It’s funny how our lives can change
in a matter of a few seconds although sometimes it seems as though it takes
years for us to finally see a change in our lives. We all have our weaknesses
yet we tend to judge others for theirs. Whether it is drugs and alcohol or an
excessive desire to stay in bed, there is always something that we turn to in
hopes of feeling okay for a while.
I guess we don't think about
what caused the successful lawyer to turn into a self-destructive being who
sits in dimly lit alleyway on a Tuesday night while drinking to suppress some
kind of deep rooted inner turmoil that they themselves cannot figure out.
When I was younger, my parents
always warned me about all the things that could go wrong. I used to hear about
how reckless and destructive alcoholics were. I was taught that their addiction
was their own fault because they weren’t strong enough to deal with things on
their own. I was taught that if you made a mistake, you were weak-minded. After
a while, I realized that they never seemed to talk about a happy ending. I
started to wonder if they did believe that someone could get worse and then get
better. I’m not really sure if it was a
cultural thing or if they were trying to scare me into staying young and naïve
but as I got older, I started to wonder about what happens to people that switches
them from one person to another.
When I was traveling last
summer, I encountered a man who sat in front of his house every day and drank
from sunrise to sunset and beyond. I wish I could say that I met him, but most
of our interactions consisted of my half-second glances at him and his
occasional blank stare back at me through his glassy eyes.
He lived across from where I
was staying and I could see him from the window. It made me sad to see someone
wasting away like that. He always held a can of beer in his hand and after he
was done with it, he would crush it and proceed to open another one.
I wish I could say that I talked to him one
day and got his life story but unfortunately, I never approached him. I regret
never talking to him or asking him if he was okay. I don’t know what that man
is doing today, but I’m guessing that he’s doing the same thing. I like to
think that he had some kind of epiphany and decided to get his life together,
but I know that he is probably still fighting the same battle as he was when I
saw him last summer.
I don’t really know what else I
could say about this man other than the fact that I wish the best for him.
Maybe he was struggling, but maybe he didn’t want to change the way he was
living. I believe that people like this are put into our lives to teach us a
lesson that we can’t learn on our own. I didn’t know this man, but he taught me
a lot more than a lecture from my parents ever did.
This is a great short story that really encourages me to sit and think about my life. I love how you bring your parents' thoughts and what they taught you into this; I'm sure many other teenagers can relate. The details in the story are very vivid and, like with your "I Am" poem, I feel as if I am there seeing the same man drinking all day. It truly is magnificent that you can think about experiences like that and make it into a life lessont that teaches you more than a lecture from your parents.
ReplyDeleteThat last line is really powerful--and that often seems to be the case: seeing for yourself is usually more effective than abstract words or advice. I used to see a man walking on Battlefield near my old house. He had several bags and always seemed to be on the move. I saw him once going into the restrooms at Sequiota Park. I always wondered what his story was, what his struggle was, why he didn't have anywhere to stay...but, like you, I didn't ask when I had the chance and I don't know what effect me doing so would have had on him. So I could relate to the scenario you've described very much. Thanks, Laura.
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