Editor:
Re: ‘Immense Suffering,’ Aug. 6 letters
Frank Sterle Jr.’s letter about his shift in perception with regards to addiction was beautifully written. As the mother of a suffering drug addict, I am grateful for his humility and insight.
I admire you, Frank. It is no small feat to shift from once looking down on those who ‘allowed’ themselves to become addicted, to now understanding the ‘ball-and-chain of self-medicating’ that is so often rooted in serious life trauma.
Your letter gives me hope.
Not hope for my son, necessarily, because for higher reasons than either he or I can know, his soul’s agenda may not include recovery. But hope for humanity. Because whether it is about addiction, or all those anti-maskers during COVID-19, it is the compassionate understanding of open minds and hearts that will heal our suffocating judgments and take the world in the direction we say we want. If we want what we see to change, we must change what we see.
After an absence of over three years, my son resurfaced briefly last year. When his emaciated state threw me into a blind panic, I sought help from a celestial source and was offered this tender advice: “Love him. Look past what you see. Look with your heart. The darkness creeping over you is a learned response.”
Good advice for anyone, on any issue.
Maureen Kerr, Surrey