Post 12: Faith and Recovery
The story of Mike’s journey is one of quiet desperation and then unexpected strength. Every night, he found himself asking for help. It was a silent plea, one he couldn’t bring himself to say out loud. That silent prayer became his way of acknowledging that he couldn’t do it on his own. But words failed him, and he felt a consuming helplessness instead.
For years, Mike’s life had revolved around a lot of alcohol, mixed with Prozac and Xanax. It was a vicious cycle of substance and silence, a crutch that he was no longer strong enough to break. Yet, it was there, in the darkest corners of his dependency, that something surprising happened. Amidst the fog of substance, he felt a force greater than himself. The realization of a higher power, something or someone that had been keeping him afloat, sparked a small glimmer of faith in him again. It was subtle, but it grew as he slowly started seeing a path forward.
That spark might have been what finally allowed him to accept Noah’s help. Noah, his son, had connected him with an inpatient recovery program in Florida, a lifeline he was finally ready to grab onto. Mike had been unable to face his demons alone, and now, he didn’t have to. The decision to go to rehab wasn’t made lightly, but the simple act of deciding felt like a relief. Mike was ready to get help.
The journey to detox was strange and unsettling. Mike’s years of drinking had pushed his body to a precarious state, so much so that quitting cold turkey posed a dangerous risk of seizures. Ironically, he was instructed to keep drinking until he arrived at the rehab center. For Mike, it was a surreal instruction.
But something powerful happened on his way to recovery. He began to notice that people hadn’t left him, they stayed even when he did his best to push them away. In the hardest moments, he realized the love and loyalty that had always surrounded him, patiently waiting for him to come around. And as he went through the motions of detox and early recovery, he wasn’t just moving toward sobriety. He was rediscovering himself—someone capable of being helped, of accepting love, and of beginning to trust in life again.
👈🏻 This week.
Last week 👇🏻
If you compare the two images, you will see the most difference in Mike’s arm and the area of the scar on his hand. I still need to go thru each of the fingers and correct the red that I have made WAY too bold.
Both of these images show the background (gym) has a second and final layer.
Last week for comparison.
The changes might be subtle right now but OHHHHH so important.
Can you see them?
Intimate feelings about the story
I absolutely LOVE people that can persevere through life challenges. I believe that many of us have the ability to turn around our life…… IF we want to!
Mike is the perfect example of turning things around instead of wallowing in depression. I want to HIGHLIGHT this trait! I want more people in the world like Mike. We are human, we fuck up but…. we can also turn it around and make a difference. I am so happy about how the rest of this story will turn around from the “heavy” that has already been told.
About the Painting
I will be traveling this weekend to visit my family and bringing The Bible portion of the painting to work on while I am at my sissy’s house. I will travel on my motorcycle and this portion of the work is easiest to travel with. Hopefully I don’t smudge it.
Collect early - Gigantic rewards.
By being a paid subscriber here, you have the opportunity to collect this work before it’s complete at a price with a HUGE reward. I will progressively increase the price of this work as I tell the story and complete more of the painting. IF you collect early, the painting will still be completed and the story will still be told, but you get to call it “Yours”. You will be the ONLY person to call it “Yours”.
Each Sunday, the cost of collecting this work will increase.
I have scheduled this work to take me 7 weeks. I have divided the story into 7 weeks as well as the progressive pricing. Collect early, save BIG!