A man identified by the nickname Jay recounted in a podcast interview that a prayer offered by a fellow inmate stopped him from taking his own life after he was arrested for breaking into a building on his college campus nearly ten years ago. Jay, who spoke using only his nickname so he could discuss his mental health candidly, shared the account in the interview.
Jay said that at the age of 22 he considered himself a loner whose small circle of companions had questionable morals. He said one evening, while he was drinking with his friends, someone suggested breaking into the chemistry building on his college campus. Most of the group dismissed the idea as impossible, but Jay decided he could carry it out.
Jay was booked into a county detention center at around 1 a.m. and placed in a cell. He said that after arriving, he made a plan to end his life. As he prepared to act on it, he began to cry. An inmate in the adjacent cell spoke to him, asking, "Hey, is this your first time?" and then, "Can I pray for you?" Jay accepted the offer and listened as the inmate prayed. He said that after hearing the words, he suddenly felt hope instead of wanting his life to end.
"I have a life because somebody who was in the same situation I was in had the courage to talk to a fellow inmate and be kind," Jay said. He added that he wishes he could meet the inmate again to express his appreciation. "I would shake that guy's hand, give him a hug, and tell him what his small gesture meant for me, how he changed the course of my life," he said. The podcast releases new episodes each Tuesday.