Drink To Forget

In the recesses of his inebriated brain

A memory began to fight its way clear

A memory that had been so embedded

The thought of it instigated pure fear


The only way he could handle that thought

Was to be found in a liquor bottle

Every time it tried to emerge, come forth

In an alcoholic stupor it he would throttle


But sometimes, over his drunkenness, it came

A memory so vivid and filled with pain

He would immerse himself in his tears

In hiding, he would sob, face tear stained


As a child, he had been molested and raped

By a person he believed he could trust

The pain and agony he was forced to endure

Into such a deep despair he was thrust


The nightmare he endured haunted him

The only way to forget was to drink

A bottle was always utmost on his mind

Into depravity he allowed himself to sink


In an alley behind the liquor store he lay

He was so drunk his brain was numb

The approaching footsteps he never noticed

He was that close to death, surely succumb


He awoke in a hospital bed that night

A man was patiently sitting at his side

Not understanding what had happened to him

He panicked, tried to get up, and cried


“Mister? Who are you? Why am I here?

“And besides that, tell me why do you care?

The man answered, “Because I saw a need”

“You needed some help that I could share?


“And why would you do that for me?

“Why would you help me. a sick drunk?

“And as far as I know we are strangers”

“How could you rescue me from my funk?”


The man looked at him, nodded his head

He opened his mouth, began to speak

“At one time I was just like you”

“A broken vessel, so terrified and weak”


“I too was an inebriated mess of a man”

“In a bottle, I desperately tried to find solace”

“The more I drank the worse it got”

“I completely lost my moral compass”


“One day a complete stranger walked up”

“He did for me as I am doing for you”

“Why he did it I couldn’t comprehend”

“Once I was sober he gave me the clue”


“He told me that God could change me”

“That my memories He could totally erase”

“I remembered that I scoffed at him”

“I then told him to get out of my face”


“That man, he never gave up on me”

“He listened when I told him my story”

“He told me that the Lord understood”

“Then he introduced me to God’s glory”


“That is why I am here now for you

“God can change you as He did me”

“That memory that forces you to drink”

“Trust Him, He can erase it, you’ll see”


“Do you want your life to change?”

“Drag yourself from the gutter you’re in?”

“All you have to do is give in, repent”

“He will cleanse you, free you from sin”


Sobbing, he turned it over to God

He and his good samaritan embraced

From that moment his life was changed

Because God had his memory erased


June 14, 2022