Prejean is introduced to a hideous world when describing leaving her first visit with Sonnier in prison. She states, .
"I promise myself, I"m going to take a bath to wash the place .
off me. Freedom. How blessed it is to be outside the bars, and .
the windows are down in the car and the road is open before me .
and I take deep gulps of the fresh, good air "(31). .
This reaction, coming from a nun whom lives in the projects, proves the drastic conditions that she witnessed. It is amazing that she could feel so repulsed by one visit and relieved to return to a gang-ridden neighborhood. This is amazing because she is indirectly stating which situation is worse. .
Prejean's child hood compared to Sonnier's childhood differs vastly. Prejean was brought up in a catholic environment, which consisted of going to Mass and of morality. She had always had an intense sense of ethical responsibilities. Her first experience of an unjust death derived from the juvenile beating of a possum (21). She had no experience of poverty or of a broken home. She led a life of innocence and assurance from the hostilities of the world. Pat Sonnier lead a different life from the beginning. He was brought up in a home that was broken and consisted of violence and harsh condition. The conditions which he suffered shattered any chances of a normal life. Sonnier's only reference of friendship and reliance derived from his even more troubled brother. Although this is no excuse for resorting to a path of violence, it still played a big role in his decisions. Nonetheless, Pat was inducted into an unruly childhood, which leads him to a path of detrimental consequences. The path from innocence to corruption happened at two extremely different intervals in both Prejean's and Sonnier's of their lives.
Prejean chose a life of a never ending forgiveness. She chose to honor and to preserve life. She was almost directed into a path of redemption to serve the Lord and to carry out the duties of a nun.