Johns
English 1101
September 12, 2013 Recovery is Possible My mom has been an addict my entire life. It started in Rogers, Arkansas. That’s where my dad and mom met and had me and my little brother. One day, ten years ago, we finally made it to Georgia where my dad’s family lives. It was unexpected because we weren’t supposed to move until the summer time, but my dad knew what he was doing. My parents had divorce when I was three years old. Later, my mom had moved in the same neighborhood we were living in, she had been there for about a year before we left. My mom’s house began into be chaotic and she was becoming too unstable for us to be around. That’s why dad moved us to Georgia out of nowhere. The summer after we moved, my little brother and I went back to Arkansas to stay with my mom, older brother, and sister. I was really excited to be back in Arkansas to see them and all my friends. At first, it was going great. I remember our family dinners, “five-minute room rescue” where we were take five minutes to clean the house, and our walks around the neighborhood. Then my mom started staying in her room for days at a time and not coming out for anything or anyone. The trip was cut short because she couldn’t handle us anymore. The ride to meet my dad and aunt was the horrifying part. She went 100 miles per hour with us in the car, and I was screaming to my dad on the phone. I know he was scared to death he was going to lose us. We got there safely but that was the last time we saw our mom for a while. My mom’s addiction finally caught up with her. She got arrested in Jackson, Mississippi where she was in prison for a year and a half. She was lucky it wasn’t longer; however, her kids were not so lucky. We had already grown up a lot without her in our lives by her choice, and then her actions got her where she had no choice in the matter. The way we had to communicate was through letters and short phone calls. When people asked me where she was I kind of lied. I would say, “She is in Mississippi” but never told many people why she was there. It was a rough time for me, I missed her like crazy. I didn’t want people judging me or her because she was there. Growing up without her in my life has had a lot of influence on how I am today. During this time, we finally got our house in Jackson County, Georgia with my nana and granddad. My older brother and sister were finally with us again, and it was great being with family at that time. I was making real friends. We were just lucky to have my dad and his family during that hard time. There were many moments where I just wanted to give up on her. Moments where I just wanted to forget about her and all the pain she had put me through. That wasn’t the way my dad had taught us through the years. He always supported us having a relationship with my mom if it wasn’t for that I probably would have just given up on her. It is very easy for people to give up on their love ones when they are on drugs, and it is very hard not to give up on them. My mom got out of prison about four years ago, and she was put in a half-way house. A half-way house is where you can stay and slowly get back on your feet. A lot of people need that coming out of prison. She was going to AA meetings, starting a relationship with God, and learning how to live again. She slowly got her life back. She was meeting new sober people and seeing that it is possible to live without drugs. She had to stay in Jackson, Mississippi for a while before she could even think about moving back with us. She wanted to make sure she could stay sober, and, of course, the state wasn’t just going to let her move. She has been sober ever since. She finally got to move out here to Georgia a little over a year and a half ago. She moved to Athens only thirty minutes from where I stay. We are finally able to have a real daughter-mother relationship for the first time in my life. I am so amazed that she overcame her addiction because I never knew if she was going to. I always prayed that she would, and I know my family did a lot of praying too. It is very possible to recover from drugs or alcohol. My mother and plenty others have done it, but you do have to do it for yourself!
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