Oct 28, 20206 minLiving Proof: A Tale of Two PandemicsIt was a tough reality to come to terms with: now I had an opioid addiction and a global pandemic on top of that to worry about. I was
May 21, 20208 minOne Look Changed Everything She named me Bradley Currie Jenkins, giving me her last name because her boyfriend, my dad, wasn’t interested with me...
Apr 15, 20207 minI Will Miss You ForeverMy parents waited anxiously for my birth as I was their first child. They loved me like no other and dotted over me, but our poverty...
Feb 21, 20208 minAwakeningMy parents married really young and had a total of 12 kids. Sadly, eight died in infancy, leaving them only four to raise...
Feb 20, 20209 minIn the Blink of a Bloodshot EyeAddiction isn’t picky. Trust me. You can come from family dinners and a good education and still fall into dependence. I sure as hell did...
Jan 31, 20209 minLife Without DrugsMore to get him to shut up than anything else, I walked to the sliding glass doors. I’ll be damned. Two dudes were climbing the fence...
Jan 24, 20208 minNo Longer a VictimPeople used to look at me and see nothing more than an addict who couldn’t keep a needle out of her arm long enough to...
Dec 24, 20198 minTo Capture the Light AgainMy mom gave birth to me in...Lagos State, Nigeria...but I should say, I come from a polygamous background. My dad had two wives...
Dec 13, 20196 minTo Return to MyselfBut what I wish I didn’t remember— what I wish I forgot so completely—was my father’s drinking. My father’s hands as they beat me...
Dec 4, 20197 minWhen Horizons FallTeaching, preaching, writing, and interacting with students of all ages gave me a sense of satisfaction, and I was happy...
Nov 27, 20199 minForward Is the Only DirectionThose early years were rough on my mother as she was battling demons in the early stages of her alcoholism and drug addiction...
Nov 12, 20196 minBroken ShacklesIt often feels like an unbearable privilege to write and make a simple living from taking all those wonderful and horrible patterns...
Oct 15, 20199 minThere Is Life After OpioidsGood, no one had robbed me of my pain pills. I pulled out my trusty relievers and tossed a handful back. I could be without a home...
Oct 8, 20198 minOnce a Passive Passenger I shouldn’t have taken all those pills, I didn’t want to die. I needed to get to a phone to call 911, but it was so hard to move...
Sep 19, 20197 min14 Years LaterWe had many adventures and shenanigans together. Unfortunately, both Stephen and I were influenced easily by peers...
Aug 9, 20198 minThe Street ArtistI grew up on a large council estate with high-rise flats as far as the eye could see. It was full of crime, poverty, and drug addicts...
Aug 7, 20197 minThe Courage to Move OnTogether, they built a family. I had an unusual childhood as my siblings and I were the only mixed-race children in the town...
Jul 30, 20197 minFor What I Believed In...I always said the same thing—I wanted to go to the zoo. Once there, I would head straight for the tiger enclosure...
Jul 27, 20197 minAt the Finish LineI mean things started out pretty normal I guess, but at the age of three, my mom committed suicide due to drugs and alcohol...
Jul 23, 20199 minComing back from Rock BottomComing from a conservative town, no one cared to learn why I didn’t have a dad. They just judged my siblings and me for it...