@Gottaculat

1 year ago

My dad used to have this liquor cabinet full of all sorts of alcohol for different occasions. He never made it off limits, and if we wanted to try some, we just had to ask. He would also let us have a half glass of wine on Easter, our birthdays, and Christmas. Pretty smart of him, because we didn't like the taste as kids, and by the time we were teens, it wasn't taboo, so we had little interest in alcohol. He did have a rule that our friends were to stay away from it. When we were all over 21, and visited, he now offers us a drink, and it's no big deal.

He taught us that alcohol is perfectly safe if you drink responsibly.

His view on smoking and tattoos was if we think we're old enough to do either, then we're old enough to not live under his roof anymore. He caught me trying a cigarette when I was a teen, so he threw me outside, locked the doors, and said, "Enjoy sleeping on the lawn." There was a thunderstorm during the night, and I was cold and drenched. When morning came around, he asked me if I plan to keep smoking, and I told him "Hell no!" He let me back in, and my mom had a delicious breakfast casserole waiting for me. My dad told me about when he was in Vietnam, he was coming out of the command center for his break one night, and the guard outside lit up a cigarette. My dad knocked it out of the guy's mouth and pulled him to the ground behind the sandbags just as a bullet whizzed overhead. He chewed out the private, telling him a cigarette at night is like a beacon telling snipers where your head is. I learned that smoking can get you killed in more than one way. Plus, I saw an eye-opening exhibit at the JFK Health Center (Barrington, IL) that showed what you could buy with the money your average cigarette addict spends on smokes. I was all, "Holy shit, smokers piss away a lot of their earnings!" Same goes with alcoholics.

Something I noticed about the homeless population when I was volunteering with the church in Aurora, IL, is every last one of them struggled with alcoholism. It's heart-breaking, but it's their choice, so they must live with the consequences. We offered them free rehab followed by guaranteed jobs and housing to get back on their feet. All they had to do was accept Jesus Christ, and we'd get them rehabilitated. I only ever saw one guy take us up on our offer. Dude was in tears, had been homeless for 17 years, hadn't had a hug in 15 years, and he said he couldn't spend one more night alone, cold, hungry, and filthy. I gave him a big hug, and the others joined in. He was crying so hard, festering sores all over him, smelled like a sewer, and I burned my clothes that night as the stink wouldn't wash out. We got him cleaned up, fed, and on his way to rehab. Today, he's now sober, has his own place, found a wife, and volunteers with the church, helping other fallen people.

I'm grateful my dad raised me the way he did. He made sure I wouldn't walk that dark path, because for many substance abusers, there is no hope, no comming back. Even if you do come back from it, so much of your life is wasted in the process.

Drink responsibly, don't smoke, and never do drugs. You don't need it. If you think you do, might be time to make better friends, and/or find a job you love. Me? I became an Uber driver. Pays like shit, but it's the best job I've ever had. Incredibly enjoyable, I get some crazy stories to tell, I spend my mornings fishing or at the shooting range, and afternoons and nights driving drunk people (whom tip very heavily). It's a good life, and I don't need drugs and alcohol to enjoy it. 😊

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