Willa the Bear and Stoney Creek

Willa the Bear and Stoney Creek

Willa was small for a grizzle bear and was made fun of by the other bears as they hunt for salmon on the Stoney River up north by the Canadian border. Her parents were huge in size and were well respected in the forest as great hunters and good neighbors. Willa had two brothers that were normal size and growing quickly. It was difficult being a runt kind of bear as others poked fun at Willa as she lagged behind the others when their longer legs carried them further and faster than her shorter legs. Although it was seldom they all traveled together at one time, there were hunting trips they all took together to show the others that they mean business whenever they found a spot along the river banks that were full of delicious fish swimming for their lives during the spawning season.

A Christmas Story

A Christmas Story

The house was cold and the fire was out
This late at night there wasn’t a soul about
But as the sun came up on the east side of the red roofed house
Everyone awakened even the uninvited mouse

The stocking were hanging there on the mantle for all to see
If Ole Saint Nick came in with glee
And leave the children with stockings full of toys
Some for the girls and some for the boys

The chimney was cleaned just for him
For the soot had filled up the stack to the brim
And as the night past quickly by
It was Ole Saint Nick that blinked his eye

And found a toy for everyone inside
Inside the stockings he tried to hide
Something good and something fun
A Barbie doll and a plastic gun

But most of all he left good cheer
Letting the kids know he was here
And with a ho ho ho he left his mark
As he came down the chimney during the dark

So you better be nice and better be good
For if you are bad your stocking will be black with soot
And empty of toys and hanging bare
If you don’t’ listen you better care
For Ole Saint Nick knows whether you are good or bad
And has been known to leave you an empty hand

Living in the Darkness

It has been said that those who live in the darkness can see the light and that those who live in the land of the shadows of death can see the dawn or the genesis of life. This is a most interesting aspect of life that men have looked into for centuries as the darkness represents so many different things in someone’s life as they interpret the meaning of their own destiny and existence among others.

Life in the darkness should not be thought of as being the same as life in the dark ages. There are bounds of differences between the two as one reflects the medieval times and the other reflect the current events or past events of your life. However, just for a moment in time, let us reflect life in the dark ages and go back centuries where various powerful groups of men such as the Vikings, the Goths, the Moors, the Greek and the Romans ruled and Europe underwent a change in culture that impacted kings, emperors, churches and civilization as it was before and after.

Progressing slowly and evolving into a new period where life, romance, science and religion took on new meanings, it was the basis of an evolution and a revolution of the way we lived and the way cultures shaped individual societies based on those same influences that either guided or dictated our lifestyles based on our own values and beliefs. One can only imagine what it was like back then and imagination is a powerful tool for the future.

Thus the present time of dark days are not direct reflections of the past but have links of commonalities that allow us to make sense of what has happened, what is happening and what will happen in the future. The choice of believing and inviting such beliefs or ideas is to be determined to be an individual choice that guides one’s own destiny.

Living in the darkness is a choice that isn’t easy. Living without light is hard to get used to but some prefer no shadows as they remind them of death; the death of their loved ones, the death of their friends and the death of their dreams. After all it isn’t easy to see your life come apart at the seams.

Living in the dark is getting easy as your mind thinks different than before as you become numb of what is around you making you think it matters no more. It’s not the darkest hour or the last hour of your life but no matter what you think, living in the dark is depressing and makes everything turn black or grey.

Living in the dark makes no sense to many but regardless of the few that prefer to be there without the light they know that it is their minds that create the pictures of whether your hands can feel the grip or your mind can’t feel the pain. It takes being in the dark to understand how someone feels to live without the light and no matter what you think or what you say, your words will have no power over them until they forego their own choices and decide to walk away.

Looking for the light someday and finding something or someone is a dream for some and hopeless for many. You undergo a mental process that lead you to the light or leads you astray. There is no question about the darkness having the power without doubt to keep you from finding the light and keep you at bay. You know you never expected to be in the darkness but here everyone looks the same. Being in the darkness is the one thing that can keep you insane.

