Today is a special day. Our son has been sober for one year. It took a lot of years to get here. Addiction is not a quick fix, and the road to recovery tends to go in circles for a while before the lucky ones find their way out.
I feel incredibly blessed that our son has made it out of the maze and into the light. It is so wonderful to see him smile, hear him sing, and watch him get on with his life. He has a job and a beautiful girlfriend. He has fun with his friends doing things that young people enjoy: going to baseball games and concerts and eating out.
When he was using, he spent a lot of time in the garage and a lot of time sleeping. He spent most of his time in the dark. I felt helpless and hopeless. When I walked into my first Al-Anon meeting I did not think anything or anyone could help me. Thankfully I was wrong. I learned how to live my life in the midst of craziness. It was not easy but I took little steps forward while our son seemed to be taking many steps backward. I didn’t want to leave him behind but soon realized that I couldn’t carry him with me. He had to follow his path and I had to follow mine.
Today, after lots of small steps forward and many one-days-at-a-time, we can celebrate this wonderfully ordinary day.
--KCD
Beautifully written. Your husband doesn't need to tell you as you clearly know, less is more.
ReplyDeleteIts an amazing journey of babysteps and backslides. I'm grateful that you are able to have such a celebration!
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