Scars of War

During my daughters 9 years of drug addiction she went through numerous stretches of soberity. Sometimes they were long periods and sometimes... not so long. Battling heroin addiction is like trying to swim in the ocean with your arms and legs bound while being stung by a school of jellyfish. It is heart wrenching to witness knowing that you are helpless to do anything but love them.

It was during a lengthy stint of soberity that Ang was working as a waitress at an all night dining establishment. She was a great waitress and worked very hard to please everyone. When she was sober she was amazing at everything... simply everything!!! So, I went into the "restaurant" for breakfast and she was visably upset beyong words. With tears in her eyes she said to me "This guy saw my track marks and said 'oh gross she's a junkie, look at her arms man the girls a dope whore'". My heart broke into a million pieces right there on the stool. She was like "Mom, here I am trying so hard and yet the scars remain.. a constant reminder, everyday, every minute... and the world is full of jerks!"

She took a break and we walked outside. Me personally - I wanted to break the guy in half but unfortunately he wasn't there. I told her honey - jerks are everywhere and that guy well he was a jerk. I tried so hard to get her to see how powerful she really was... how valiantly she was fighting a dragon far, far bigger than she. I told her I was proud of her hard work and that I loved her more than "infinity much" (which was something she used to tell me when she was little - with her arms out-stretched) and always would be there for her. She settled down and went back to work. But that day, that very day another scar was added my baby girl - this time to her heart, not her arms.

That new scar, along with the ones she was already carrying both inside and outside proved to be another back breaker for her. This stint of clean time was coming to an end - again. See for those young folks suffering from addiction there is a very fine line between giving up and staying sober. They are young, filled with fear and lacking the wisdom that comes with age. If only I could have given her the strength to make her stronger... alas I could not... love was all I had to truly give her... loving arms, a shoulder to rest upon and the words of God whispered into her ears.

I miss her so much...

Blessings