Misery Refunded

"No one is totally useless, they can always serve as a bad example." Parole Officer, 1970

As I was walking through the corporate office one of our employees summoned me to come look at his computer screen.

            "Does this guy looks familiar?" He asked.

            "Sure does," I replied. On the screen was a mug shot taken at the Maricopa County Sheriff's Department. The front view and profile definitely showed one of our recent Hard Six graduates.

The man had been at TLC several times, prior to entering the Hard Six program. When he graduated he seemed serious about his recovery. He went to meetings. He worked in a company that employed many others in recovery. He had a strong sponsor, and he sponsored others.

And now, here he was behind bars, facing charges of driving under the influence and grand theft auto. So what happened?

Well, we're not really sure. But, those of us in recovery can pretty much connect the dots. No one held him down and poured alcohol down his throat. No one set him up to drive a stolen vehicle. What happened is that at some point he stopped applying the principles that kept him sober for over 18 months. It doesn't take a crystal ball or psychic reading to know that this man wasn't going to meetings, quit talking to his sponsor, and stopped using the tools he acquired while in our Hard Six program.

We don't get depressed when we see clients in this situation. Are we disappointed?  Sure. After all, our goal is to help people rebuild their lives. And while we did our part, this former client obviously has a ways to go.