Experiences

My name is David. I am a proud Yorta Yorta man currently locked up in Victoria.

It was mid-afternoon in the Port Campbell area, with a southerly wind blowing, and Henry and I were just about to leave the Boggy Creek Café.

Father’s Day can bring pride, guilt, sadness, hope, or all of them at once, and being in jail doesn’t stop that.

Being kind is something I find really challenging at times.

It’s 7:45 AM. That annoying intercom announces 10 minutes to unlock count.

Inside prison, days can feel endless and sometimes the only thing that keeps you going is the thought you might get to hear the voice of someone you love.

I used to work in underground coal mines, and down there I experienced a similar sense of camaraderie to what I later encountered in prison.

Let’s face it: money makes the world go around.

My advice? Each new dawn is one day closer to release. Focus on the moment and time will take care of itself. It’s not the amount of time you’ve got – it’s how you use it.

I’m currently 45 years old and I have spent 19 years of my life in NSW jails, albeit in instalments (not all in one go), because I kept falling for the traps of evil.