Tag Archives: alcohol. alcoholism

Staying Sober Today

Complacency

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I would like to revisit the topic of Complacency. For 14 + years of sobriety I followed a morning prayer and meditation to the tee. My prayer would always be for happiness, health, safety and security for family members and friends. My morning prayer would be done in a very quiet place. I would address all immediate family members in-depth with solitary prayers for each. I would also say general prayer for those family members whom I regularly do not have  contact with  on a frequent basis.  I find myself falling into  the realm of complacency, Instead of taking the time to sit in a quiet place for prayer I often do it while on the go. I have found myself shortening prayer for my convenience. Some might argue that some form of prayer is better than none but I feel it requires more attention than I am giving it. After all, for myself, that only amounts to about thirty minutes every morning. I want to get back to this and perhaps this revelation of my complacency will help me return to  my previous  contact with God and prayers for all in my life. I do feel a conscience contact with God throughout the day regarding prayer and direction so that, I believe , is good.

In addition, for the past 14+ years I had been reading meditation and reflection books every morning. This only consists of prayer and meditation for the day. A whopping three pages to read. Well, yesterday after an absence in reading I picked up my books, or shell of books with crumpled and withering  pages and duct tape holding the binding in place, and did some reading. To my  dismay I found that the last time I read was  back in May. That was quite a few months to lapse in my daily meditative reading. I can only explain this as a form of complacency regarding the topics of this discussion. I am not happy that I had a lapse in judgment but am glad that God reminded me of its importance as a daily part  of my life with regards to staying sober.

I am happy that I have gotten back on track and had t divine intervention making it possible to do so.  Had it not been realized then I could have treading on a dangerous path toward losing the protection of sobriety.  By the  grace of God I have recovered my commitment to daily prayer and meditation.

It works for me and so I must tread forward.

Complacency also came in the form of my willingness to help other suffering alcoholics and those in early recovery. It was not but several months ago this summer that I contacted several drug and alcohol treatment centers in my area, I was asking for an invitation, on a voluntary basis, to share my story with their patients. Of the emails that I sent out I got a positive response from one such treatment facility. It turns out that my email was received  and read by some of the directors of the program. I initially had offered to come by once a month. Upon a meeting with  them I was asked if I was available to share my story on a weekly basis. I agreed to do so and I was informed that I would be contacted by Human Services to cover some paperwork regarding confidentiality and such. I never was contacted and I did not follow-up. I believe to be in the state I was in this Summer with regards to being complacent. I am saddened by my choice to not follow-up on such a great opportunity. I strongly feel, after gone through the full cycle of addiction and recovery,that my story may be able to create hope for some individuals in early recovery.  The bottom line is that fear and complacency consumed me and for that I am disappointed in myself. Perhaps this realization too will help me to pass along ” a message” of hope. I pray daily for the courage to do so.

I am going to make a pledge to try to help others. I may have an opportunity to share my story in the coming weeks and I hope I have the courage to do so. Other than my book, I have never presented to a live audience. If Ican be so confident to say  that it is a shame. I have heard speakers in the past and they made a difference in my recovery, no matter how small, I pray that this opportunity comes again and that I may speak from the heart.

I hope my revelation of complacency shows, that no matter what your program is or length of sobriety, how easy it is to fall into a detrimental rut if you will. Thank your for reading and please feel free to comment on this topics or any others on this website. May God continue to intervene, so that I recognize  complacency, and   stay on track toward a positive recovery program., May God bless you as he has me.

God

On The Fence

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Some time ago before I got and stayed sober, I was sitting in on a session at rehab discussing the first step of Alcoholics Anonymous. The gentleman, who I grew fondly of and respect very much, was discussing the “Sunlight of the Spirit” and how important it was to be a part of that realm, if you will. The conversation, in summary, was that if an active alcoholic wants to stop drinking he must allow God in his life. Now I suppose one could argue that a person could drink and still have God in their life. There are probably arguments for both sides. At the time I was on the “other side of the fence, away from having God in my life

The purpose of this reflection, more importantly, is to show in some detail, my state of mind before sobriety. I recall raising my hand to be allowed to comment on the subject of “Sunlight of the Spirit”. This action was not like me at all. I usually hid in the back of the room in silence, with no opinion one way or the other, as I had lived my entire life. Something that day had me in the middle of the room, with over approximately 100 other patients in attendance.

