This Side Of Life Album

Riding Out The Storm

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"I'm here because they say I did a bad thing. There was a fight and someone got killed. But I would have eventually died myself through all the beatings I was getting. I couldn't let it go on. It was me or him. I should never have been incarcerated here in the first place. I never committed any crime until I came here. Now all I want to do is serve my sentence and I hope that I can eventually get parole and be with my wife and family. I'm holding on the best I can and just taking things a day at a time - riding out the storm." 

Jed Logan

 

Jed's Story

Is it wrong to ask for something when you have nothing? Jed Logan didn't think so. He was rock bottom. His family were homeless. Having nothing doesn't just mean you're poor. It means you have no access. No opportunities. No standing. No influence. No effect. No place. No authority. No rights. No voice. You're invisible. Jed was desperate. His family were destitute. So one cold January day he walked into a bank and asked the cashier to give him all the money in the till. He wasn't robbing the bank. He didn't have a weapon or threaten anyone. He just asked. But the cashier panicked, handed over the money then hit the emergency button. The alarms went off. The shutters came down. The police arrived. Jed hadn't tried to run, but he was arrested for robbery. He went to court and pleaded his case, but it fell on deaf ears. It was a ridiculous defence. Asking for something when you have nothing? No credibility. He was convicted and given a jail sentence. Now he had less than nothing. He'd lost his freedom. He'd lost his wife and children. So if you answered 'No' to my previous question, you might want to think again. Having nothing might be a misfortune, but asking for something is a crime.

 

Riding Out The Storm Copyright (c) Steve Nielson (Musical Juice) All Rights Reserved