Before I try to expound on everything that happened this weekend, I will say that I cannot give it proper justice. It was just that amazing.
Nonetheless, we met on Friday early in the morning, 7:30 to be exact. Jeff gave a little preface to what we were about to experience. He also introduced us to a friend of one of the members, Jeff, a college student who was coming along with us. We left, most of the kids going on the bus, but I rode in the van. The bus is great, but the van has a level of intimacy that is unmatched by the bus, considering that the eight or nine of us were together for three hours with only a short break in between. We soon arrived at Riker’s, and after passing several guards, travelled over a very long bridge to the Robert Davoren Center. We got off the van and made our way into a line, two by two. We showed and gave our IDs to the guards, who then gave us visitor tags. After this, we went back out and brought our assigned carts in for set-up. After set-up, we had a delicious meal prepared by the staff at Riker’s consisting of chicken, salad, bread, fruit salad, and some vegetables. This ushered in the time to perform.
This being my fourth time in Riker’s, I expected the audience to be the same as before. In past years, the audience was awfully rude, both during the performance and in talk-time. They laughed at delicate moments, made fun of the songs, and basically disrespected us throughout the entire performance. However, I am happy to say this was very much not the case this time. Sure, there was some laughing during Gretchen’s drama (a drama depicting a dysfunctional family) at the part where the mom’s boyfriend hits Gretchen (since that’s the way many inmates express strong emotion, not being able to show tears lest they be made fun of), but other than that, they were a fantastic audience. I greatly admired the courage of the men that spoke at talk-time, ignoring the laughter of their fellow inmates. Several praised the show, and said that they related strongly to Gretchen’s drama, many coming from tough families themselves. Some asked for an encore, but time not permitting, we didn’t.
Oliver (one of the guards) dismissed the greater majority of the 200 inmates, but a group of approximately thirty remained. As the first group was dismissed, Oliver, a drummer, wanted to drum to one of our songs, which has become somewhat of a tradition. We all stood up and sang and danced to “Looking for Angels” with Oliver on drums. It was a blast. After the group was out and the song over, Jeff proceeded to ask the remaining group questions, to which they responded much more easily than the other group, since the group was smaller and more intimate and comfortable than the larger group. One of the men, who happened to be 6’9″, talked a little bit about his life. He said that he was in his church choir and sang bass, and then demonstrated a note for us. He also complained about the short size of his bed, saying he would love to be able to stretch out more. On a more serious note, he said that he definitely had his share of hardships. They described a typical day for us as well. They basically follow the same schedule every single day; some noted the difference between their lives outside of prison, being able to do whatever they want whenever they want, and their lives in prison, not having a say in their schedules. One of the men said that the homogeneity of the schedule didn’t bother him nearly as much as his estrangement from loved ones. That really struck me. The men were preparing to leave, when one of the men asked Oliver if the men could show us their talents. Oliver dismissed this idea immediately, but decided to give in after a little while, seeing that we wanted to see them and they wanted to show us. So Joe the drummer laid down a beat, and the men participated by stomping and clapping on the bleachers in rhythm. A few select members of the audience danced, all of them great, doing tricks such as taking their one shoe off while dancing and grabbing one foot and hopping the other foot through. It occurred to me how amazing it is that two very different parties can come together through God and art. They truly transcend cultural boundaries.
It was a late night, only coming back to the Salvation Army at 11:00. We had a great snack and then it was off to bed. The next day, my schedule diverted from the rest of Shining Light, because on Saturdays I have Juilliard Pre-College, so I had to go to that. So Barb and I woke up early, ate breakfast, and left. Through construction and bad weather, we finally reached the Juilliard building, a little wetter than when we left. I was still exhausted from the program the night before, so getting through the day was really tough at first, but after having sushi for lunch, I felt very rejuvenated. Without going through my whole schedule, I can say that the reactions from my colleagues and teachers after telling them I performed at Riker’s Island the night before were quite hilarious. My teachers were surprised, but understanding in my position, and even let me leave a little earlier so I could get to the next show on time. I got to the van, ate dinner (sushi again— it was a good day), and we were at Essex Detention Center in no time, with Barb at the wheel. And kudos to Barb for navigating New York traffic. She must have been a New Yorker in another life.
The next show was very tough. It wasn’t a question whether we affected them or not, we definitely did; but during the dramas and such, we had a sense they were laughing at us as opposed to with us, which is never a good feeling. Even in talk-time, many were laughing and made fun of those who did wish to speak.
