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Real Change - Byron |
Byron is blessed with talent. His artwork instantly conveys a rare harmony of passion and skill. Encouraged by his father, a professional musician, he was drawing pictures from an early age. But talent and encouragement, even keen intelligence were not enough to keep Byron out of trouble. Plagued by serious bouts with depression, he used drugs and alcohol to mask his pain. After thirty years of drug abuse, Byron was addicted and jobless. The deaths of his father and his youngest brother, and a divorce weighed heavily on his mind. "A string of events took me down, and drugs seemed to be part of it," he remembers. "I think it was very much self-destructive...not caring about what was going on, what I was doing. And drugs were a part of that." Just prior to entering the New Life program, Byron lost a job he had worked for three years, albeit a labor job that held no attraction to him. He was drinking every day and smoking crack cocaine. "I never had a problem getting jobs; I could have easily gotten another one—lived in another motel room somewhere," he says, speaking of his struggles. "I was tired of doing that. I didn't want to go out and do the same thing: getting a job and spending half of [the money] on drugs." "I was wandering around, really not doing much of anything with my life —especially my art." Byron plans to graduate from the New Life program in May. Months spent as a resident have allowed him time to clear his head and plan out strategies for marketing his artwork. His vibrant portraits in colored pencil and pastels (mediums substituted for oil paints while in rehabilitation) have gained him some notable attention inside and outside of the Mission. Right now he has a job in a warehouse, but qualifies that by saying, "My goal is to punch my own time clock, not somebody else's." He gestures to his paintings and drawings, "This is it right here." Byron says that the spiritual focus of the program is essential in his recovery and return to society. "I can't say enough about this program," he testifies. "It's allowed me to clear my mind and do some more work. It's allowed me time to think and figure out what I want to do. It has allowed me to get closer to the Lord." "This program has done a lot for me. It's put me on the right track for sure." Click to donate and help others like Byron change their lives in the name of Christ. |
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