TEN years ago, this month!! June 2020
I am the author and the creator of The Journey-adifferentkindofstorybook. I’m also a former 27- year cocaine addict. During that period, I lived in the Boston, MA. area, San Diego, CA. Tampa, FL., Atlanta, GA. and finally in Lexington, KY. I was in my mid-fifties when I was finally caught and arrested.
I entered the local county drug court program and after three rough years I finally graduated the program. After 23 months of living a changed life, a free life, I allowed certain circumstances to affect and ultimately control my emotions. I CHOSE to surrender to my anger and disappointments and threw all of my hard work away.
When I came to myself, several months later, I realized what I had done and I was disappointed with myself and determined to find out WHAT just happened and WHY I would make such a choice.
I spoke to my mentor and friend, Dr. Paschal Baute, who encouraged me to write about the experience. Now I had another choice to make, and this time I chose to get back up on my horse. Following Dr. Baute’s suggestion, I began to write. As I prepared to write, I thought about the destructiveness of past choices and determined not to return to the old me. I remember one day asking myself what just happened. A question rose up in my spirit: WHY? Why did I throw away all of that hard work? Before I knew it, in June 2010, I had my first story, Getting High, Why?
Since then, I have written over 60 short stories about the journey of addiction. My program also includes pain and abuse. I haven’t been able to put my pen down yet! I believe that God rescued me from my storm and it has become my passion, my calling, to reach out and help other suffering people and their loved ones along their journey to freedom.
It’s now my mission and has propelled my program. For more than four years I was a volunteer at our local county detention center and nine and half years with our local county drug court program here in Lexington, Kentucky. I was also a volunteer with our local Veterans Treatment Court program and volunteered at one our neighboring county detention centers for three years. I have also taken my program into a local elementary school for the past two years and a local rehabilitation center, where I read to the children. I’m looking forward to expanding this new calling.
I have developed a program that meets these suffering people where they are and helps them to discover the WHY of their problem through storytelling. Only then can we begin to fix it. The program I have developed is inter-active and encourages participants to take an active role in their recovery. It gets people talking – and searching within themselves! The feelings and experiences people share are heart and eye-opening.
I invite you to view my web site, adifferentkindofstorybook.com, where you can read actual testimonies of more than 60 participants.
People often ask me about my program. I always tell them that I’m not smart enough to have created this endeavor on my own and do what I’m doing. I’m only God’s pen! I believe that he rescued me so I could help others. My program is my way of paying Him back for delivering me from my storm. I consider myself blessed to be used by Him to help other suffering people along their journey.
I thank God EVERY day for the change He has made in me!
If it is His will, The Journey-adifferentkindofstorybook will continue to grow and be here for another TEN YEARS!
NEVER GIVE UP!
Love & Peace,
Brother Charles
adifferentkindofstorybook.com [email protected]