I felt a little dismayed at first until Kelly spoke at the end, after all the inmates had left. Sitting in the front row for the duration of the show, she said that the audience was very captivated, shockingly. She even said that the some of the girls whispered “That was really powerful” at the end of Gretchen’s drama. That blew me away. Honestly, I didn’t think they wanted anything to do with us.
The one good thing about that particular show and about how it differed from other shows is that we didn’t have to break down, which was a blessing in and of itself! We got back around nine, and I rushed to the piano. Apparently, in the handbook, there was stated several times a rule which prohibited piano-playing in the sanctuary, where we were staying, and furthermore, Jeff made an announcement on the bus emphasizing that point. Nonetheless, I was not on the bus during that announcement and had not read the handbook (conveniently), so I was unaware of this rule, but once I had found out (after playing for a bit), I immediately stopped. But this would not remain so for the rest of the night, thanks to the resident musician Shawn Whitehead. A Texan native, Shawn came to New York a few years ago and has been at the Salvation Army ever since coming. Not only is he a musician, he is the IT of the building and runs his own business in the computer lab upstairs. Anyway, Shining Light had around three hours of free time, and around 11, Dave, the guitarist, walked in and told me that a musician was playing piano, and so of course I wanted to hear him. So I walked in, and I was amazed, to say the least. He had a dynamite ear and could pick up tunes immediately. He could also beatbox and sing well. So after he played, Mitch (another member) and I played as well, and basically until 12 it was a big music fest with Dave on guitar and Joe on drums. Jeff walked in, and I was a little apprehensive he might be irritated at the volume we were playing (we were even using microphones), but once he pulled out his camera and took pictures, I knew he was okay with it. My only regret from that night is that I didn’t know a lot of the words to the songs, but it inspired me to know them better, so that if something like that happens again where I’m asked to sing on the spot, I can. It was an awesome night and I thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with the other musicians.
Late night, early morning. People ate breakfast, showered, and scrambled to get their belongings together and outside to be loaded by 7:30. Our third and final performance took place at Essex again, only with a different crowd. Because of the night before, I wasn’t sure how exactly this group would respond, but I was pleasantly surprised. The group was very courteous, and if I remember correctly, didn’t even laugh at the sensitive parts of Gretchen’s drama, which is a first in a facility other than Teen Challenge (a Christian adult facility Shining Light performs at at the beginning of the year). If the show was great, then the talk-time was even better. The members of the audience had extremely deep questions to ask, like “How do you get over negativity in your life?” and “Do you have trouble fitting in?”. I could not believe the maturity of the audience; it was amazing. What struck some Shining Light members was the testimony from a gentleman whose original question asked to him was “What does a typical day look like for you at home?”. He said that we wakes up at 12 noon every day, sits on the porch, and gets high. He was kicked out of school several times when he was in sixth grade and never returned. When Jeff asked what his biggest struggle was when he was home, he said “staying alive”. At that point, I really saw how fortunate I’ve been in life. I can’t even imagine what that kind of life would be.
A member in the audience asked something on the lines of “What are struggles you deal with?” or something like that. Jeff then passed the mic around our group, and so many answered. After hearing some of the members speak, I came to the conclusion that I didn’t know their lives as well as I thought I had, considering that a good chunk of the responses came from new members. Honestly, all the answers were fantastic. All were succinct, relatable, and showed how God helped in the situation, whether the situation got better or worse. It was a good opportunity for them and for returning members to share about themselves, and I was happy so many did. It was a great show and an even better talk-time. I am so proud of Shining Light for that show. It reminded me of why I love Shining Light so much and how much God works through that group to change my life.
From there we broke down, had a delicious lunch, and then started taking carts out. A few of us got lost, but we made it out alright. On the bus ride home, people sleeped, talked, or played a fun game in the back of the bus called “Mafia”. After a period of time, we got home and some of the guys unloaded the bus. We all retrieved our luggage and then left. And that was the end of our New York weekend.
I could just leave my blog there, but I want to inform the reader how proud of this group I am. Shining Light makes such a difference in thousands of people’s lives. This is my fourth year, and I’m STILL blown away by this group! The energy, the worship, the small groups, the performance, and the talk-time— everything comes together to praise our Lord. Thank you members of Shining Light for making this weekend so memorable for me, and I hope you felt God’s presence this weekend as much as I did.
