A few years ago a 20-something alcoholic – the daughter of an old friend - inherited several million dollars from a relative who passed on. When I first heard of this impending windfall I wondered how long it would take to blow through the money, to drink herself into disaster. And last week, I found out.
Less than three years late she’s sitting in jail broke - serving time for a probation violation. Her husband divorced her and obtained custody of their children. She has mental health issues. She has no means of support.
When she was about to inherit the money relatives tried to prevent her from getting it because they feared what might happen. But they were unsuccessful. And what they predicted would happen came to pass.
This illustrates for me once again the power of our disease. Nothing made a difference in my own life until I got into sobriety. I earned lots of money in business, but gave all of it up for drugs and alcohol. A wonderful woman left me because I couldn’t stop drinking and drugging. Friends and relatives didn’t want me around. Like this young woman sitting in jail, my life was a wreck.
Hopefully, the same thing will happen for her that happened for me. Perhaps she’ll come to realize – as I eventually did – that I was the author of my own misery. When I quit blaming my problems on my terrible childhood, the people around me, the justice system, or the world at large and realized I was the problem – my life dramatically changed.
Today I’m blessed and I wish those same blessings on this young woman sitting in jail.
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