My life was spinning out of control. A force was at work I could not understand.  I was walking around with many of the symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and didn’t know it.  I was trying to put pieces together, to remember - something about my Dad, when I was young.

I was broke, unable to go look for a job, down enough to think about ending my life, mystified as to why it was all happening, and then I got the call; come home, Dad is dying.  Freedom’s Just Another Word is a memoir, set in Houston, Texas, in 1987. It is a complex narrative of a spiritual journey; a compelling and uplifting perspective on self discovery, family dynamics, the grief process, and healing. 

I delivered the eulogy at my Dad’s funeral.  He was an alcoholic, but he had been sober and in recovery for twenty years.  A number of people told me the week he died how much he had positively impacted their life.  He and I had also had a lot of healing over the past several years, so I spoke from a warm and loving place.

But over the next several weeks as I struggled with his passing, I started finding an ugly, deep anger toward him.  It felt disloyal to be feeling that way.  I was conflicted, torn between deep sadness over my Dad’s death, and  that awakening ugly anger toward him. 

I discovered an old emotional wound, long buried but actively festering, a violent incident with my father when I was a teenager.  As I struggled to comprehend this awareness, I began to embrace the journey toward forgiveness of my father.  With themes reminiscent of The Great Santini, this manuscript will resonate with readers who have had a fragmented relationship with a parent, and who have tried to seek answers and healing.