A Close Shave
Personal Stories From The First Edition
THE year 1890 witnessed my advent as the youngest of five sons to a fine
Christian mother and a hard working blacksmith father. At the age of
eight my father used to send me after his pail of beer and it was by
lapping the foam off the beer that I first discovered that the taste was
much to my liking. By the time I was fourteen, at which time I quit
school, I had found that wine and hard cider were also pleasing to my
palate. The next six years I spent learning the art of barbering and by
the end of this period I had become both a proficient barber and an
earnest drinker.
During the next 10 or 12 years I was able to acquire several lucrative
shops, some with poolrooms and restaurants attached. It seemed quite
impossible however for me to stand prosperity so I would drink myself out
of one situation, get myself together a bit, develop another, and then
repeat the performance.
The time came when I could no longer refinance myself so I began to float
about the country, getting a job here and there as I could, but
invariably I got fired in a short time because of my unreliability.
My marriage, which occurred in 1910 about the time I started my
successful ownership of shops, resulted in our having a family of ten
children who were usually desperately in need because I used my slender
income for booze instead of providing for them.
I finally secured a job in a shop in a town of about 4,500 people, where
I now live. My reputation for drinking soon became more or less generally
known. About this time a deacon and the pastor of one of the local
churches used to come in the shop for the ir work and were constantly
inviting me to church and Bible classes, which invitations irritated me
very much. I earnestly wished they would mind their own business.
I finally did accept one or two invitations to social functions at the
home of one of these men, and was received so cordially that the barrier
between us was partially lowered.
I did not stop drinking however, though my feeling toward these men was
kindly. They at last persuaded me to go to a nearby town to have a talk
with a doctor who had had a great deal of experience with this type of
trouble. I listened to the man for two hours, and although my mind was
quite foggy, I retained a good deal of what he said. I feel that the
combined effort of these three Christian gentlemen made it possible for
me to have a vital spiritual experience. This occurred in March, 1937. I
have had no trouble since.
For about six years previous to this time I was never at any time
completely free from the influence of liquor.
Since that time I have regained the love of my family and the respect of
the community, and can truthfully say that the past few years have been
the happiest of my life.
I have busied myself a great deal during these few years in helping
others who were afflicted as I was, and the combined efforts of the
deacon, the pastor, and myself, have resulted in nine other men finding a
way out of difficulties which were identical with mine. I feel this
activity has played an important part in my mastery of this most
devastating habit.
Contact:
The Legacy Group of Alcoholics Anonymous © 2005