Hassan Sahily recounts the unique and varied challenges experienced by an anonymous individual who found himself imprisoned in Zahle, Lebanon. This man’s particular prison experience centered around the prison forming a forced family reunion within the prison walls. The individual, known only as X***, had grown up surrounded by many difficulties, after which he finally left the patronage of his family and moved on with his life. Upon his arrest, however, he was jailed only to find that most of his inmates were from his mother's clan. He describes being back to square one, under the protection of family once again, upon which he realized the extent to which he still was mentally and emotionally attached to his family.
In spite of the brevity of his incarceration, the prison imprinted itself on the man and ensured that long after he left the cells, the prison would still be with him. And more than that, there is always the fear that he might end up back inside, sheltered by his family yet again.
