An ‘As Told To’ story from Sol Mercado.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when programming at Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) was put on pause and a stillness came over the prison yard, I still had one place I could go: the garden.
I’d see the beauty in the space, how good it felt to be there among the colors, flowers, birds, and butterflies. I’d see birds fly past the barbed wire and thought, “One day, I’m gonna be out there.” I knew what I wanted to do when I got out, and I believed the garden would help me get there.
I used to cry in the garden, a place of solace when everything was shut down during the pandemic. I would sink my hands in the soil and think — about my victim, about my childhood, and connect the dots on what got me to this moment. I thank the garden for giving me the space to reflect and ask what changes needed to be made in my life to be like that bird, to fly and be on the other side of the fence.
When you make the garden your freedom space, you’re able to think more clearly and connect with the part of you that needs healing and rehabilitation. You are able to create an environment, a pollinator-friendly habitat, a space that normally isn’t seen in a prison.
I served 16 years at CCWF and was paroled in December 2020. The pandemic made re-entry especially difficult. Everything was closed and there were few resources available.
Now I work at a nonprofit in Oakland called Planting Justice. I help people connect with resources when they get out. I also go inside prisons to support folks preparing for resentencing, parole hearings, or trying to find some hope while they’re still inside. I know what it’s like to be there. When they see people like me that are formerly incarcerated and served a long sentence, it gives them hope. That’s what makes the work so important to me.
I thank the garden for giving me the space to reflect and ask what changes needed to be made in my life to be like that bird, to fly and be on the other side of the fence.
Planting Justice focuses on food sovereignty, environmental justice and healing through gardening. We teach people how to grow food, care for plants, and connect with nature in a meaningful way. We also work with young people, including those in juvenile halls. A big part of my job is helping people understand the healing power of nature because I’ve experienced that healing myself.
One of the projects started after I was released was a planting day at CCWF. It was about reflection and healing, created to honor our victims for Victim Awareness Month.
Later, I replicated the project at San Quentin. I met a group of incarcerated men known as “The People in Blue” while tabling at a resource fair. I told them about the planting day and they invited me to speak to their group. The Blue Soul Healing Garden was designed to honor victims of crime, but also to give people inside the prisons a space for healing and reflection.
My own reflection in the garden, in my freedom space, was the beginning of my healing. There’s something powerful about putting your hands in the soil. About tending to something that grows. People don’t always understand that. They’ll say, “It’s just a plant.” But it’s not. It’s a chance to change mentality and blossom.
I always tell people: Think about what it takes for a plant to grow. You need to weed it, prune it, water it, give it attention and love. You have to remove the things that are hurting it. It’s the same idea with people: in order to change, one needs to weed out all the bad things, seek help and water oneself with recovery. Now apply that to yourself.
What do you need to grow?
Emma Rosenberg is a writer and reporter with a focus on healthcare journalism. She is currently pursuing her master’s in journalism at the City University of New York Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism. Rosenberg served as an editorial intern at Pollen Initiative in the summer of 2025.
Sol Mercado is a reentry coordinator at Planting Justice, in Oakland, California. This ‘As Told To’ story is based on a conversation between Rosenberg and Mercado and was edited for length and clarity.