Mark – The gift of time

Mark – The gift of time

Curious about how others manage their sobriety journey? Mark, a 62-year-old alcoholic in recovery, offers a candid look at what he calls "the gift of time" that came with quitting drinking. He shares that sobriety is "the best gift I could give myself and those I care about," even though, as he puts it, "it hasn't been all unicorns and rainbows." Before he stopped, whole evenings vanished into booze-fuelled fog.

Workdays were spent obsessing over which bottle shop to visit, how to hide the smell, and how to trick the people he loved. Nights were "a write-off"; he’d wake up on the couch with no idea who won the footy or what shows he’d supposedly watched. The most painful part for Mark is the time alcohol stole from his family.

He admits he once complained he "never had time" to build a better relationship with his children, when in truth, "I chose alcohol." Weekends and holidays were organised around drinking, not parenting.

Now, over two and a half years sober, he’s made amends and is slowly rebuilding those relationships: "When I see them, I am present… They are proud of me for who I'm trying to become." Mark also talks about becoming a granddad and knowing that, if he were still drinking, his granddaughter would be an "interruption" to his habit.

Instead, "the joy I get from seeing her far outweighs any drunken stupor." He notices the same shift at work, no longer "borrowing time from tomorrow" by drinking, blacking out, and then dragging himself up at 4.30 am to finish marking as a tired teacher. Now his days are filled with podcasts, the gym, and genuine time with friends and family.

His question to anyone curious about sobriety is simple: what could you do with all the time alcohol is quietly stealing?