A Haunting Story - The Red Roofed House -

Tales of the Red Roofed House by Carl ToersBijns (Fiction Ghost Story)

Chapter 1 – Introduction
Chapter 2 – The Evolution of Darkness
Chapter 3 – The long night
Chapter 4 – The making of a nightmare
Chapter 5 –The darkness and the light
Chapter Six – The Unexplainable Happens

Losing a Friend Forever

Never Saying Goodbye to Reyna

Some dogs are pets and some are family members. Some like Reyna are your closest friends who no matter what happen in your life, they are there by your side. Today, I lost my friend and I know she will be gone forever but her memory will always be there.

It has been said that you can gain a friend in a year but lose a friend in a minute. Such is the truth when you lose someone that has been by your side for so long, you have almost taken it for granted she is there. Having a friend is one of life's most precious gifts as you can truly treasure the good times as well as the bad times you endured together holding on to each other tight to ease the pain or enjoy the laughter. Having a best friend make life complete and without regrets.

My Rottie was my friend for one dozen of years and I wanted her to be my friend another dozen or more but she became ill and her pain was too much for her to endure as she looked at me with her brown eyes and asked me to help her. Beyond my reach was her cure and her pain I shall also endure but I will never forget the love and devotion she gave me while she was alive and standing by my side, right or wrong, and always strong. Yesteryear brought the beginning, tomorrow brings the end, and somewhere in the middle we became the best of friends forever.

Janice Brewer, Anthony Lester & Prison Mental Health Care

If anybody should know the issues and problems associated with the complexity of providing mental health care to severely mentally ill (SMI) persons it is Arizona Governor Janice Brewer of Arizona. She has a son that ran afoul of the law and was considered to be eligible to be housed in a state hospital rather than the state owned prisons. This was a definite benefit for her as a mother as she was assured her convicted son was going to receive treatment for his illness that was a factor in his crime. According to public records, he is still there at the state hospital getting his medication and treatment as prescribed by a psychiatrist.

News Investigative Reporter Wendy Halloran exposed a very destructive prison culture as she investigated his suicide for months how the Arizona Department of Corrections failed to render aid to inmate Anthony Lester when he was found bleeding from self-inflicted wounds in a detention cell while in a prison in Tucson Arizona. Last Friday, November 5, Channel 12 did a story on Tony Lester that was identified by the ADOC as preventable. The story resulted in mass viewer concerns about the mentally ill as they have no voice in the community and need protection by those who care. http://www.azcentral.com/video/#/Watchdog/Arizona+inmate+suicide%3A+Did+correction+officers+fail+to+administer+aid%3F/40280768001/35389240001/1259212342001 Just another name, another SMI person, Anthony Lester, was convicted of a crime and sent to prison without any considerations for treatment whether inside the state hospital or the state prison. He was discarded, abandoned and left on his own to survive his illness in a most predatory environment and received no help from anyone unlike the governor’s son. The difference between the two is one major fact. Tony Lester was not the governor’s son. Although Janice Brewer was not the governor at the time of this consideration, she was an influential politician in state government and given preferential treatment in the care of her son.

Anthony Lester committed suicide within a few months of his incarceration in prison. His needs were ignored by the agency and he was ignored as an SMI person incarcerated and denied care that was recommended by the judge that sentenced him and a personal plea from his family to high officials inside the corrections agency to allow him to be put in a mental health setting. Tony Lester was diagnosed to be “manipulative and gamey” by the top doctors and officials inside the Arizona Department of Corrections. He was denied care. Tony Lester earned that title of being manipulative and gamey from the behavior of others who are NOT mentally ill but use it as a tool to seek special housing assignments. He was put in a stereotyped class of manipulators inside prison and denied the opportunity to receive care. Since the investigation there is sufficient information that there exists an obvious lack of support within the prison administration and cultural setting that allows the existence and success of prison therapy programs to work and be effectively management without political interference. The dangers associated with these released SMI persons who have not received care while in prison effects our communities and increases their chances of committing crimes again almost assuring society that they will spend the rest of their lives inside a prison with lengthy and determinate sentences to keep them off the streets in the name of public safety and tough on crime mandates or die inside prisons as they are denied the proper treatment and care a mentally ill person deserves in order to survive and cope with the prison term. After all, a prison sentences should be a death sentence as it is to many who are SMI disabled.
Source:
http://www.azcentral.com/video/#/Watchdog/Arizona+inmate+suicide%3A+Did+correction+officers+fail+to+administer+aid%3F/40280768001/35389240001/1259212342001
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/9134563/anthony_lester_suicide_preventable.html
http://www.mhcca.org/mental-health-problems-and-disabilities-in-prisons.html

