On Saturday, September 16, 2000, I crawled through the doors of 501 Detox. I had no idea that my life was about to drastically change. I was sick, tired and afraid. A counsellor told me that if I did not go to treatment directly from detox, I would die. I knew he was right and so I entered Renascent’s 21-day residential program at the Graham Munro Centre. I have been volunteering at detox centres since I was three months sober and it’s one of the most rewarding things I have ever done.

Service keeps me mindful of the grave nature of alcoholism. I am reminded of the true malady, which is excessive self-centredness, and which often streams through many forms of self-seeking and selfishness. When I am committed to the process and working with another or giving back, I seem to have a reprieve from this terrible malady. Over these past few years, I have grown to surrender to this idea more and more.