FEATURED JOBS
I was in the audience with several hundred people last Sunday to hear the mother-daughter authors of the book “comeback” speak
The event, sponsored by Jewish Addiction Services, a constituent agency of the Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, was held at Beth Tfiloh.
The book, itself, is an amazing account of the nightmare and then recovery of Mia Fontaine, a survivor of incest by her biological father, and a survivor of substance abuse and homelessness, because she was also a runaway.
Claire, the mother, and Mia delivered a well honed, nicely done duet of sorts, taking short excerpts from the book and combining them with observations of the hell they had lived through.
But I don’t know, I just felt there was something missing when it was all done.
I looked around the crowded room and saw people I know who have gone through their own living nightmares or are going through them as you read this. I saw parents of children who had overdosed and died because of drugs. I saw other parents who had messages on their faces that if they could be read out loud would say something like: “Anything, give me anything that will help my child.”
And finally, there were teens and young adults there, who at least from the outside appeared as if they weren’t connecting to the speakers. Perhaps they didn’t read the book, which did a great job of painting the horrible picture of Mia and Claire’s journey.
Yes, JAS had break-out groups after the speech, which was important and positive.
So I guess what I’m writing here is that the JAS worked hard at putting this program together. But after a while it took on the feeling of a rather long book signing event, the type you’d experience at a book store.
The Fontaines had done this before, and knew how to deliver their information. I just wish it had been descriptive at even higher, more personal level, especially for the sake of the teens in the room.
When Mia talked about detox, she spent little time on the subject. My advice, for what it’s worth, Mia: describe detox. Even at the risk of sickening the audience. Tell what was going with your mind and body.
What is it like to stick a needle filled with drugs into your body?
Describe what happened to you when were shooting up in a car with skinheads.
Again, so many of our kids don’t think this would ever happen to them.
Tell us about the wonderful Jewish home you grew up in, and how this didn’t fit that.
Explain to us how much it cost to attend the recovery places you attended. How does a family financially afford what it probably cost your parents?
Talk about your ability to have relationships.
Are you still in recovery?
What are five pointers a parent could use to reach their child before it’s too late?
If you’re a kid, how do you avoid succumbing to another powerful “drug” out there, peer pressure?
Again, this is only being suggested in the spirit of healing and helping for a Baltimore Jewish community seeking answers.
This was an opportunity.
The book is great and I hope it sells well.
But I don’t want any other people I know and love experiencing these sorts of subjects for similar books.
Don’t sugar coat it, don’t avoid the hard stuff.
We needed to hear that as well.
JAS, keep bringing in the speakers. Truth is, there were some unpublished “experts” sitting in the auditorium last Sunday.
Maybe they learned the hard way, and maybe, just maybe they could talk “tachles” (the raw truth) with us.
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