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The Addict Who Still Suffers

 Brothers and Sisters in Recovery 🙏 Yesterday was sobering — no pun intended. I learned that my very good friend’s stepbrother passed away from an overdose. It hit hard. Real hard. Because every one of us knows the truth deep down… this disease does not play fair. Addiction does not care about age, family, intelligence, kindness, or potential. It steals sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, and friends. It leaves empty chairs at dinner tables and broken hearts that never fully heal. And the hardest part? Most of us know that person could have been us. Some of us have overdosed and somehow made it back. Some of us woke up in hospital beds. Some of us were brought back with Narcan. Some of us buried friends we laughed with just weeks before. We’ve watched addiction turn beautiful souls into statistics. That reality should shake every recovering addict to the core. But here’s what I also know: recovery gives us a responsibility. We are not just staying clean for ourselves anymore. We ar...
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The Contours of All Our Virtues Are Shaped By Adversity

Brothers and Sisters in Recovery 🙏


I heard a quote recently: if you could go back and fix every mistake you ever made, you would erase yourself. That hit me hard—and I know somebody else out there needs to hear it too.


In recovery, we learn something powerful: our mistakes didn’t destroy us… they shaped us. Every wrong turn, every poor decision, every moment we wish we could take back—they all played a part in building the person we are today. And today, we’re standing. We’re growing. We’re changing.


There is wisdom in recovery that you won’t find anywhere else. It teaches us to own our past without being owned by it. It teaches us that pain can become purpose, and that our darkest moments can light the way for someone else. What you’ve been through matters—not because it was easy, but because you survived it.


I see strength in each and every one of you. I see courage. I see people who refused to quit when it would’ve been easier to give up. Recovery has a way of bringing out the good that was always there, buried under the struggle.


So keep going. Keep showing up. Keep doing the work, even on the days it feels heavy. You are not who you were—you are who you choose to become today.


One day at a time. Progress, not perfection. Keep it simple. Just for today.


With love and gratitude,

Gary G

Comments

  1. AnonymousApril 29, 2026 at 8:20 AM

    I like the quote - how very true it is for us. As we build new lives, our past gives us wisdom. Thank you Gary

    ReplyDelete

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