I now believe it to be divine intervention. When called upon by the counselor, who incidentally volunteered at the rehab and was a world acclaimed speaker on the topic of Alcoholism, I indicated I was “on the fence” in terms of drinking and wanting to stop drinking. I mentioned that I believed in God but that I was not sure he was the path to me getting and staying sober. After making my comment, the counselor, in a very direct and matter of factly tone, indicated that it would be best to get on the side of the Spirit, less die an alcoholic death. I did not immediately accept this direction, but the seed was plated for the second time in my life.

You see I had been at a previous rehab some two years prior where a volunteer speaker stated, “I had better find god or else,” referring to acquiring sobriety. I recall thinking to myself , who does this person think they are making such a statement. The gentleman, 80 plus years old and a recovered alcoholic, sporting dark died black hair, kindly asked at the end of the discussion to for us to comment on the topic. I recall commenting, “stop preaching”, on the comment card. The following week this gentleman was the guest speaker again. He started the meeting by saying that in over 40 years of speaking he had never received such a comment. I remembered he apologized for his comments about inflicting the belief that God was the most important avenue towards acquiring sobriety. I could tell he was deeply hurt that someone would think that of him. I ducked my head, and with a cocky smile, as a fellow rehabber stared back at me. You see, most everyone there, over 50 patients, knew I had made the comment as I had spent the week spreading my opinion stating, “who does this man think he his imposing God on me”. Well today, I still regret that comment and the effect it had on him. He was just trying to help, and I made a fool of myself. He may no longer be around, but I wish I could apologize to him. I know it was God who is responsible for me getting sober and staying sober. I do believe God had me in those meetings with both the gentlemen speakers so that the seed was planted to believe and trust him, referring to believing in God.

So, I guess the main point I am making is that there are many persons who have gone before me in sobriety who know that God is responsible for the miracle of getting one sober. I believe he just does it when you are ready. For me that meant heavy drinking and destruction for two more years. I am eternally grateful to have God in my life today and would like to express the highest amount of gratitude toward those men who impacted my life, even though t I did not know it or would accept it at that time I was an active alcoholic.

I hope that the statement “You had better find God or else” plants the seed that only with God can you get and stay sober. This is my strong conviction today and I am eternally grateful that God put those men in my life, even though I had no respect for them at the time. Thank you, God. May you be blessed with the gift of sobriety as well.

Staying Sober Today

My Alcoholic Years: Part 5 of 5

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The Sober years for me can only be a blessing from God. After 23 years of suffering and attempting to get sober, God saw it fit to grant me a new lease on life. I do not feel like I deserve it but I do give thanks everyday for it.

There  have been many great things happen in my life that sobriety has given to me. I could create a very long list but I will summarize and point out some wonderful highlights.

The first being accepting and grateful of God in my life. Conscience contact on a throughout the day allows me to make a promise that I will make the effort and do the work required to stay sober for the day and 24 hours ahead. Secondly, has been my opportunity to make genuine amends to family members. For the most part my amends were accepted and some were not. I can only pray that those persons I hurt can be healed in the future. My children have said things are good between us but I wonder if my absences in their lives growing up has really been healed. I can only pray and do right by them now and ahead.

Many more great things have happened. My grandchildren have been born and by the grace of God have never had to seen me take a drink.  I am married to a wonderful woman. I am no longer suffering and had the tattoo, bearing thses  letters, S U F F E R  I N G, that were inked on my forearm, covered up.  In addition I was able to change my way of thinking and the people and places I hung around. Just t name a few.

I do feel obligated to mention some hardships that have occurred during sobriety. There was difficulty trying to pick up the pieces and move forward in early sobriety; i.e. loss of employment, home and money to name a few. Insignificant in many ways but still were an important means of daily survival.  There have been loss of close family members and those  lost to the powerful grip of addiction.

Many more good things and bad have occurred but I understand that is part of life. One day I to will be gone of this earth but for now I am trying very hard to be a good person. I pray that I can leave that legacy. I also pray that this website and first book written can have an impact on the lives of those suffering as well as those in recovery and who have recovered from the disease of alcoholism.

With regards to my past alcoholic past, ” I don’t have to live that way anymore” and I am eternally grateful for that. I pray that you no longer have to live that way either. May God bless you on your journey of sobriety.

