I am so touched by all of the reviews of Defining Moments on Amazon, and nearly overwhelmed by the personal e-mails I’m receiving and contacts I’m making. It’s really amazing who I’m hearing from because I chose to share this dirty secret with others.
I heard from one woman who grew up in the same circle of odd nicknames, giant parties, and poker games, and it was something else hearing corroboration of my memories from a stranger. She even knew the guy who won the Bentley in that game at my house!
I also met a woman on a flight to LAX and we got talking about our kids. Her son is 17 years old, and well, long story short, she didn’t have any clue about the signs of rx drug abuse.
- Missing aluminum foil? Check.
- Pens without their plastic shell? Check.
So I gave her a copy of Defining Moments. A week later, I received an e-mail:
It was a pleasure to meet you and even more of a pleasure to read your book. I got so wrapped up in the book that I was getting irritated that I kept getting interrupted and I had to put the book down. I read the book on a business trip. I couldn’t wait to get home and toss out all my old medications. That was first on my list. The second thing I did was go through my 17 years old’s CD covers and video games cassettes. I was happy not to find anything!
My son and I had a long talk about drugs in general. I gave him your book to read. We watched the video of Brandon together. He couldn’t watch it but he saw enough to get the message. Thank you for telling your story and opening my eyes. EVERY parent needs to read your book.
This reminds me why I did this in the first place. In the ’60s there was pot. In the ’70s there was cocaine. In the ’80s, crack. In the ’90s there was Ecstasy, and in the ’00s meth. Today, the hip drug is manufactured by Big Pharm, distributed by the family doctor, and lurks on our bedside tables.
Even if we lived a life where we were familiar with illicit drugs, even if we survived this, somehow without a scratch, we are not necessarily prepared to deal with this one.
I guess sometimes it is necessary to put out your dirty laundry to remind other people to wash their own.
From an Amazon review:
“The best part of the book is that the author lays it all out there: the good, the bad, and the ugly. It is written in an entertaining and selfless way. Trust me, if I was in the same position as the author, I would never have included some of those details – but that’s precisely what makes the book so good.”
If either Oxy, or my story, has affected you, I hope you let me know.
