ICYMI, I served 78 days in federal prison for J6 misdemeanors. I am 56 and have no criminal record. The prison I was in four months ago, FCI Dublin, was just shut down due to staff corruption and unsafe conditions. It now sits empty.

I'm feeling reflective, so I wanted to share a story:

The prison phones were disabled each night. They turned back on at 6AM.

Every morning at 5:50AM, my first cell mate's alarm would awaken me. At exactly 6AM, she was on the phone calling her ill mom in WV. Her mom is her best friend. They shared their lives with each other the best they could under the circumstances. She never missed a day.

Our cell was near the phone, so like it or not, I overheard their conversations every morning - their laughter, their arguments, their stories, their tears, all of it. It was real and raw and beautiful.

I couldn't help but hear so many inmates' "private" conversations because my cell was near the phone. I was there for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. So many raw moments.

I used to say things about inmates like, "They earned this" (not knowing what "this" was), and "If you can't do the time, don't do the crime."

I didn't understand that by saying and believing these things so unquestioningly, I was viewing inmates as "others." I didn't see them as individuals with lives and relationships, dreams and fears, hopes and regrets. I didn't realize I was further dehumanizing them by "othering" them. Then I was one of them. And for the first time in my life, I truly saw them.

I hope that this post can maybe help you see them, too.