Number 365

A year ago I first published this blog. 365 postings, around 150,000 words.

A couple of weeks ago I asked should I continue to write it. The response was gratifying and convinced me that someone is getting something from what I do. And my response was that if even one or two people read something that helps, then it's worth the effort.

Another reason I started writing this was to force myself to write each day. And I've been able to do that. It hasn't mattered whether I'm on vacation, sick, or just not feeling very creative, I've always been able to publish something. Good exercise for the brain.

I've had gratifying experiences along the way. Once, an 80-year-old mother called to talk about her son. When she first called I thought that she might be about 60 years old and wondered why she was calling instead of the son. So I was really amazed when she said she was 80 and her son was in his mid-50s. However, we started a communication that lasted for over five months and resulted in the son coming from the East Coast to Arizona. He's still with us today and has several months of sobriety – doing quite well in fact.

There have also been a few heartbreaking experiences. One mother, very devoted to her son, managed to get him into our program. However, he didn't last very long and left to continue drinking. While I never spoke to her on the phone her correspondence with me was heart wrenching because she wanted so much for him to get sober. Her love for him was so strong.

A consistent comment that I get from readers is they decided to send their loved ones to our program after reading my blog. They said after looking through the website and going to the blog they realize there were real human beings involved with our program. And that's what convinced them to send their family member to us.

That does it for me - and that's why I'm going to keep posting a daily blog.