I had the honor this evening to attend a dramatic reading of "Any One of Us:Words from Prison" at the women's prison in Topeka.My friend, Sheila Hochhauser got an email about the event and asked me to go along. I am so glad I did.
My presence in the prison was a bit of a miracle since we had to send in a visitors clearance form. By the time I got done listing all my names, I figured the red flags would be flying and the alarm bells would be going off. Seriously, who has that many former names? What do you mean she married the same guy twice? (Oh. Yes. I. Did.)
However, I was cleared much to my relief, and Sheila and I headed for Topeka.
There were 7 women who performed in front of a crowd of lawyers, judges and others, mostly women. Their words were powerful; painting disturbing pictures of abuse both sexual and physical at the hands of brothers, fathers, boyfriends and husbands.
My life is good. In spite of the special hell that is my job, my life is very, very good. I am secure in my marriage, my home, my relationship with Luke.
My heart goes out to these women who were, through no fault of their own, thrust into lives of violence and abuse. How bad the situation must be to feel that killing your abuser is the only way to protect yourself and your children.
I felt honored to be in the presence of these women who had lived through more horror than I can ever imagine and came out the other side. I do not deny that they committed and were convicted of crimes, but I was left with the feeling that the sentences for many of them were unfair.
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