.
               Being a woman of faith has helped me keep a positive attitude amid all the frustration.  I chose to see the positive in people. I chose to see God at work in even the direst situations. I chose to smile.
                When you are going through the experience, it is hard to imagine not being immersed in the culture. Some never get to escape. I remember waiting for a visit at the Cullman jail. In the lobby were several children playing as best they could while they waited to see their loved one. I overheard one say, "now you be the Warden." How sad for such young lives to even have that knowledge at such an innocent age.
                I hope my story can bring words of encouragement to someone who is dealing with the court system right now.  Maybe you have a relative in jail, maybe it's you. Whatever the circumstances, there is a light at the end of the tunnel - and it's not a train. Stay the course, keep the faith and The Lord will see you through the gale of the storm. It could always be worse. It could be prison.