What was a event in your life that caused a serious change in your life, whether it be positive or negative?

When I moved to a different state at the beginning of high school.

Shitty highschool life. Decision to persue a career in ____________. Meeting my ex. Breaking up with my ex. Reading Vagabonding by Rolf Potts.

breaking up w/ my bf of 3 years...
doing hella drugs...

Totse. Robitussin (result of totse.).

Smoking weed. Seriously. It was the start of something beautiful.

its pretty obvious everyone goes through these.

most obvious is the death of a family member or a friend.

-Grandpa dying of Parkinson's. Good, made me understand alot about life, makes me get into fights with anti-stem cell research people. Also, long spiritual thinking time for me.

-gf cheated on me with what I thought was a good friend. Learned betrayal. Learned how to be mean and callous to protect yourself from more pain. I wrote the bastard out of my life. He still tried to hang out with us, but that's where the mean and callous part helps. Also, led to me using OCs for 10 days of self-medication. Not a fun time. 1.5gpa, depressed, but I fought back and that's where you learn. You can either let events drag you down, or you can fight for what you want.

Probably that time I nearly died and everything that happened afterwards.... seeing things clearly, having spiritual "insights"... really questioning what I should be living for. As it turns out, what that is happens to be opposed to just about everyone I see, which is why I come off as a hateful, disgusted prick to a lot of people, because I will never do things their way anymore or "kill time" in this short life, I don't care HOW many people do. I hate honoring false lifestyles and beliefs, and it's tough because we live in a society where you have to pretend in order to hold down a job.

There are higher levels of happiness that people can't even conceive of, that can't be grasped, possessed, or bought with money. My life's effort, after nearly dying, is to constantly return to the higher happiness....

My last binge.

A bit over five years ago, I noticed a neighbor drinking Fosters, bummed a can off him--this started a ten-day binge that damn near killed me. My wife literally saved my life, first by dragging my sorry ass to an AA meeting (I started going in 1978, it didn't take), then by nursing me through detox.

I finally got serious about my recovery, went through some heavy therapy for an emotional disorder, got deeply into spiritual growth--the results being the sober, loving, trustworthy, friendly, helpful, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, reverent, and (above all), humble person I am today.

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Sell your cleverness, and purchase bewilderment. -- Rumi