Sometimes it takes hearing someone else's problems to make you feel that you don't have it so bad...
I was picking my car up from the mechanic (sole small business owner) and he told me he couldn't do work for me anymore; he was selling (auctioning off all his equipment) and going to work for a repair shop.
Somehow in the conversation, he told me he was a recovering alcoholic, and he was on day 10 of sobriety. He also told me how much debt he had, how worried his wife was, that his 18 yr old son was living somewhere in town but hated his dad
All this from a man that I barely said "hello" and
thank you" to!
It was very obvious that he was needed to talk to someone. He spoke to me of race cars he had built, of his other interests, of how proud of his daughters he was, of how sad that he felt he messed up his relationship with his son.
This is hard to believe, but I arrived at his shop at 3:45 this afternoon...and I left at 6:30
Two hours and 45 minutes I stood, listening, nodding, just saying a word now and then. I was COLD (he keeps the shop at like 62, I saw the indoor thermostadt) and I was HUNGRY (didn't have my afternoon snack). At least I didn't have to go to the bathroom.
But I just sensed that he really, really needed to talk, about anything. And he said that a hard part of his sobriety was 'empty' time; time when he wasn't actively working on a car, that he wanted to drink. And that having to give up his business must have been really hard for him.
When he finally realized the time and said he would 'let me go' I shook his hand and thanked him for his work in the past, and wished him luck in his sobriety and for the new job. When he finally said 'bye" I heard his voice break a bit.
I hope so much he makes it.
So it made me feel like I am very lucky to not have to deal with a drinking problem; that I am thankful that I am on a med that seems to be working for me; that sticking to trying to eat right and exercise is not near as hard as trying not to drink.