The Journey From Addiction to Redemption

Addition to Redemption | Contact Coach John David

I used to think that if I was caught, that my story would end. Before my arrest I was unable to imagine a scenario where I could take off my mask and be truly known. I believed that if people knew about my addiction, that my life would be over in all the ways that mattered. I could not imagine that the real me was loved deeply and yearned to love others.

My parents moved to Tampa, FL before my first birthday. During this time of my life my dad was in and out of work. One of his odd jobs was being an ice cream man. It seems to me that the ice cream trucks that roamed neighborhoods were more prevalent when I was growing up than they are today.

I remember how exciting it was when I heard the ice cream truck music playing from several blocks away. Ice cream men used mechanical change dispensers to make change, hanging them from their belts. I used to play with my dad’s change dispenser when he wasn’t working. He kept it in his bedroom dresser.

One day I went to get the change dispenser and in the same drawer was a cigar box. Inside the cigar box was an envelope and inside the envelope was a picture of nude woman. I still remember the pose and what she looked like.

When I saw that photograph, something happened deep inside my 9-year-old brain. The woman in that photograph satisfied a need that I didn’t know existed. I was prepubescent so there was no arousal in the grown-up sense of the word, but something clicked.

This is an excerpt from Coach John David's e-book: Broken Promises, Severe Mercies, and Redemption. Click the link if you would like to read more.