The photo is me on New Year’s Eve 2001. I’m smiling. Why wouldn’t I be? I’m living the dream. On board our sailboat Dragonsinger living in Port Vell in Barcelona. What you can’t see behind the smile, but which I see in my eyes, is that I’m loaded.
The Mediterranean was a great place to be an alcoholic. Wine was cheap. Every port had numerous seaside restaurants, all happy to serve me alcohol. In Barcelona, the Irish Pub was within walking distance. I was there just about every day.
I know I’m loaded in this photo because I’m cooking dinner on New Year’s Eve. While I enjoy cooking and did most of the cooking the two years we lived on our sailboat, it also gave me ready access to the fridge and a steady supply of beer and wine. While I was cooking, everyone else was busy doing something else so that I could easily hide the amount that I was drinking. Much of the time I even hid it from myself. That’s the thing about being an alcoholic. We are in denial right up to the point where we are not.
It would be seven years and 27 days from this photo before I got sober. As I reflect on my twelfth sober New Year’s Eve, memories of this night and how much I drank have been flooding back. How much of my own beautiful life I missed because my alcoholism was chasing me.
I love every day that I am sober. It is a gift and a miracle beyond belief. Today I look forward to a sober New Year’s Eve.
If you think you have any issues with alcohol or drugs, call me at +1 (604) 721-5732 or Contact Me. You don’t have to do it alone.
Happy 2021 New Year’s Eve everyone.