link to Ch 12 video on suicide attached

Anthony Lester Suicide,

Preventable Death, Shoddy Investigation -

link to Ch 12 video on suicide attached

There are many questions still unanswered by there were no administrators disciplined for the death of inmate Anthony Lester, a mentally ill person, incarcerated and sentenced to die at his own hands. Diagnosed with a severe mental illness, his judgment and sentence report contained a recommendation by a judge to be admitted for psychiatric care while in prison. In addition, his medical and mental health files was covered with his treatment needs and were ignored by the Arizona Department of Corrections as he was admitted, classified and sent to a non-mental health unit in Tucson, Arizona.

Several months after his incarceration, Anthony was put on a mental health watch for suicide risks and self-harm statements made to staff and mental health providers. His watch didn’t last long and he was released back to general population but instead of going to the yard, he was placed in isolation via a stay in a detention cell. His needs of the “voices” he was hearing was not addressed nor was he on any medication that was part of his treatment. Soon after, Lester, with the help of a cellmate, took a razor erroneously given to him by an officer and removed the blade. He then cut his body in many places and finally, he wrote the words “voices” in his own blood before he cut his jugular vein and died.

The investigation was personally handled by the director of the agency as he hurriedly appointed an investigator via telephone and gave specific instructions on his expectations and time frames to conduct this investigation. The investigator was given a week to put the case together. Such cases usually take anywhere from two to three months and have a 53 day window for action but the director insisted on limiting this case to one week. Under pressure, the investigator did what he could under the circumstances. It was not a very thorough job but it revealed the staple of the case, unauthorized razor issued to the inmate that facilitated the death. It did not thoroughly glean enough facts of the culture, the practices and the decision making of the unit’s administration and custodial responsibilities. As a result, disciplinary action was limited to those present at the time of the suicide and for not performing first aid on the inmate as they took no action what so ever to preserve life and remained there in the cell until the paramedics arrived thus admitting they stood around for almost 23 minutes doing nothing.

Admittingly, the DOC admitted to it be an “preventable suicide” but did nothing to correct the problem and disciplined staff by taking two weeks pay from their paycheck. The investigative process was tainted the moment the director got involved personally and directed courses of action that negated those the assigned investigator would have taken without being under duress of such administrative pressure. Meeting with the chief executive officer of the facility before any active case work is done, they develop a dialogue with them creating a compromising prejudice in the handling and direction of every investigation as the warden’s input is capricious and often tainted to reflect personal interests thus adhered to as law by these investigators. In some cases, investigators lie to others about the cases and the results of evidence.

Their discovery of evidence is based on their summary and not conclusive evidence based convictions but rather personal conjectures that are flawed and personal as well as restricted by tight time frames. The reality has revealed they will lie and cover up test outcomes or outright refuse to test to validate the truth as it was gleaned during the process. Since their investigators deal with both prisoners and staff, they often mislead about eh reliability of information gathered and cover them up with deliberate omissions within the report.

Thus this practice called “false dichotomy” that includes eliminating conflicting or contradictory information skews the reports and sends an altered message as a final result that has been deliberately botched to protect those politically sensitive in such cases. Basically, this results a finding of information versus meaning and is very confusing. The origins of such problems include unqualified or politically compromised investigators or their supervisors that cause false reports on their test results. This problem could be fixed by hiring qualified personnel, training them properly and providing adequate oversight and separating their authority and supervision from direct administration by executive personnel.

Source:

http://www.azcentral.com/video/#/Watchdog/Arizona+inmate+suicide%3A+Did+correction+officers+fail+to+administer+aid%3F/40280768001/35389240001/1259212342001