My name is Scott Mitchell. I am 47 years old and have been in prison since 1993 (that’s 26 years). Life without the possibility of parole, EVER, is my sentence. When I was a 21 years old I made a mistake that can never be taken back or undone. It’s a sad sad reality. Life only happens once, screw it up and you deal with the consequences, there are no do overs. I go to sleep every single night wishing I was somewhere else, I wake up every morning trying to figure out why I haven’t given up yet. I’ve spoken to my 28 year old son and my 25 year old nephew about this and they both said that having me here has changed the way they have both lived their lives. Knowing that it can all be taken away so quickly has made them both better men. When I hear that, I tell myself that maybe this all happened in order for me to be a sacrifice for my son and nephew to have better lives. That thought gives me comfort for a moment, and if that was “the deal” I would do it again and again, but then I go to sleep wishing I was somewhere else again. It’s hard! Every single day is hard. I just lost my mother last week, and the woman I fell in love with is telling me that she thinks we should just he friends now. I guess if being in a place like this was easy, people wouldn’t think before the act and try to live the right way. Man, I wish they had some kind of machine that could look inside of a person’s heart, soul, and mind to see if they have changed enough to deserve a second chance. I’ve changed. I have changed so much that I barely recognize myself at times. I’m a grown man now, not that 21 year old kid who use to let pride and anger control his life. People tell me all of the time ” you just never know, maybe someday the laws will change, or God will intervene and you’ll get a second chance.” Hopefully one of those two things does happen. It sure would be nice to go to sleep where I want to be and wake up knowing why I never gave up. The moral of this story is this: Love your life, respect your life, be very careful not to lose your life to anyone, especially not to yourself. Stay strong my friends and Never Give Up. *That’s what my mom use to write on the back of the envelopes she wrote letters to me in, and tell me on the phone right before we would hang up…. N.G.U.
Scott Mitchell
DOC #A636258
Keep blogging Scott- use your words to speak life to others and to yourself! N.G.U.
Reading your blog has made me even more grateful for my life. Thank you for your honesty and your strength. Sending your universe healing and loving energy. Keep writing and learning. You are teaching us too.
Thanks for sharing that Dude. A very well written piece too. Keep on writing – you’re good at it