He told himself it was ok, to have a bit of fun
He could stop at any time, just now he was not done
He drank more than his friends at times, did things he would regret
Sometimes he thought of stopping, but he wasn’t quite there yet
His first exposure to the law was from a DUI
While driving home one evening, no doubt that he was high
He came upon a traffic check, was motioned to pull over
It ended in a room that night, an eight-by-eight enclosure
Was just bad luck that got him there, he tried to justify
The reason he was in this mess; misfortune his reply
Had he drove home another way this would not have occurred
Denying drinking was the cause, the only voice he heard
He lost his license for a year and had to do without
Rely on friends or call a cab, it made him want to shout
Mostly he would stay at home with nothing much to do
So, he turned to the bottle, have himself a drink or two
Before long two turned into three, consumption was increasing
Take uber to the liquor store, desire never ceasing
But once he got his license back, he’d quit for sure, he thought
When that day came sobriety was the last thing that he sought
When I must drive, I will not drink, he made himself a promise
It was not long before this vow was totally demolished
The same routine he had before was playing out again
He wrecked the car, was badly hurt, took months for him to mend
He knew he’d lost control, he felt he had to find a way
To moderate the way he drank, he’d heard about AA
Perhaps those folks could show him how to manage how he drank
Education was his need, an alcohol think tank
But when he went into the rooms, he got a big surprise
They said that he could never drink, there was no compromise
That’s not what he had bargained for, this place he’d soon forget
These folks were truly hard-core drunks, he was not that bad yet
As always does, things just got worse, the bottle was his master
Lost his job, lost his home, his life was a disaster
The ending of his story was played out in a motel
With empty bottles all around, the sound a lonely knell
Most of us had been like him, it’s easy to forget
How many times we told ourselves that “we’re not that bad yet”
Us lucky ones, fore it’s too late, had found the will somehow
To realize the time had come and YET had become NOW
Larry R.
Early Sobriety Group 