Hi Angel,
I definitely understand where you’re coming from. I’ve been in and out of jail or prison for the last 20 years, and its always hard to think of constructive things to occupy your time when we always default to what we know. Recently, I’ve started to become more active in volunteering locally, to keep myself from the idle time that tends to bring the old habits to the surface. I could also suggest being active at church, and finding a good sponsor. A lot of times people are more willing than you might think to help those of us that are actively trying to stay clean.
I also discovered so many worlds to drop by and visit by reading good books. Sometimes it helps to get that little reprieve from our real selves. I also like to fish, garden, and do home improvements, when I can afford those. The possibilities are endless, as you rediscover yourself.
As to your fear of rejection with your resume, I always think of it like this: An interview is the ultimate Halloween experience! You can be ANYBODY you want to be, as you are probly going to meet someone you’ve never met. What an opportunity to portray yourself to be the very best way you can think of! And the worst that can happen is that you don’t get the job, and the person you’ve never met will become the person that saw the very best of you for 5 minutes, regardless of what your history is. We can’t change the past, but we can show ANYONE our ability to overcome adversity.
Good luck with everything, and congratulations on the clean time. It all counts as time to be proud of, incarcerated or not.
