{"id":1417,"date":"2014-12-03T15:21:02","date_gmt":"2014-12-03T22:21:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/?p=1417"},"modified":"2014-12-03T15:21:16","modified_gmt":"2014-12-03T22:21:16","slug":"1417","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/newsletter\/1417\/","title":{"rendered":"A Place for Me"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1><strong>A Place for Me<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p><em>by Arnie King<\/em><\/p>\n<p>I had never really understood the concept of sanctuary. It was always someplace far, far away in the distance, like heaven. Growing up in a large household, there were always people in my space. I lived in a room with bunk beds and filled with hand-me downs. If I was late for dinner, my portion would be cut up among the dozen hungry mouths of my siblings and several neighborhood kids. How can one find sanctuary fighting over the last piece of sweet potato pie?<\/p>\n<p>To find a place to feel safe has been a personal task for most of my life. I was always\u00c2\u00a0searching for a location in my immediate surroundings to create peace and contentment in my\u00c2\u00a0heart. I was a man in search of meaning and determined to discover it.\u00c2\u00a0Maybe sanctuary wasn&#8217;t a physical place, after all. I began to look for it in isolation. I sought peace under the most inhumane conditions, such as twenty-four hour lockdown in a 6&#8242; X\u00c2\u00a08&#8242; cell, with no personal interaction, and no control over any part of the environment, not even the\u00c2\u00a0sound, which went from extreme noise to absolute silence. During that time, I pursued a\u00c2\u00a0conscious contact with God through prayer and a more caring relationship with myself through\u00c2\u00a0meditation. I established quiet time periods in my daily schedule of pacing alone, listening to the\u00c2\u00a0radio, or reading literature during the early morning hours. I realized that by starting the day\u00c2\u00a0proper-like, I had a much better chance of maintaining serenity into nightfall. Sanctuary.<\/p>\n<p>By participating in discussion groups, I have sought this special place, where I am centered\u00c2\u00a0and balanced. Sharing, listening, and providing service has been quite helpful for me. It&#8217;s a debt of\u00c2\u00a0gratitude being paid by contributing presence during another&#8217;s momentary crisis; a kindred soul\u00c2\u00a0aided in the midst of my many episodes.\u00c2\u00a0A simple return on a worthwhile investment. My own\u00c2\u00a0version of the butterfly effect. (Some folks believe that the motion of butterfly&#8217;s flapping wings\u00c2\u00a0in China could, in due time, impact the wind and weather patterns in Boston.)<\/p>\n<p>Wherever I go, I&#8217;m bringing me there. To the gym, the visiting center, another prison, or the\u00c2\u00a0street. I&#8217;ve learned that I&#8217;m capable of sanctuary, whether alone or in the company of another. God\u00c2\u00a0is always present. The physical location is not as significant, compared to the degree of\u00c2\u00a0spirituality. Sanctuary is not a place for me to hide from problems or avoid situations. Within my\u00c2\u00a0sanctuary, I have a wellness of strength and courage to utilize towards resolving personal\u00c2\u00a0conflict, from within me and among the community. Relationships are more fulfilling when I&#8217;m\u00c2\u00a0able to show up.<\/p>\n<p>That is my sanctuary. To enjoy a oneness and peace with God, myself, and other human\u00c2\u00a0beings. Wherever I go, that&#8217;s where I hope to be.<\/p>\n<p><em>Arnie King writes from a Massachusetts prison cell, which he has occupied for over 35 years. Comments\u00c2\u00a0can be sent to Arnie at: throughbarbedwire@yahoo.com or by mail c\/o Bay State Correctional Center,\u00c2\u00a0Box 73, Norfolk, MA 02056.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Place for Me by Arnie King I had never really understood the concept of sanctuary. It was always someplace far, far away in the distance, like heaven. Growing up [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1417","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newsletter"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1417","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1417"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1417\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1419,"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1417\/revisions\/1419"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1417"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1417"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.communitychurchofboston.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1417"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<!-- WP Super Cache is installed but broken. 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