Essay written by AC

The following essay was left on the Comment field on the September 21st blog entry. (Similar writings can be sent to teeninjail@yahoo.com for possible posting.)

The Scene That Was Mine

Dope Is Like A Jealous Lover. It Comes In All Kinds Of Dress Bottles, Pills, Needles, Cigarettes. It Knows No Rivals.

Work, Family, Hobbies Are Not Allowed On This Trip. Dope Demands All Your Time And All Your Money. All Your Thoughts And Eventually, Your Body. Nothing Else Ever Comes First. Not Even God.

Dope Destroys Your Will Power And Self-Respect. It Cripples You Completely.

In Return For Your Slavish Devotion, It Will Turn You Into A Conniving Liar, A Thief, A Self-Involved Bore, A Simpering Idiot And A Worthless Bum. Whatever Junk You Are On Will Choke The Life Out Of You.

It Will Kill Everything In You That Is Useful, Decent And Independent. After It Has Twisted Your Brains, If You Are Lucky, It Will Kill You. Otherwise, You May Linger For Years As A Mindless Zombie.

Dope Has Only One Deadly Enemy, It Is The Word NO. No Starts Out Haltingly. It Is Shy And Painful To Say. But The More You Say It, The More It Is Respected, And Finally Accepted.

No Is The Only Cure For The Curse That Is Ruining Your Life.

What Is Dope? It Is The Expensive Private Road To A Permanent Home With The Living Dead. It Is The Trip The Peddlers Try To Talk You Into Taking. It Puts Them On Easy Street And You In Hell. The Day I Learned The Word No I Got Off A 10-Year Merry-Go Round. Thank God I Did, Or I Would Not Be Here To Tell You How My Trip Was.

And How Blessed I Am To Have Found My Way Back . . . By The Grace Of God.

God Bless!