I recently purchased the book iwant by Jane Velez-Mitchell and must say this book is addictive. I find myself up at 2 am still not wanting to put it down, not because Jane explores and invites you into her personal space but rather because the common factors are parallel with my own personal journey of where I have been and where I am going.
I have not personally had a substance addiction (unless you count the many medications over the years that have helped me to be mobile from rheumatoid arthritis -- from chemo type drugs to DMARDS, there has been many but without the addiction side effects) problem, but I am a child of a recovering alcoholic. My mother's painful and destructive years have been difficult. But reading Jane's book has allowed me to see (from an addict's perspective) just what my mother has gone through to get to where she is today: three years sober!
I am still getting to know this beautiful woman (my mother), who for almost forty years of my life I really never knew. Unfortunately, the bottle was always more important than I was to her. The lifestyle we lived, the cars we drove, the weekend trips to the Bahamas, the luxury of International travel and designer clothing always seemed to be the norm in our lives; but the status of celebrity, the status of our postal address, and the status of the company we kept only were the future products of a disaster waiting to happen. Growing up in our house (in an elite neighborhood on the inter coastal waterways of Fort Lauderdale) a young girl always had everything she could ever want... but did I?
Jane's journey is no different than most of ours, but until you know who you are, where you are going, and why, you may think you are in a different class (for better or worse). But I encourage you, go get this book and read with an open mind and allow yourself to really understand what our purpose on earth is all about. As Jane's mom Anita says "The body is like soap. It gets used up." You and only you can determine how quickly your body and soul will be used up. Stop blaming others for how things went in life and focus on how to pave the road that will take you on the journey you are destined for.
I went the local bookstore to purchase Jane's book with the intent to help another family member with his deep alcohol addiction, but as with most things on my journey, when I have always set out to help others (indirectly or with intent) I seem to be the recipient of a beautiful gift; in this case, setting out to help an in-law actually help me to understand the struggles my mom has gone through and how lonely and in pain my mother actually was; which today, makes me even more grateful for the journey my life has taken this past year: back to having my mom in my life.
Take the time and pick up a copy of the book today, you too will have a better picture looking back in the mirror at you as I did. Kudos to Jane and I am looking forward to reading the remainder of the book!
Buy your copy today: http://www.janevelezmitchell.com/