Tuesday, January 31, 2023
-17 °c
Cornwall
-12 ° Wed
-6 ° Thu
-19 ° Fri
-23 ° Sat
-8 ° Sun
-4 ° Mon

No products in the cart.

  • About
    • Contributors
    • Disclaimers
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Giving back
    • Mission Statement
    • Past Issues
    • Where to Find
    • Call us at 613-935-3763
  • Advertise With Us!
 
 
  • Home
  • News
  • Leisure & Lifestyle
  • Columns
  • LTE
  • Events
  • Contributors
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result

Surviving The Holidays, when you love an Alcoholic

Powerless Patty by Powerless Patty
November 24, 2017
in News
Reading Time: 42 mins read
17 0
2
SHARES
56
VIEWS

One of the most unbearable memories of my childhood was sitting in the back seat of a white 4-door comet driving thru the back roads of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry County and Alan Jackson’s song ” Please Daddy” would come on the radio.

“Please Daddy don’t get drunk this Christmas
I don’t want to see my Momma cry
Please Daddy don’t get drunk this Christmas
I don’t want my Momma cry

You might also like

Statement from MP Eric Duncan on new IRCC Asylum Claimant Processing Centre in Cornwall

Five Questions with musician Virginia Dipierro

Five Questions with Juliette Labossière – United Way Executive Director

Just last year when I was only seven

Now I’m almost eight, as you can see

You came home a quarter past eleven

And fell down underneath our Christmas tree”

At the age of 8, I knew despite how hard Momma would try to decorate the dysfunction away in our home, there was not enough fresh holly in the world to take away the pain and sadness of watching Daddy get drunk again this Christmas. She’d aim for the perfect ” Hallmark” Christmas – we’d settle for Dad just being able to make it through Christmas dinner without throwing his plate across the floor. It was awful.

Decades later, I would find myself exactly in my Mother’s shoes. Holly shopping away the blues, and trying to mask the dis-ease in our own family home during the holidays. It’s funny how life repeats itself, and we unwittingly find ourselves in the exact same position we vowed as a child that would never happen to us. We’d make better choices. We’d never marry and alcoholic. Our children will never have to suffer as we did, and here we are.

Finding a support group of people who understood the how a family is affected by someone else’s drinking allowed me to find “the hope” in all of the hopelessness. It was life-changing. Finally there was hope, and a fellowship of men and women who all loved alcoholic just like me. They shared how they managed to find peace and serenity. They talked about being powerless over what anyone else did or didn’t do. They talked about the dignity we allow another human being when we allow them to suffer the consequences of their drinking, and that was my lightbulb moment.

I remember it like it was yesterday. “The dignity we allow another human being when we allow them to suffer the consequences of their own drinking. ” Bingo! my heart cried out, that was it. That was the reason I was here, and that is what I needed to hear and learn about.

I found the courage to change my distorted sense of responsibilities and adopted one of their slogans to use during daily living. ” Let Go and Let God, ” and I did. I stopped meddling, controlling, interfering, managing and protecting the alcoholic and turned his life and his care over to God. It was an easy hand-over. Here God, you take him, I just can’t do it anymore. I need to live, regardless of what he is doing. I just need to live.


The steps and traditions of the world-wide fellowship of Al-Anon started by Bill Wilson’s ( founder of AA) wife Lois W. gave me the courage to change and start living amidst the constant crisis and chaos in my home. I was free.

Thanks for letting me share!

www.al-anon.org

Keep Coming Back!

Powerless Patty

Author

  • Powerless Patty
    Powerless Patty

    View all posts

Next Post

Year in Review Meeting Set for December 14

Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube TikTok
Don't miss anything!

Get notified of all our new news by ringing the bell at the bottom left corner!

Content Safety

HERO

theseeker.ca

Trustworthy

Approved by Sur.ly

2022
The Seeker Newspaper is located at 327 Second Street E., Cornwall, ON K6H 1Y8 -- All rights reserved
The Seeker does not accept responsibility for errors, misprints or inaccuracies published within. The opinions and statements of our columnists are not to be presumed as the statements and opinions of The Seeker, and should not substitute professional or medical advice.
ISSN 2562-1750 (Print)

ISSN 2562-1769 (Online)
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Leisure & Lifestyle
  • Columns
  • LTE
  • Events
  • Contributors

© 2023 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.