Synopsis "Released: Life After Prison (in English)"
Released: Life After Prison is a follow up to Janice Singleton's first Book Caught. On July 5, 2012, Janice Singleton woke up feeling like the luckiest girl in the world. Her release day was finally here. She tossed and turned the night before, afraid She would oversleep and miss my call to freedom. She thought back to the day I arrived on November 9, 2009, at the Marianna, Florida, prison camp to begin her sentence. At that time, her release date seemed a decade away. As she began to pack with anticipation, she understood in that moment how Nelson Mandela felt when he described his mixed emotions as he walked to freedom. Janice, too, felt a mixture of joy, apprehension and exhilaration and she exited the prison doors. What she didn't realize was that her journey had only just begun.After being released from prison, Janice's expectations did not meet reality. Instead of stepping out into my former life like she imagined, Janice was faced with a new set of challenges she never expected. She had to make the transition from prison to the halfway house, from the halfway house back into her own home while under home confinement, and from home confinement to probation. Janice also had to manage repaying restitution with no finances, while facing a judgmental society, family and church expectations, her relationships, her business and her depression head-on. "Why be released?" she wondered. After living through it, she want to share the realities of life after prison in hopes of educating families of ex- cons as well as open the eyes of those currently walking a path that leads to incarceration. Janice says being released from prison was both a blessing and an affliction. Why both blessing and affliction? Of course, being released from prison is a blessing; Janice would be remiss if she didn't acknowledge it as such. However, she now had a desolate feeling of having surrendered my sense of self to be bound by authorities both physically and mentally. Subsequently, after being released, Janice had to learn to live my life again, a life that consisted of constraint on every level. It is with sincere concern, thoughtfulness and a lesson well learned that she share her story in hopes that someone somewhere makes the decision to not indulge in fraudulent behavior for self-gain. It is with love that Janice shares this story in hopes that family members around the world adjust their understanding and criticism of their loved ones who have been caught, who are locked away, who are going to be released and who have been released. Being released from home confinement, despite the amount of time that has been served, requires an adjustment and transition back into society and family lives. Most importantly, being released requires family members to forgive and understand the process that lies ahead.
