Evaristo Salas Jr.

I can just take this to the library.

I can take this to the, you know, to the, to the local park.

I can do all this stuff.

And so this, this week when I already started on my, I already started on my new quarter.

I've been into it for probably about three weeks now.

And so now I've just been bouncing around, went to the library the other day.

I went to one of the parks between Sunnyside and Grandview and just went out there and read, you know, and kind of just enjoy being able to do that because in prison you can't, basically you can't leave your room whenever you want, but you can't take anything out to the yard.

Getting adjusted to that and realizing I had that option to do it.

And then coming out at night, I had a tendency, I had a tendency the first couple of weeks of just being in the room and thinking, and I would sit there and I'd be like,

wait a minute, I can just go outside if I want.

What am I doing?

And then I'll just go walk outside because, personally, you're never outside at night.

So just the shock of that and being able to see the stars and just kind of just seeing how it is out there, it was kind of a really beautiful feeling.

And it's just like almost a reminder.

I sometimes remind myself, not so much now, but in the beginning, that I can do these things.

There's nothing stopping me.

And then once I learned how to drive and got comfortable going on freeways and got my own car and everything, got my driver's license, then it was like,

you know, as long as I have gas money, I can pretty much go anywhere I want.

And so that, that's been, been wonderful, you know, to drive.

So I drive back and forth from college and it's about, I would say about a 45 minute drive from Sunnyside to here to try cities in my sister's house.