So last night in the wee hours of the morning I found myself watching the show Intervention on A&E. Now, normally I don't watch too many of these shows, but last night was different. Last night, I could relate to the loneliness that haunted Joe. You can check out his story here. While we don't have much in common, I still could not help but to feel for this man, not much older than myself.
Something about the empty feeling of loneliness he felt, knowing in my own time, I too had been there, made me want to reach out to him. To give him a shoulder. To be a friend. Now, while I hadn't gone to the extremes Joe did, I found my own way to cope. That can be saved for a later time. What really surprised me about this episode though was the effect it had on me. For whatever reason, Joe's family seemingly pin pointed him as the "bad guy" when really all he ever wanted was to feel acceptance, love, friendship, anything but loneliness.
To be honest, I don't usually feel all that sympathetic to people who are struggling with an addiction. That sounds awful even ignorant, I know. But please don't take it that way, I am aware that with every addiction there is a story of how it started. Though all too often it seems the story comes from peer pressure or being a rebelious teen. Don't get me wrong, I too have been a teenager once, so I know the pressures that are put on teens and believe me, I know all about being "rebelious." I did a few things in my day that I'm certainly not proud of.
What I find most facinating about Joe is the incredible talent he has. The one video I have found and posted shows what an beautiful gift he has for music. I am simply awwed by it. For what it's worth, I hope Joe stays clean, finds happiness, continues in his music endeavors and becomes a real success story. So far, I would say he's just that, a success. I wish him the best.
Who knew an episode of Intervention would leave me with such a fondness for a stranger?
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