10/02/2026
3 years.
10.1.23 — I left the old version of me at the gates of Sobermans.
10.2.23 — the day I got a new meaning.
I didn't know the real reason I was there yet. That took months. But I knew I was done being the guy who drank to cover up who he'd become.
From the outside it looked like success. Top of my game.
Inside, I was imploding. Slowly, then all at once. And there was a blast radius.
It started social. Over the years it became necessary, for a lot of reasons.
What I finally saw was that I'd had the order wrong my whole life.
God. Family. Church. Friends. Business.
Me? Dead last.
Provider. Protector. Pursuer. I gave everything to everyone else's dreams, goals and comfort, and dug myself an identity hole so deep I had to ask:
Who the F have I become?
Rehab was step one. Awareness.
Now ME and GOD sit at the top. Every morning we wrestle, have coffee and work out.
It looks different than most people's mornings.
It's mine.
My family respects it, because when I take care of me, I show up better for them.
When life swings, I come back to three words:
Pause. Identify. Respond.
I used to look in the mirror and see a fat pig with b**r goggles on. Yeah, that's really what I thought of myself.
Today I see a confident man, not the arrogant one who used to show up.
Not drinking isn't a fight anymore. It's a choice. I choose it.
If you've never lived inside the mind of an addict, or tried to experiment your way into happiness, this might not make sense.
Some of us have to find out the hard way.
It gave me negative clarity: I learned exactly what I didn't want.
I'm grateful for the hard fails. They built my biggest wins.
But this roller coaster still gets to you sometimes.
48. Clear. Family whole. Business strong.
I'm heading into my 4th real estate market swing, and it's my first one sober.
Let's see where it takes me.
Doing what I love, the way I love to do it, with who I choose to do it with.
So let me ask you:
What are you covering up that's costing you more than you realize?
Where do YOU sit on your own list?
Who would you become if you stopped numbing and started choosing?
3 years down. Built, not bought.
-Hillbilly
