https://anchor.fm/maumoon-shareef/embed/episodes/The-haunting-of-Alcatraz–Part-One-e11r76v
The bad news came as soon as our combat boots touched the beach. The one week off once a month we were promised? It was just a ruse to make sure we all came along without a fuss. My duties as a medic back in the base was twenty-four hours duty, the next twenty-four hours off. Duty starts at 12 in the afternoon though so, it always feels like I am at work. A one-week break seemed heaven sent. It was too good to be true.
We were being sent to take over from the troops in an army base, adjacent to a prison. Four months back the news of a prisoner being beaten to death had rocked the otherwise sleepy nation. Quiet, amiable types were handpicked from different sections in the base. We were given anger management therapy by a group of psychologists every morning for a few weeks. I do not think any of that sunk in. The army was not exactly known for in-depth exploration of feelings. Also, the fact that we either had Judo training or riot control exercises in full gear every afternoon added to our confusion. Group therapy about imagining walking through a beautiful flower garden in the mornings and being repeatedly judo slammed into the ground in the afternoon or riot shields blocking broken glass bottles and fire in the afternoon.
All eyes were on this prison now. Human rights officials checked the place regularly. We were not allowed to enter the prison without orders directly from the base. The prison had their own civilian staff running the place. Day and night we watched trollies of food and jugs of drinks enter the place from our CCTV cameras. We watched them eat to their hearts content, chicken, fish, biscuits, and all different varieties.
Us? We ate dhal (lentils). Yup, morning, afternoon, and night. We had a name for it; one that cannot be said in polite company. The simmering resentment was palpable. We were not allowed to enter the prison complex or cross over to the populated area of the island without a written order from base. From day one we split into a sort of hierarchy. Those of us who did administrative work became seniors and the rest were given sentry duties. I was in the admin group, so I enjoyed the privileges of working in an office from eight to two every day. Which left the rest of the day free. Free while the sentries did their guard duties morning, noon, and night. An idle mind is the devil’s playground.
The old man and the books 