My Life Before

UFOs

There were eight of us I think; teenage kids running through the woods shortly before midnight. I say "the woods," but in actuality it was merely a quarter-mile stretch of trees along either side of a creek somewhere in suburbia. A sort of run off from a nearby forest preserve running between a housing division…Read more UFOs

Shine

One of the most interesting people I have ever met was a man who, in his youth, was a member of a prominent Latino gang in Chicago; to escape this lifestyle, he later joined the police force. Of course, by the time I met him, he was no longer a gang banger or a police…Read more Shine

Suicide and Ecstasy

It was Halloween, so naturally I had gotten really high, and eaten a quarter ounce of mushrooms. So, I was still tripping pretty hard when a mutual friend called the Simons to let us all know what had happened. From my perspective it went something like this: the phone rang and Bob answered, he said,…Read more Suicide and Ecstasy

The Serendipitous Pancake Epiphany

Once upon a time, after eight years of doing any and all drugs that came my way, I decided that I wanted to be sober. My friends (all of whom were users at the time) didn't buy it and neither did my family. Which is not surprising because after all, I didn't know if it was…Read more The Serendipitous Pancake Epiphany

Abreaction

Just BREATHE... in... out... in... out... don't think, just breathe... in... out... don't ask where your are... in... out... in... out... Is that a table? Whose table? Why am I laying... ...[cough] ...[cough] Just BREATHE... in... out... in... out... I don't know how long I laid there, under that kitchen table, consciously breathing each breath…Read more Abreaction

A Place to Worship

...after being forced out of our home, my mother, sister, and I moved in with my grandmother in the west suburbs, and I effortlessly snuggled into a deep depression. I laid in my bed for most of the day, everyday for almost a year. I went to school sometimes, but coasted through in a daze,…Read more A Place to Worship

Journal Excerpt

October 7th, 2006; 4:35 am It has been almost a year, and here I am, once again NOT sleeping when I should be... I don't know why the thoughts come only at night. Perhaps it's the silence, or the emptiness, or the dark. You would think, I would be most comfortable here; in the night,…Read more Journal Excerpt

The Babysitter

In my childhood home, "the babysitter," was a 1981 model, RCA, console television; with a 32-inch-screen and cordless remote that was the approximate size and weight of a small brick.