| Dear Dan, I got your fax at 2:00 this morning! It sounds like you are having a rough time over there. Dan, you do not need us to come and pick you up and check you out. You can walk out any time you wish. There are no bars, no locks, and no guards. If you believe that the life you led before is worth living again, then all you have to do is walk out the door, go two blocks, and take a cab to the first saloon you see. You’ll get what you think you want. It’s that simple. You say that you miss your family and worry about losing your job. When you were out there sitting on a bar stool at 3:00 a.m., were you this concerned about your children? What did your boss think when you came to work with a hangover every day? What kind of job security did you have in mind with this kind of behavior? I know that things were getting bad for you at the end, but they don’t have to get any worse. Believe me, they can get a lot worse. There are some very low bottoms that you’ll discover if you stick around long enough. The grips of evil and addiction know no boundaries. You still have a family that loves you and friends who care. Turn your life over to God and the fellowship and give them a chance. I stand here today as testimony to the strength of a higher power that I believe is God . I don’t know how much Bob told you about me and my past, but perhaps now is not a bad time to explain how far down one can travel in spite of how far up he may have risen. My story is different than yours, but we’ve got the same disease. I lost everything - my ministry, my reputation, my family, and nearly my life. It is not too late for you, Dan. At one time, I was a prominent Presbyterian minister here in town. All throughout my higher education in theology and service to the church, I drank and drugged. This double life lasted for over 20 years. Alcohol and drugs robbed me of my sanity and dignity. One night, my wife decided that we would both be better off if I were dead, and she meant it. I came home and sat on the bed after three days of hard drinking, drugging, and visiting women. I bent over to untie my shoes and when I sat up, POW! POW! POW! POW! Four shots, four hits. The fifth shot was aimed right at my head, but the gun jammed. You tell me, is there a God? I pleaded with her to call an ambulance. She said, “You call them, you worthless drunk,” and walked out of the house. My blood was spurting everywhere. I dialed 9-1-1 and then passed out. I woke up ten days later. While I was in a coma, I felt my spirit, my tortured soul leave my body. I experienced my fingers gripping at a heavy steel door. With every ounce of strength left in my body, I desperately tried to pry open the shutting door with my fingers. There was a bright light shining through the door into the absolute darkness on my side. A strong force held my ankles in the darkness pulling me harder and harder back from the door. I held fast, gripping the door with all my might. At the last moment, the door flew open and the grip on my legs relaxed. My body was free to pass through the door away from the darkness and into the light. After ten days in a coma, I awoke. That was the day I was reborn. If the bullets hadn’t killed me, the booze would have. It could have been much worse. Active alcoholics die a slow painful death of deterioration and misery, and everyone around then suffers right up to the end. At the time, the bullets were the answer to the end of my misery. God kept me alive so that I may serve and help other suffering people and share my strength, hope, and experience. The two bullets left in my body are an ever-present reminder to me of how devastating my affliction was. I am not preaching now, I am just being honest. I believe that if I could stop, then anyone with a desire for a sober, peaceful, and productive life can change, too. Maybe you will make it on your own. Maybe your story is yet to be written. Perhaps your own willpower can save you, or maybe jail or another institution is in store for you. Remember that pain is mandatory, but suffering is optional. Don’t leave without giving your decision more thought. Pray; if not for yourself then for your family. Go down on your knees. If you don’t believe, then act as if you believe and maybe, just maybe, it could be the start of your miracle. Don’t quit one day before your miracle happens. James |
| Reverend James to Dan |
by Michael Domino
Copyright © 2007 by Michael Domino
| Short Stories Page 1 |