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Lessons Learned

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Submitted By edog2012
Words 1151
Pages 5
Earl Green
EN1320
Project
October 20, 2012
My Memoir Idea As a child I remember my father telling me that alcohol can take you places you don’t want to go. The thing is I was getting this information while he was taking a sip of whichever drink he was having: whiskey, wine, beer, or liquor he wasn’t picky. This made him a hard man to listen to. For that reason alone much of the advice he gave me I overlooked and in the end I learned those same lessons the hard way. As I recall the morning after a night that made me decide to stop drinking I remember my fathers’ words and I laugh. During the summer of 2005 after a special night of hard drinking, late partying, and a morning full of regret my life changed forever and ended my days of drinking. I was the ripe age of 24 when I look back into this memory that is forever etched into my mind. My close friend Bobby had invited me out to a wild night in his hometown of Paris, Texas. At the time we were both in the military coming back from a long deployment so partying was exactly what the doctor ordered to forget about some of the experiences from Iraq. Now I figured that this weekend would be no different than the last: going to the club, ordering some drinks, maybe some dancing, failed attempts at catching women and then a disappointing ride back home. When he arrived he was almost in a hurry to leave. I asked him if he was excited, he replied “Tonight we are doing something different, we are going to go to my hometown of Paris.” His excitement was contagious, so I quickly got dressed and we headed out for what I thought would be an evening to remember. While it wasn’t a long drive I wouldn’t call a three hours’ drive short. I may have had a cup or three of Jack Daniel’s along the way. We arrived at the club around 11p.m. The first thing I noticed was that this club wasn’t as crowded as previous ones we’ve been to, the drinks were cheaper but they had some kick and the women actually outnumbered the men at least three to one. After finding somewhere to sit we began to order our drinks. One round after another we drank shot after shot. Two young Latina women came up to us while we were drinking and asked if they could sit at our table. This was a first for me, usually you have to try earnestly just to get a name from a woman, but having them approach us was a delightful change. Keep in mind I may have already had too much to drink but these two ladies were lovely. I mean nice long hair, small waists, very attractive both about five foot six. They both asked me if I wanted to dance, who could resist a pair of ladies. Even though I’m not a dancer I assume the drinks kept me going. While this was going on I was suddenly interrupted by another woman who pulled me aside and kissed me. Shortly after she looked at the two and said “you little girls leave him alone he is coming home with me.” If I wasn’t already drunk at this point I would have told this older woman to leave and stay with the two sexy Latinas. Sad to say I wasn’t and I watched the best thing that may have happened to me walk away. Instead I was left in the hands of this older woman. While I couldn’t tell you at this point how attractive she was, I can say her hands wasn’t as smooth, her waist while tight wasn’t as small, her skin wasn’t as tanned. She spotted me as her victim and pounced on me. I looked over to find my friend Bobby only to see him in a similar situation with this cougars’ friend. Next thing I recall is leaving the club with this woman and her friend leaving with my friend Bobby. We made sure we could contact each other before we separated. I remember telling him to have a great night while he told me the same. I cannot say that I remember the car ride but I do recall getting out of her car and leaning on her to get into the house. She sat me down on the couch and asked me if I would like some water to drink. I refused and I assume we began to make out. To this day I’m not sure if I’m happy I don’t recall most of this or if I actually want to know if it was worth the trade I had made. All I remember is this uneasy feeling while we tried to do naughty things. Flashes of consciousness happen during this time and I believe we either succeeded or she gave up and let me pass out on her couch. I was out cold until morning. I woke up with the normal headache and this spinning sensation inside my head. I asked her how last night was and she replied “It was great I wanted to get some more before my little one woke up.” When she said that I was thinking what did I just do and I put my head down. Shortly after I felt this finger poking my head, as I looked up it was this I’d say about seven year old girl staring at me. She asks me “Are you my new daddy?” I jump to my feet and say I’ve got to get going. She asks if I want breakfast and I decline as I walk out the door. The sun hits me like a slap to the face. As I stare into the sky I say “Father you were right and I promise that I won’t ever get like this ever again.” I give Bobby a call and he picks me up. When he arrives he asks me, “Man how was your night?” I said, “Let us never speak of it. How was yours?” He gives me the same response. I climb in the truck and head out back to base. Sometimes I recall this night and I laugh and other times I wish my mind would just let go of this memory. At the same time I have to remain grateful since this tragic night taught me two valuable lessons that I will never forget. One is that I need to leave alcohol alone. The other is a lesson that I seem to learn over and over again, which is that my father was right about so many things in life. Maybe if I listened more to the advice he gave me, I’m sure I could have avoided so much tragedy.

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