Before I ever read the book: "Beyond The Influence", I found my passion in my signature: "In all things it is better to hope than to despair." It was the only way I was going to live out my life caring for my alcoholic. I think my time here at SR is at its end in a manner similar to a College course ends to signal a new path at graduation. The first sentance of the next paragraph was my first post here at SR. The rest of this last post is my new life. For me personally, it is the right thing to do.
Filled with grief, overcome by despair, we question whether we should even try.
An old story is told about a woman who experienced a similar sense of futility. “Why?” she pleaded with God. “Why don’t you do something about the pain and the misery?” Her questions are our questions. Her answer is our answer. As she walked through the streets of the city, searching for answers to the questions that gave her no rest, the seeker was surrounded by the destitute, the downtrodden, the drunk, and the crippled. Filled with a great, crushing sadness, she fell to her knees and cried out, “Oh my God, where are you? Surely you must see the pain and misery suffered by so many in this world you have created. Why do you do nothing to help them?” A great silence descended, and the seeker was filled with fear and wonder as she waited for a response. When the answer came, she was prepared. “I did do something. I made you.”
We have an obligation, as human beings, to do what we can to ease the suffering of others. This is not superficial charity or the work of do-gooders—this is our responsibility as individuals who are part of a larger community. When a fellow human being is in pain, we are called upon to do what we can to alleviate the suffering. When people are powerless to help themselves, we are asked to do what we can to assist. When we are presented with an opportunity to change what does not work and in the process save even one life, it is our duty to seize the moment with all the passion that we can muster.
Ketcham, Katherine; Asbury, William F.; Schulstad, Mel; Ciaramicoli, Arthur P. (2009-10-21). Beyond the Influence: Understanding and Defeating Alcoholism (p. 298).