This completes the 5 part  series on “My Alcoholic Years” and I hope it has given some insight on my struggles and how ones life can truly be changed by God as well as lot of good people along the way.

Please feel free to comment on this post or any that I have written on. With your participation we may be able to save lives. Who knows there may be people out there we have helped and don’t even know it. Lets pray that it may be true. God bless you.

Staying Sober Today

My Alcoholic Years: Part 4 of 5

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In this series I would like to share what finally happened as a result of 23 years of destructive drinking. Simply put, I was beat. It seemed like alcohol had won the battle and I was doomed for a slow death.

I recall laying in a hospital bed of a mental institution I was admitted to after a suicide attempt . I had been there before so I was all to familiar with my surroundings. Earlier in the day my counselor informed me that I had exhausted my options in terms of treatment there and at previous rehab facilities I had been admitted to. They had informed him that I was not welcome back because of my lack of following the program and of my distracting behavior there with counselors and patients alike. So with all that said I lay on that bed counting ceiling tiles all afternoon wondering what was to become of me. Scared to death, is all I could describe my feelings as.

The next day a blessing would come my way. The counselor found a rehab in a small North Texas town. Apparently he convinced my insurance company to cover yet another stay at rehab. Upon hearing the news I was relieved of my fear. I did not know it at the time but Devine Intervention was picking me up from despair. By this blessing I began to surrender to the fact that perhaps I could go to this facility and stop drinking. to be honest I was looking for a quick fix. I would soon learn the commitment and work it would take to  begin the road of sobriety.

I attended the program from the start. I had previously allowed the facility to pick me up and transport me to the rehab facility. Previous stays would find me taking my own vehicle in case I had to bail, so to speak , to find my next drink.

Well as fate would have it I fell into the program and followed all instructions. I began to learn more about myself and felt there was a glimmer of hope for recovery from alcoholism. It was there that I met a wonderful counselor who would change my life and way of thinking. I am forever in debt for her participation in my recovery. I truly believe she was a gift from heaven. At the same time another patient there had befriended me and we went to the program together. We shared the ups and downs of our stay there. I could not of done it without his friendship. We stay in touched and have both  been recovered from alcoholism for some years now.

Upon my release after some 35 days I was fortunate to attend an outpatient treatment for the next six weeks. All was not great though as I was surrounded by temptation to drink as I was now exposed to it at what seemed at every turn, I wanted sobriety so bad but was weary. I recall stating to a counselor there that if I could not stay sober this would be my last attempt. I stated I would accept a slow death rather that participate in more recovery attempts. It was other alcoholics there who encouraged me to think otherwise as so it worked. It was Devine Intervention all along.

That is what happened in terms of my beginning years of sobriety. I would participate in the program of Alcoholics Anonymous for several years and a good foundation for recovery was put in place.

By the grace of God I was able to get sober and so far after 15 years stay sober. It has taken a lot of work and conscience contact throughout the day with God. It began with the acceptance that God would get me through the good and bad times and then grew into daily communication with him. God, family and a lot of good people along the way have been my saviors. I am eternally grateful.

In the next and final part of the series I will discuss the beauty of sobriety as well as some of my struggles.

Thank you for reading and please feel free to comment on this topic and others. It may help save the life of one of our struggling brothers out there still bound by the chains of addiction. May God bless you and those still suffering.

My Alcoholic Chronicle: Part 1

My Alcoholic Years: Part 3 of 5

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The heavy drinking years were chronicled by personal destruction, debauchery and suicidal obsession. From the ages of 24 to 37  I would progress from daily drinking to the “jumping off place” That is described as the place where one cannot imagine life with alcohol any longer and can’t  imagine life without alcohol as well. A terrible predicament to be in. Something I do not wish upon anyone.

By the time I had finished college at the age of 24 I knew I was in trouble. My drinking was out of control. I was feeling the effects of hangovers on my body and I began to have blackouts. Both of these took a toll on my mental state as well. At this time I checked into a rehab center knowing I had stop drinking. I did not stay there and so the  heavy drinking years began. The years would be spent drinking to oblivion every day and night. If I was not  jumping from job to job I was hanging out in strip clubs and avoiding all family responsibilities. I began to fall into the depths of depression and paranoia.

