[Andy]

A dozen year ago a group of cops, court officials and judges were invited to a talk on liquor abuse. We sat down in the old Superior Court House (where Daniel Webster once tried a murder case). It started with an old man who walked up to the microphone. There was a buzz in the audience but I had to idea who he was. After saying good morning he told us he was going to tell us something about himself. He said:

I was born in a very nice section of Cambridge. I went to prep school at the Deerfield Academy, I received my under graduate degree from Harvard. I then served for three years during WWII in the Navy as a Lieutenant. I then obtained a law degree from Harvard, became a lawyer, a judge, a superior court judge and then a member of the Massachusetts Supreme Court. But liquor didn?t care that I was from Harvard. As far as liquor was concerned I could have gone to dumpy party school, like Yale. I was an alcoholic for more than 25 years, it can happen to anyone. But the good news is you can beat it, but only if you really want to. God and my family made me want to.

The man really impressed me. I told that story to one of my son?s when he began going to AA.

Griz, I?m proud of you and my son. Jerker good luck.

Stay healthy,
Andy