I am also a recovering alcoholic and drug addict.
I'm all of these things all the time; I'm never not any of them and I'm never only a few of them. I'm much more than any one category and who I am is greater than the sum of those parts. I am representing all of these things and more with every thought, word and deed. Who we are doesn't get to take a break, and there's a level of responsibility there for each of us. It can certainly be viewed as a burden and is at times burdensome. That's life.
In my case, I am also blessed by the privilege and honor that comes with that responsibility. Some of those associations are biological and some are by my choosing, but they all carry a similar duality of benefit and responsibility. As an able-bodied person of means (which is an honor in and of itself) I believe it to be my responsibility to use those means to be of service to others who don't share them. As a Christian I am charged to love others without hesitation or qualification. As a coach, I am tasked with walking in all of the love, grace and light with which the training and the profession have blessed me.
As a man in long-term recovery, sobriety tells me that I must give it away with enthusiasm if I hope to keep it. What an honor to have been entrusted with the sacred responsibility of carrying the message to those who still suffer! All the suffering, difficulty and struggle was preparing me for this path - it was all a gift that when opened would empower me to be of the most service to my fellow humans.
I count it all joy. Every bit of the process of my becoming - good, bad, suffering and celebrating - is a gift. I am the sum total of my experiences and that "who" is a man equipped with the ability to help and support so many more people than would be possible otherwise. To be who I am today is an honor and a privilege, and while it took me a long time to see it that way, the sight is an irreplaceable gift.
