Uri Seffer
My relationship with Michael Mednick over 13 years, and the profound impact that he has had on my life cannot be overstated. To understand the difference he has made in my life, I need to describe the bleek and unflattering picture of my life had become when I first met him. In December 2001, a month befor I turned 27 years old, I was in a state of complete existential crisis, the most frightening chapter of my entire life. In the grip of substance abuse and still not having completely my undergraduate degree, I was living with my mother and at a mental and spiritual low point in life that can only be described as my bottom; my own personal, self-created hell. In desperation, I turned to the rooms of NA where I was finally willing to take direction. There I would meet a man that would befriend me, instruct me and have life lasting influence on my thinking and behavior. The examples and stories I can provide could fill a short book, but the lessons that stay with me are like I had experienced them yesterday, are some of the following;
- Michael?s ability to describe the hopelessness of the addict/ alcoholic?s plight, where jails, institutions or death or the only guarantee, while simultaneously planting the seeds of hope that there is another way to live, for those who want to pursue the clean and sober path.
- His crucial role in helping me confront my past, in order to provide greater clarity on emotionally painful incidents, and what the specific nature of my role in them was. Drug addicts and alcoholics are masters of blaming other for their own short comings/transgressions, and Michael was able to help me deconstruct the wounds of years past, forever changing my understanding of what it means to be a victim, a volunteer, or a perpetrator.
- His ability to evaluate my feelings, while helping me to laugh at life?s absurdity.
- The example he provides with how to be a father, husband and friend, while still finding time to participate in service work and ministry. The skill in which he handles these and other relationships have helped me redefine what the word ?love? means.
Thank you Michael, for helping me explore and expand what it means to be a ma. Thank you for teaching me the concepts of healthy love. Thank you for helping me realize that we are not defined by our heart aches. Thank you for your willingness and just THANK YOU.
Uri Seffer