国产探花

Christine Holland made a special talking piece for the healing circle she co-facilitates at the Cheshire County Jail. A wild turkey feather embellished with beads, its quill bound in leather, the talking piece gives the person who holds it the right to speak without interruptions. 鈥淚 felt we needed something that felt sacred and grounded in the natural world,鈥� says Holland, a nontraditional Keene State student who has been leading inmate groups at the jail all year as a practicum for her psychology major.

As they discussed the talking piece, Holland said to the women in the group, 鈥淩emember, as you take this talking feather from the person beside you, that the one who鈥檚 passing it to you is also passing a piece of herself. As you will to the person you pass it on to. Thereby, we鈥檙e all connected.鈥�

Holland, who has Blackfoot heritage, structured the group on the traditional Native American healing circle. 鈥淚 think that my role at the jail is to help in healing the spirit, a person鈥檚 spirit. That鈥檚 what I want to do. I want to help the spirit heal,鈥� she says.

鈥淧eople need to be viewed with empathy and humanity,鈥� adds Holland. 鈥淭hey have to have their humanity given back to them. We鈥檙e incarcerating a population that has a disease鈥攁ddiction. Incarceration in itself is traumatizing.鈥�

Holland knows that first hand. She has a history of substance abuse that goes back to her teenage years and that escalated after she was prescribed OxyContin following back surgery. 鈥淚 ended up a heroin addict,鈥� she says, 鈥渁nd because it鈥檚 all about doing anything and everything to acquire your drug, I ended up in jail.鈥� Four months at the Cheshire County Jail gave her time to get the drugs out of her system and to start thinking clearly鈥攁nd making some decisions about her life. What she decided was to go back to school.

鈥淚 was released on June 28, 2011,鈥� she says, 鈥渁nd I started at River Valley Community College that September.鈥� A year later, she transferred to Keene State, where she has learned much about psychology, about addictions鈥攖he focus of her health science minor鈥攁nd also about herself.

鈥淭he degree?鈥� she says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 just a bonus. I鈥檝e learned so much here about me. Just so much self discovery as far as some of the choices I鈥檝e made and how they occurred.鈥� Her goal, after she graduates in December, is to take what she鈥檚 learned and help others 鈥� specifically, inmates 鈥� to make changes in their lives as well.

One of the groups she facilitated this year at the county jail focused on restorative practices. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 about helping people find their own humanity,鈥� she says. 鈥淥nce you have your own humanity, it鈥檚 easy to look at others with humanity.鈥�

That sense of finding one鈥檚 humanity permeates the other groups, too. In the healing circle group, in which inmates share their experiences and emotions, Holland works to build trust. 鈥淭hey have to trust that I鈥檓 not going to pass judgment. That鈥檚 not my job. Who am I to pass judgment? I鈥檓 trying to help these women and men heal.鈥�

And, given her own past, she鈥檚 also showing the inmates a new path. 鈥淚t鈥檚 good for them to see somebody get out, make changes, and then try to give back,鈥� Holland says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 huge.鈥