Healing the Wounds of Trauma

Lesson 6C ADDICTIONS

1. Just one more “Just one more beer,” David thought as he sat with his friends from work. They came to this local bar every Friday at the end of the day’s work. His wife Michelle had asked him to be home by 6 p.m. since their twelve-year-old son Mike was going to play in his first football game with his school’s team. “I’ll just go directly to the school,” David told himself. “Michelle knows how hard I work. It will be okay.” But he missed the game. Five years later, his son, now seventeen, was proudly playing in the national championship game. Mike knew it was pointless to look around for his father. Toomany years and toomany games had passed for him to expect David to be there for him. “Why even give him a thought?” said Mike to himself as he scored the goal that brought victory to his school. After the game, Mike andMichelle went home to find David asleep in the sitting room. Several empty beer bottles were scattered on the floor. Mike went directly to his room while his mother began to pick up the bottles. The slam of his bedroom door awakened his father. Shortly afterward, he heard his parents going over the same argu- ment he had heard for years. “You knew tonight was the national championship! How could you have missed the game?” “Michelle, I’m sorry. I thought I could take a quick nap and I just lost track of time,” said David. “What about these bottles?” yelledMichelle. “You promisedme you would stop drinking. And it’s been amonth since you last had a drink.” “I know, Michelle, but you know how hard my work can be,” David said. “I needed to relax. I only bought four bottles. I had every inten- tion of being at the game. I won’t let it happen again.” David yelled

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Addictions