The holidays are traditionally a time for families to be together. That message is in the songs, the movies, and even displayed in storefront windows. What happens when your family is separated by more than distance but by the physical and psychological barriers imposed by incarceration? How then do you cope with the holidays?

We recently sat down with Dr. Harland Kessaris to talk about how to cope with the absence of a loved one during the holiday season and other questions asked by you. As a psychologist who specializes in re-entry of incarcerated individuals back into family and society, he was able to provide some insight into handling this potentially alienating time of year.

Dr. Kessaris stressed the importance of open communication between children, the incarcerated, and those caring for the children, “As much as you can you should include them [the incarcerated],” said Kessaris. “I think people need to be reminded, encouraged, and assisted in doing that.” For Kessari, the key is to make a sincere effort to connect personally.

Click here to listen to audio excerpts of the interview with Dr. Kessaris.

Solitude (click image to enlarge)

People who have an incarcerated family member naturally cycle through a range of difficult emotions as the years slowly pass. Some express their sadness, anxiety and fear or hope for the future through art, music or poetry.

To honor that great artwork, Family Life behind Bars is launching its inaugural Annual Arts Celebration & Competition.You are invited to enter the artwork you have produced that reflects the emotions you are feeling during your loved one’s incarceration.

The winners will receive checks for the following amounts: The first prize winner will receive $200; the second prize winner will receive $100; and the third prize winner will receive $50.

All the submissions will be posted on Family Life behind Bars. In the first round of judging, visitors to the site will vote for their top five choices. The top five vote-getters will move to the second round of judging. In this second and final round, visitors to the site will vote for their top three choices.

Please spread the word about this arts competition to your friends and colleagues who might be interested. The competition is open to any and all ages since every family member–from infant to grandparent is affected by incarceration.

You may enter the following types of artwork:

* Paintings
* Tattoos (photos of tattoos NOT in OBVIOUSLY private places!)
* Artistic Photographs
* Written Poetry
* Spoken Word Poetry
* Graphic Art/Comics
* Music
* Performance Art Piece video (no more than five minutes)
* Short Video Film (no more than five minutes)

Please visit this site to enter the competition.

Time line for competition:

* December 1, 2008: Deadline to submit work.

* December 10-Jan. 10: First round voting.

* Jan. 15-Feb. 15: Second round of voting.

* Week of Feb. 23: Winners announced

Good luck!!

The terms: Family Life Behind Bars reserves the right to terminate or postpone the 2008 arts competition if there are not enough entries (a minimum of 20 people entering). So please spread the word about this arts competition to your friends and colleagues who might be interested.