Epilogue to Sarah's

This small chapter is entitled, “Guns, Felons, and Suicide.”

Yes, one of Sarah’s residents kept a hunting rifle. He owned a car and would go duck hunting. Of course, he took psychiatric medications. Sarah was delighted with how well he functioned with them. Many of us were not too happy about the whole situation, but we feared saying anything.

Right before the houses closed down, Sarah wanted a gun to keep in her purse. Residents who had been asked to leave sometimes came back causing trouble. People high on drugs would return in the middle of the night, knocking on doors. One fellow stole food and computers from several of the houses.

I did not want “Sarah’s” or “Mental Monastery” to be too lurid. Many of the felons who lived at Sarah’s had committed serious crimes, assault, murder, and manslaughter being the worst.

When properly medicated, they were humble and law-abiding. Some even found jobs. An outreach program kept an eye on them. Any bad behavior sent them back to prison or the state hospital.

In discussing my “deep depressions,” I failed to mention the word suicide. Five times I was admitted to psychiatric hospitals for wanting to harm myself.