For a guy in prison, last night I felt oddly like a kid on Christmas morning, having waited sixteen long years for the present I spread out before me. It wasn’t a toy or bike or even an Xbox – it was my first set of books from the Blackstone paralegal course.
Someone introduced me to Blackstone in late 2008, four years into this prison journey. I was interested because I wanted to learn about the law and also return to some sort of formal education, having been a college senior before incarceration. My older brother and sister-in-law then agreed to pay for the course. That was before the housing market crashed and my older brother, who sold log homes and waterfront real estate, lost everything. I quickly forgot about the Blackstone course.
Later, people in prison became eligible for stimulus money. I thought about using the funds to pay for the course myself but was in college at the time, a senior in the Field Minister program. The timing was off again.
Then, in 2023 I learned the top prize in the Walk In Those Shoes fall writing contest was sponsorship in the Blackstone course. I had competed in each of their contests for about two years, but wanted to win this one much more than any of the others. I worked on the essay with complete focus, the coveted prize always in my thoughts, and after submission, I found myself thinking about the possibility of winning multiple times a day.
In January 2024 I received the message – I had won. Thankfully, I have a single room, or they might have locked me in a padded cell. I cheered and laughed, jumped and danced, waved my arms and fist pumped. I might have even high-fived myself. Blackstone here I come! I can finally take the course.
The timing is ideal because of how the experiences of the ensuing years have impacted me. I have become a proficient learner, studier, reader and writer. I earned a bachelor’s degree with honors, and I work for a college, teaching writing and also training writing consultants. I have read 1,500 books, written plenty, and I have been published in two legal journals (wonder how many paralegal students have been published in a legal journal). These experiences have prepared me to be a significantly better student than when I first wanted to take the course. God’s Providence and His perfect timing can be seen here.
My goal is to learn as much as possible and to excel in all aspects of the course. My love to learn, study, read, and write will make this endeavor interesting, and my personal creed drives me – excellence in all things unto the Lord. I hope to use this training to work for change. I will combine a deeper understanding of the law with my writing proficiency to support reform and help dismantle mass incarceration. Maybe working as a paralegal will be my first job when I one day make it out of here.
After my first Blackstone shipment arrived, I carefully spread my presents out on my mat, a Cheshire cat smile across my face. Included were the Student Handbook, Law Glossary, and Volume I: Law – Its Origin, Nature and Development & Contracts. There was also paperwork welcoming me to the program and other information. Volume 1 contains the first four lessons out of a total of 31. The time for celebrating has ended. Time to get to work. But I’m still as happy as a kid playing with his brand new toys on Christmas.
ABOUT THE WRITER. Timothy Johnson is serving a life without parole sentence. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Pastoral Ministry with a minor in Counseling from the College at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary; he serves as the assistant editor for The Nash News, the first and longest running prison publication in NC; he was editor of Ambassadors in Exile, a journal/newsletter that represents the NCFMP; he is a co-author of Beneath Our Numbers; and he has been published in the North Carolina Law Review (Hope for the Hopeless: The Prison Resources Repurposing Act https://scholarship.law.unc.edu/nclr/vol100/iss3/2/).
Recently, Timothy and Phillip Vance Smith, II, co-authored a piece for NC Newsline, which can be found here, and Timothy can also be heard on the Prison POD podcast on youtube.
Mr. Johnson can be contacted at:
Timothy Johnson #0778428
Nash Correctional Institution
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131
Timothy Johnson can also be contacted via GettingOut.com
