It wasn’t advise I was being given, it was advise someone gave to another person, I just happened to hear it… I used to go to “meetings”. You know, the Anonymous type? Don’t get it twisted, I was a teenager that didn’t drink or smoke or do drugs, but I was the black sheep. Honestly I still am. You may not remember but back in the 80’s there was a commercial with a kid in his room and the dad walks in with the kids “stash” and the kid says “I learned it from YOU dad.” Well, even as a kid I thought that commercial was crap. I decided early on I wasn’t going to be a statistic. If we were being taught to resist peer-pressure I always knew that started at home. I remember being about eight and thinking “I never want to grow up to be like my parents.” And in many ways, I didn’t…
But I did go to meetings. I at first I liked the meetings. I was 12 or 13 and I was so inspired by these people turning their lives around. I didn’t understand a lot back then. I didn’t fit in with the kids that went to Alateen… Those poor kids! My parents weren’t bad, they never hit us or “abused” us! They just did what they did. Best line I ever heard in a movie?
“we’re alcoholics. We’re generally satisfied just to hurt ourselves.” Where the Heart Is. No line in any movie ever said more. But I digress…
So, after the meetings a lot of people would go out for coffee or something and I remember one night after a meeting a lady had been talking about her problems with her daughter. You see, not every daughter is as enlightened as myself at such a young age! (evil grin) She was telling us that one night she was at the end of her rope, she had no idea what to do, so she called her sponsor. The sponsor told her to “Pick up your socks.” I’m not sure what that lady thought about that response but even at 12 or 13 I thought it was GENIUS!
At some point I started getting mad at that whole system though. I got really mad really fast. You see, “they” would tell me to blame the drugs, blame the alcohol for the things my parents or grandparents did… As if the drugs or alcohol got into them all on its own! As an individual we make decisions about what we want to do, who we want to be. I didn’t want to be that person, I wasn’t going to be a sheep. I own my crap. I have always pulled up my own socks. Things get hard, I pull up my socks. I hit a mental wall, I pull up my socks.
The best advise I can ever give you (even if you’re not asking) is to PULL UP YOUR SOCKS.
And that’s my thing. It’s why I’m a “black sheep”. You see, I didn’t turn to drugs or alcohol to get away from my “problems”. Sure, I’ve never turned down a donut either!
(giggle)
But I do keep pulling up my socks…