death and breakfast

Last Friday a young guy was brought into my Pod, a housing unit of 60-90 inmates on a five day hold for probation violation. He was drunk and high, shaking, feeling really bad and repeatedly asked to be taken to medical. His requests were ignored. During the night he went into a seizure, and died.

We had class as usual Monday and Tuesday and no one mentioned this death. On Thursday morning there was a shakedown, which meant that a team of officers yelling and banging on doors at 5 am woke everyone up, handcuffed them and and took them out to the hall while the officers searched the rooms. Twelve mattresses and a random assortment of personal papers were confiscated. One of my students had made a drawing for his father's birthday which was taken. This shakedown wasn't that bad some said, because they allowed the men to talk in the hall, and did not make them squat in the shower to spread their butt cheeks like they usually do. Some were very shook up and furious because " all their shit" had been taken, some were like " its just another day in jail, no big deal. But for everyone this event brought up the pain and shock of the young guys death of a few days ago back up to the surface.

He was in an upstairs cell, and his body was removed on a stretcher during breakfast, bumping down the stairs while they munched. The Native Americans were deeply disturbed because in their tradition you do not eat in the presence of a dead body, and everyone was upset about the way the body had been just dragged down the stairs. No respect. I asked if anyone had said a few words or done any kind of service for the young man. No. So we held a few minutes of silence for him in class. Then we went on to our class which was to work with these quotes:


The Self cannot be pierced by weapons nor burned by fire;
Water cannot wet it, nor can the wind dry it.

The Self cannot be pierced or burned, made wet or dry.

It is everlasting, and infinite standing
on the motionless foundations of eternity.

The Bhagavad Gita 2:23


The Self is the light reflected by all.
He shining, everything shines after him.

Katha Upanishad 5:15


“There is a light within a man of light, and it lights up the whole world. If he does not shine, he is darkness.”

Jesus Christ

We read these aloud several times, then everyone wrote their personal responses to the line that most spoke to him, then read that aloud. By the end of class, there was a peaceful feeling in the room, and I felt we had taken one small step in coping with and honoring the young man's death.