Tiggy's Birthday Party, Task #5

         At age five, Evelyn discovered her family was not ordinary. The first time it happened; was on a cold winter's night, when she had been awakened by a loud noise in the kitchen. Her teeth chattered, as she descended down the stairs to see what was going on. She was scared and wanted her mom or dad. When she reached the last stair; she could not make out the familiar kitchen table because it had been moved. She tripped on something large on the floor! Whatever was down there was all wet and it stank! Suddenly, the lights were shinning bright and she was shocked to see the figure on the floor was her mother! Fear gripped her again, as she screamed and cried loudly; Evelyn ran to her mother and tried to shake her awake . Evelyn screamed louder, thinking her mother was dead! Her father appeared from nowhere; all disheveled; losing his balance; as he fell on the floor next to her mother. He slurred as he yelled and ordered her back to bed. The next morning; when she came down for breakfast, the table was back in it's place. Her parents were happy and smiling and she remembered how the kitchen smelled. The stench was gone replaced by the smell of fresh coffee and bacon. No one ever referred to that night or the subsequent nights, which continued for the next five years.

         Evelyn was cleaning up after one of her mother and father's many celebrations. It was getting to be quite a time consuming job but she had no choice. Especially, when she was only ten years old; and her parent's threatened to abandon her; if she did not abide by their rules. It was easy to hide the bruises and besides, they never hit her where it showed. Regardless, she hated the smell of vomit and hated to clean up after the other drunks who celebrated with her parents. It was a school night when Evelyn discovered that alcohol was the answer to all her problems. She was sick and tired of being bullied in and out of school. Drinking her parents leftovers and hiding drinks from the drunken partakers was fairly easy. Eventually, Evelyn lost control of her drinking and was kicked out of her home at the ripe age of thirteen! She lived in abandoned cars for a while, until the vultures/predators sensed her presence.

         Tonight, at 7:30 PM Evelyn will give a lecture on Alcoholism and How It Affects Familiesto a full auditorium at the University of Minnesota. She is celebrating twenty eight years of sobriety and her fellow recovering alcoholics will hear the rest of her story!