Companionship in Prison

Companionship can potentially be essential to someone’s life in society. However, finding companionship in prison is an integral part of the incarcerated  person’s journey.

I have been incarcerated for the past 17 years of my life, and striving to find lasting companionship seems to be elusive. I say this from personal experience as well as watching from the viewpoint of a friend to some and stranger to others.

Regardless of our beliefs or non-beliefs, cultural makeup, or the environment we come from in society, in this world only known to us, we all face the same rollercoaster ride of finding companionship for a duration of time before it gets swept away instantly like a windstorm.

The search for a companion can come from various avenues, whether it may come from a family friend, a friend of someone who’s incarcerated with you, or if you choose to place yourself on different websites that allows someone in society to view a profile of you and then be able to contact you.

When you first meet someone new, there is a strong curiosity of learning about this person to find out who they are, along with allowing them into your life behind these walls, too. You are able to communicate via 15-minute telephone calls, emails through the facility’s designated system, and even handwritten letters through snail mail if you choose.

From my experiences, there is nothing like having a person I can communicate with on a daily basis. During those phone calls, emails, or written letters, it feels like your whole spirit is lifted and that you’re outside of these walls that strive to drain the life out of you slowly.

When you have someone, it makes you feel good inside, and it can affect you in an overall positive manner because you do everything you can to stay out of trouble. And if you already were staying out of trouble, then it makes you strive to do it even more.

It gives you hope to look forward to conversing with your companion in some capacity every day, and it unequivocally gives you the sense of security to know someone cares enough for you that they are willing to make you a priority in their immediate life.

As time progresses, you can build a solid friendship; however, if you allow your emotions to start seeping into the conversations, then it can unveil an emotional connection that leads to building a foundation of trust, transparency, authenticity, and love.

You start envisioning a life with this person in the future as you share your dreams and aspirations in life together. It’s a joy to be able to talk about your companion with other individuals that are incarcerated with you, or with your friends and family in society.

It’s truly a beautiful feeling; however, on the flip side of all this, the duration of time you have with your companion may be instantly cut short by the disruption of life at times.

Sometimes, once the honeymoon phase is over, your companion could possibly be searching for something more than what you’re capable of giving, at the moment, due to your incarceration. Friends and family of your companion may get into their head about them being with someone that’s incarcerated.

There are so many restrictions and limitations that can get to your companion over time, and this can cause them to walk away, too. They come into your life and then they go. This cycle happens often to the incarcerated, and that’s why I believe finding companionship in prison seems to be elusive.

Don’t get me wrong. There are some who stay, and this is a rarity for us because it happens so far and in between on this journey. Some even take the ultimate step of getting married while being incarcerated, and that’s a beautiful thing, too, because we want to find love and be loved even through this journey of incarceration.

However, more often than not, it does not work out that way for us, and we’re left wondering when will we have the chance to find the one person for us that won’t walk away. So I continue to search away on my journey, just like many other men and women do on their journey of incarceration, too.

How to contact Shawn:

Email: SRJ_clemency@yahoo.com to help Shawn’s fight of injustice.

Follow: @shawjohn1222 on Instagram to engage with Shawn’s poetry, motivational speeches, and creative content.

Shawn’s podcast: @ShawnRobertJohnson on YouTube.

Contact: Shawn Johnson 732464c New Jersey via Jpay.com

Shawn Robert Johnson #000732464C

New Jersey State Prison

PO Box 861

Trenton, NJ 08611