As promised… my friend Kent. We have had some really great conversations on addiction over the past few months, as both of us had been dependent on pain medication at one point in our lives. I was able to go through pain rehabilitation at the Mayo Clinic. Kent, who had been homeless, or what he referred to as “a modern day nomad” did not have that luxury. Even so, he has worked so incredibly hard to overcome his setbacks, and one of the ways he has done this is by writing Poetry.
Kent is working on a book of poetry to give to others who find themselves in the position he was not so long ago… desperate, alone, addicted, enslaved. He shared a poem from the upcoming book with me that really resonated with my experience in my three years dependent on pain medication.
Blank. Because the medication, while it numbs the pain, numbs everything else too… and one day you realize there doesn’t seem to be anything left to you, you are just blank.
Without further ado…
Blank – An Empty Line
Blank: An empty line – you think
Makes me want to drinkBut now, it’s no longer that bad
Most days I feel quite fine
I miss the life I once had had
But now I have a life that’s mineWhere was I – oh yeah – I was a drunk before
I care not to drink anymore
Getting up became quite a chore
Probably you know what I mean – you thinkBlank – described me best when I drink
Empty line – describing my life in decline
Pain began… so a simple pain plan
Much oxy on my table – a full lineDrugs and booze every day I craved
My life a living hell
I became enslaved
Ashamed… to proud to tellMy life – blank… an empty line
~ Kent David Benson
Hi! I'm Alyce. 