I once tallied over 25 times in some form of treatment for alcoholism. I was admitted 7 impatient rehab centers for alcoholism and 5 outpatient rehabs in attempts to stop drinking. My stays there would be followed by immediate drinking again upon completing or not completing my stays. I found myself in hospital emergency rooms, detox centers, jail and mental institutions. I was not  crazy but my actions were.

The final years were characterized as suicidal times. If I was not attempting suicide I was dreaming  about it to the point of obsession. I wanted to die and live at the same time. I still believed in God but was very angry with him for what my existence had become. I begged to be allowed to die and would wake every moment with anger in my heart for not being so. This is how I lived for the last years of heavy drinking.

During the whole time I was drinking all the way back to the beginning of the heavy years I can remember often dreaming of how my life would be without alcohol. I recall imagining what it would be like to say “no thank you” to the offer of a drink.

In any case my life was what it was, I survived somehow and for that I am grateful. I will continue soon with how my life changed an alcohol became a thing of my past. God Bless those who have recovered and   I am praying that those still suffering from alcohol-may they find a way out soon from such a horrible state.

Please feel free to comment on this post and contribute in the event that suffering alcoholics looking for a way out or families of alcoholics might read these posts to gain insight and what steps can be taken towards recovery. Thank You.

 

My Alcoholic Chronicle: Part 1

My Alcoholic Years: Part 2 of 5

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High School Years:

I have described in detail the exact place that I took my first drink at age 14. I know what car I was in, who was riding in the vehicle and what intersection we passed through when that drink occurred. Later that night I passed out from drunkenness. This would be to familiar an experience throughout my drinking over the next 23 years. I believe  I was an alcoholic from the start, in waiting, if you will.

From an early age my Dad had been grooming me to be a professional golfer. I had become pretty good at the game and garnered a lot of attention and some success. I didn’t really care for the game but my Dad pushed me. I would continue to compete for some years into my adulthood. I can recall in high school sharing a bottle of Thunderbird during daily practice. We would just hide it from the coach. Every tournament we went to was a drunken affair. Always separating ourselves from the coach in  which rooms we stayed  in. We would party and one instance I broke my thumb in a motel room wrestling match and had to withdraw from the event.  In the van with the coach drive were even so bold as to sneak in a drink on the ride home You see, alcohol took precedent over everything for me.

My early school years consisted of getting drunk on the weekends and escalating to getting drunk any day I could. We would even sneak in a drink during our lunch break at the local restaurant before returning  to 5th period English class. The drinking age was 18 years old and we usually to get alcohol with no problem. I managed to skid through high school and graduate. Didn’t have good grades and didn’t score well on any tests.

You might ask how I did all this drinking. I had part-time jobs and would come in late to the motel. I had no rules or curfews. My dad  did the best he could at the time. I realize that now. I have no ill will toward him, He has since passed but I was able to reconcile any differences with him before that. I will discuss that further when I write about my sober years soon.

That is just a  few examples of how I lived during my high school years. I was an alcoholic early on and the progression that occurred as I grew older could only be described as nightmarish.

As always thank you for reading. Please feel free to subscribe to this site and comment on any posts or contribute to them as well. Together let’s make a difference in alcoholic’s lives from those still suffering to those in sobriety. God bless you.

My Alcoholic Chronicle: Part 1

My Alcoholic Years: Series 1 of 5

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These next five posts, over the coming days and weeks, will be a series of  abbreviated  chronicles of my alcoholic life, how I got sober and how I am staying sober some 14 1/2 years later. They will be titled to corresponding segments of my life– childhood years, school years, heavy drinking, early recovery and present sobriety years .

Before beginning I would like to apologize for not contributing to this site in some time. It should be a reminder to  me that complacency  is so easy to take over. I am just glad I can recognize that and try to get back into some action of recovery.

The Childhood Years:

One thing that I have learned over time with  the benefit of some personal counseling and a few years of sobriety is that, as a small child, referring to my preteen years, I really had no control over my living environment or some horrible events that occurred. Where some children may have the ability to change their environment I lacked the courage to do so.  In any case my experiences where as they were.

