Tibetan Flags with Friends of Guest House

Imagine if you created your Tibetan Prayer Flag, with your own affirmations. Tibetan Prayer Flags are traditionally believed to bring happiness, peace, prosperity, good fortune, health and victory over obstacles. Who doesn’t want that? The residents of Friends of Guest House created their own flags on August 23, 2021 under the loving direction of our amazing Sharmila Karamchandani. Take a look at these videos and photos, and listen to the powerful messages these brave women created for themselves.

My Block

by Leonardo Antonio Reyes 

Second place, Poetry, Heard/Arlington County Detention Facility/OAR writing contest, August 2021

It’s crazy the type of stuff you see on

My block

Kids barely 13 selling bags of that rock

Violence out of control, younger and younger,

bodies drop

Its crazy the stuff that you see

on my block

Young women corrupted selling they soul

For what they think is a lot

People glorifying the streets thinking its

something its not

Let me tell you right now

selling dope ain’t the only way to get to

the top

But we so messed up we think its

all that we got

No role models so we looked up to

that knot

We played games with our lives, our

fun was ducking cops

Slowly but surely our lives go down the

drain

Start getting locked up, start going insane

But this could be a blessing long as you

maintain

Stay off them drugs, start stimulating

your brain

Start realizing there’s another way out

Got that legal money, don’t have to

Worry ‘bout a drought

Do right by your family and right by

your kids

Show ‘em its more to life than

Selling drugs and doing bids

From the Alexandria Gazette Packet – Voices to be Heard

“We are extremely grateful for Heard’s continued outreach and engagement with those in our custody.”

— Sheriff Dana Lawhorne

And we are grateful to the Alexandria Gazette Packet for promoting the winners of our writing contest with the Alexandria Adult Detention Center. You are always so supportive of our work! Btw, did you know that you made Mr. Pixley and Mr. Talbert’s day? They were each given a copy of your article and were sooooo happy! Thank you for allowing them to be heard! Scroll down to page 7 to see our winners or read it here:

 

From ALXnow.com – Tales of regret and hope win in creative writing contest at the Alexandria Jail

In his award-winning poem “I Cry”, Anthony Talbert laments over being incarcerated in the Alexandria Jail.

“Growing up I was told that the eyes are the windows to the soul,” reads Talbert’s poem. “So I cry to cleanse my soul of all the torment it holds.”

You can’t not be moved by Talbert’s first-place poem and the tears he sheds for everyone – you, me, Jesus, himself. You can read his entire work and more about our writing contest in Alxnow.com

 

Tales of regret and hope win in creative writing contest at the Alexandria Jail