A Life Almost wasted is a true story of tragedy, alcoholism, desperation and hope--of self-annihilation and of all that is precious and sacred.

There is hope . . . there is always hope. All I had to do was ask for a helping hand. It was not much to ask but pride stood in the way; in fact, it brought me to the grave's edge. I had lost everything of value: my wife, my home, my self respect . . . the few pennies I had in the bank.

I had some time to go before I reached out for help. In the meantime, I made my way to the gold rivers of western Canada. There, along with other escapees from responsible living, we set out to find the "mother-lode". We never found it, but we did find gold . . . pure, glinting, unadulterated gold all of which was traded to the hotel owner for beer and more beer.

For an alcoholic adventurer it was the ultimate experience: panning for gold in the fresh breezes of the valley rivers afforded excellent physical exercise but not a remedy for alcoholism. I was good at hiding the fact that I was slowly killing myself. It would take some time before I got the message.

I left the gold fields and went to work alone in the old growth forests of western Canada. There, I had a number of spiritual experiences, (absent of drugs and alcohol) including that of "teleportation". If the reader lacks understanding and clarity of "teleportation", please go to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZHUzHbFkJs.

It is an exact duplication of my forest experience, other than that man's encounter was in a city in China.

For certain, there is a world of spirit--good and bad--beautiful and evil.

Eventually, I reached the edge of the precipice---one foot on a banana peel and the other in the grave. For me, the insane journey was over. I had no choice but to ask for help or die a miserable death. Indeed, it was time for me to grow up and become a helpful human being. I had little education, if any. I went back to school, earned my high school diploma, then got to penning and sharing my experiences.

There is hope. If I could do it, believe me, so can anyone . . . anyone . . . anyone. It's all about self-forgetting and making honorable choices.

My friend, I wish you well . . . very well.

Thank you for your interest.

John Gabriel

Aproxx. 69,000 words

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