I lived with an alcoholic father in my youth and watched him drink to the point of utter illness until he would have to be hospitalized. He binge drank  that way numerous times per year. I can recall having to find someone to get him alcohol when he was incapacitated. I was taught early on that sudden  withdrawal from alcohol could kill you. This terrified me as a child. My mother, who was divorced from my father was usually my savior in these times once I informed her my father was drinking again. Other times I just rode out the events of my fathers binge. I was young and afraid. You might ask what my mother was doing to allow me to live with my father under those conditions. At that time she had remarried and lived with an alcoholic herself with that household being detrimental as well. In any case I managed to get by.

I would just describe myself as a very timid and shy child on the outside when in actuality I was screaming in fear on the inside.

I started drinking at the age of 14. I will discuss this more in the next series titled the School Years. I just wanted to mention that to let you know that in early childhood I had not begun yet.

Thank you for reading today. Please feel free to comment on this post and share your experiences in order for the suffering alcoholics out there reading may realize that many of us may have shared similar events in our lives. As always feel free to also comment on any past post made on this site. Together let’s make a difference. God Bless You.

 

Staying Sober Today

Daily Resolutions

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It’s the last day of the calendar year 2017 and many things have impacted my life. Some events not so good and others for the better. This past year has had visits with distant family and unfortunate deaths of close family members and friends. As I have often reiterated in previous posts, I did not have to take a drink over the good or the bad times. It’s by the Grace of God and  for that I am grateful.

As I reflect over the past year, and of my sober years previous, I have indeed seen growth in myself. I have been able to improve my conscience contact with God throughout the day with increased prayer. What a wonderful feeling to be able to reach out at anytime, no matter what is going on, and take just a minute to express thanks or ask for guidance over any particular issue at the time. This is a very strong force in my life now. Now as a newly sober person some 15 years ago I was not even close to having this relationship with God. It took time and dedication in prayer, I believe, to get where I am at mentally and spiritually these days. I know if it worked for me and  it can also happen for any alcoholic whether suffering, in early recovery or having been recovered from alcoholism.

Now there have been many instances over the past year that I needed improvement over. My personal relationships with family and friends could have been better and have occurred more often. I know that I have neglected some people and have distanced myself from others. This indeed is a character defect as they say. The acknowledgement of this however is positive. As a recovered alcoholic I should be “giving” in more of my actions than just seeing what is in it for me. I am going to work on being more emotionally available for some and give my utmost self to family and friends. I want to know that in some small way I am making a difference in someone’s life. I will make these resolutions on a daily basis in the coming year. I have heard it said and I think it is important to mention that for this alcoholic every day can be a new year’s day. You see I always have the opportunity to better myself the next day. Amends may have to be made and good living can be improved. So, for myself, I will not make a new year’s resolution based on the calendar year but rather make a new resolution every new day of the year. I  live one day at a time so it would not make sense for me to over extend  my abilities to be a good person by proclaiming unrealistic expectations for myself. My hope is that all alcoholics can live one day at a time and find their opportunities to be a better person. By the Grace of God I am willing and will try to do so for myself and people around me. It never hurts to be a good person to stranger or those that cross our paths from time to time as well. That will be my resolution for today.

I pray for those are suffering this holiday season. My wish is that they may find God and meet a lot of good people who may assist them in getting and staying sober. I am proof as well as all the other once suffering alcoholics who have now found a new way of living and thinking. What a blessing. For those suffering now it will take the hardest  work of your life, but you can do it. You are worth it. May God place sobriety into your life to.

Thank you for reading this post. Please feel to join in with your comments or life experience.  I believe it t could help save someones life. God bless you!

 

 

 

