Alcoholic parents and unsteady gun

I was raised by alcoholic parents. They were good parents with what they knew and raised me, my sister, and my brother.

They both worked, and we, as children, thought this was a normal way to live. We saw love as my dad chased my mom around the house, hitting her. My mom fought back one day, and he didn't physically beat her again, just verbally.

So I started drinking at the age of 13 for fun, and for the taste. I loved it and couldn't wait to do it again. Over the next 27 years, it was fun until it wasn't.

I'm an alcoholic and have been in AA for 15-1/2 years. My last year of drinking about cost me my life.

My family told me they were sick and tired of me drinking all the time, so I wanted to end their pain.  went to my closet with a 357 pistol to my head and pulled the trigger.

I was so drunk that the gun was heavy and kicked. The bullet went through the wall, and the particles of the wall hit my daughter in the neck. Thank God the gun kicked, and thank God the bullet missed my daughter.

This night was a nightmare and ended in a night in jail. I've never done anything like this in my life, and it woke me up to get the help I needed to get sober and stay sober. I went to a detox for 5 days, then went straight to AA and have been there ever since.

I work the twelve steps and help others, and I give back what was so freely given to me.