I remember when I was arrested on June 16, 2009, it was the most shocking traumatizing event ever in my life…
Imagine only having no felonies on your record; never been to prison; only had three misdemeanors; a dedicated husband, father, and worker; coming from an impoverish background, living a normal decent life and then, all of a sudden, you find yourself doing LIFE in prison for a mere [conspiracy]?
Imagine your soulmate, the love of your life, your life time partner can no longer maintain. After seven years your partner simply breaks down emotionally and spiritually and simply let’s go. Imagine your son, whom you left at eight years old, no longer recognizes you or even acknowledges you because you are simply an absolute stranger.
Imagine being in prison the whole time knowing that your family has simply vanished from your life and the only memories you have are frozen in outdated photographs. Imagine having to always wonder what is happening in their lives but, yet, you can’t even call because you don’t even have a telephone number to call.
Imagine knowing that you live in a virtual warehouse in where you constantly think you are merely a box with arms and legs that gets to move around within the warehouse. Just imagine the realities of LIFE in prison with no family, no friends, no support, nothing simply because the real world is so fascinating, so distracting that your family does not even have time to acknowledge you?
Imagine wondering everyday if your only son is safe; is doing ok; has been hurt; is sick but yet you cannot do absolutely anything about it because you are hundreds of miles away and even if you were “close to home” you still can’t do anything about it.
These realities, my friends, are the ones that I have to live and go to bed everyday at night and wake up to every single day of my life.
The worst part of all this is that as much as I try to keep myself educated, “distracted,” and spiritually strong, the agonizing pain and trauma of all this will go on forever simply because, til this day…
I remember.
— Vladimir I.