Staying Sober Today

Power of the Disease of Alcoholism

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October 31, 2017, ironically Halloween Day,  marked another year of sobriety for me. The monster inside me is still gratefully held prisoner by the Grace of God and my desire to remain sober. I don’t share this a celebratory event but rather a reminder that sobriety is  fragile and that any moment, without God, family and good friends it can fall prey to the monster just waiting to be released. My personal opinion, and that which I have heard said, is that if I relapsed into drinking again I would surely revert to the end stages of alcoholism I left behind. For myself, that meant I would be right back to where I left off drinking and to the horrible existence of a dying alcoholic. In addition to the mental obsession associated with drinking and the physical deterioration of my physical body would come my suicidal obsession. I vividly recall in detail the events of past attempts to kill myself. You see, I believe that I didn’t really want to die but I just could not see an end to the self-torture I was putting my mind through. A place I do not wish anybody to be in. As it is referred to as the” jumping off place” as written in the book of Alcoholics Anonymous. This state is where a suffering alcoholic cannot imagine living life with alcohol  any longer as well as not being to live with it anymore . Continuing on would lead to death, whether quickly or slowly, as has been proven by the many who did not survive the horrible disease of alcoholism. That’s right, for those not aware . Alcoholism is a Disease as proclaimed by the American Medical Association over 60 years ago. As it is described as a Disease of the Mind, Body and Spirit. For me that meant living with the 24/7 mental obsession of obtaining, planning and drinking alcohol to a state of drunkenness and blackouts every single day. It meant poisoning my body and suffering grave physical consequences, and most importantly shutting off God from my life. During my drinking days that meant not being able to stand an ounce of my being and a deep hatred for God for allowing me to live that way. Those days, even though I believed in God, my only wish was that God would allow me to die, every single day. I profanely cursed God every time I awoke each day for not allowing me to be dead. You see, I blamed everyone and everything for my  alcoholic existence. Today, after 14 years of sobriety, I have been blessed with another chance at life. The obsession to drink has been removed. My physical body has healed and I am no longer angry with God. Gratefully, my belief in God and continual communication through prayer, is the most important part of my life theses days. Without my regained faith I believe I would surely would be dead.  Once again, I share my thoughts with you today, not to celebrate but rather to show how fragile sobriety is. We must protect it at all cost, less we return toward certain death.

Lastly, I would like to share a dream that I had during my active alcoholism. You see I had wanted to become sober dating back to 1991. That is when my life had completely unraveled and my downward spiral of turmoil in my life increased. For the next 13 years of active drinking I always had a dream. That was to get sober and change my way of living. I longed for the day when I could, when offered a drink, say that ” I don’t drink anymore” or more simply “No thank you”. Gratefully, by the Grace of God, my dream has come true. I become more increasingly grateful for my sobriety and remarkable changes in my life, however I will never forget the life I left behind and how if not arrested could I would surely and quickly return to such and existence. Thank you so much, God. You see, ” I don’t have to live that way anymore” KN

In closing today,  I believe God can be, if is not already, the savior on your road to recovery and sobriety. May God bless you on your journey.

Please share any comments on this topic or any I have written in the past months. Together we may be able to assist and or save lives trapped in the depths of active alcoholism.

 

 

The Good Times

The Good Times

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Every now and again I might be asked, by someone who knows I am a recovered alcoholic, if I miss the good old days of drinking. My answer is “no”. The first time I ever took a drink, at age 14,  found me drunk later that night until I passed out after laying in a friends front yard. For me, I feel that symptoms of alcoholism had begun right away. Not to say that I didn’t have a drinking session that where I felt good and stopped before getting obliterated. There were a few of those times but more so times when my symptoms off being an alcoholic where present.

I have heard it said, that when a person day dreams about the good times of the past, that they should not rewind to those moments but better to play the tape of your life to the point when your life began to fall apart due to drinking. Remember the shakes in the morning after drinking and the terrible headaches;the urinated sheets and clothing; the empty wallet; the blackouts; feeling of guilt and shame associated with drinking; the loss of job; loss of spouse; loss of home; trips to the emergency rooms;stays in rehab; suicidal thoughts and/or attempts: loneliness: paranoia; loss of dreams; trouble with the law; just to name a few.

For myself it is paramount that I remember the horrible times of my drinking years. Inn doing so I feel it keeps me grounded in my daily effort to stay sober. I will always suffer from alcoholism and must remember that if I take a drink the likelihood of having a good time is slim to none. So from time I must replay the tape of my life and rewind to the point where drinking left me prey to the disease. I truly that for me it was when I took that first drink at age 14. The consequences of drinking as an adult came later but was all part of the progression of alcoholism.

I hope is that this post helps suffering alcoholics and those in recovery that we must not forget where we were when problems from drinking began. Always rewind the tape of your life to that point so you can see where you were at and where you are now. I strongly feel with faith in God and a good recovery in place that it will allow you to stay on track on this wonderful journey of sobriety.

May God bless you and your recovery efforts on a daily basis. I hope you keep faith and prayer strong as part of your recovery. For me, if I didn’t, then I most likely would pickup where the tape of my life ended while drinking. I do not wish those times upon anyone.

Please feel to comment or contribute your  thoughts regarding this post. Together we can make a difference in people’s lives.