The Rain of Hope
A Short Story
By Doris Ogdoc, MA - Literature
“ Hey, get out of here!”, the ice water seller in Colon Street yelled and shooed the young boy with a long, dirty shirt, messy hair, and with a smell that implied he had not taken a bath for weeks...or months. Lino could not help himself. He had been lustfully eyeing the one peso ice water for hours under the intense, scorching heat of the sun. Trying to gulp the last ounce of saliva from his dry mouth, Lino stepped out and bowed his head- He felt the intense thirst. So intense that he had thought he would die.
He chose to be there in Sto. Niño de Basilica church where hundreds or even thousands of devout would come to pray to the church. He might convince them to be charitable enough to give him just one peso. Just one peso, he thought, and he could fill himself with that cold, satisfying, plastic-packed water of Manang Karmen.
He went to a family first. He summoned the father who was wearing a blue polo shirt and signature slacks. Opening his palms and presenting it to the father, he said, “ Sir, just to buy ice water, Sir. I’m so thirsty”. The man did not even look at him, and said “ Dong, I don’t have coins” “Sir, please sir...” And the man left with his family. He took his daughter to a store nearby that was selling a fancy pencil, with long, pink feathers attached to it. “ Do you like this? “, the father asked. “Yes”, his daughter replied. “ How much? “. “ Only 30 pesos”.”Okay, let me have one”. Lino felt betrayed. The man did not care if he died, but he cared giving his daughter a pencil worthy of display. Lino bowed his head again, and walked.
Thankfully, he had his “tsinelas” ( slippers ) to wear as he was wandering the vicinity of Colon Street. Or else, He might have burned the soles of his feet. It has not rained for about three months now in Cebu City. They said there was Global Warming. But, a lot thought the city has been cursed by God. It was unusual that no rain would occur for a three month time now. It has been on the news. Cebu City has been cursed by God. Lino wondered if, he, too was part of God’s curse.
One religious person often visited them, the street children. There have been lots of preachers roaming around Cebu. Some of them could be seen with big microphones in front of The Gaisano mall. Their constituents would ask for money or offering to the people. Yet, Trisha, that was her name, would give them bread once in awhile, tell them stories about Jesus. Lino was not actually interested of hearing them. He was too tired to care about other people and their stories. He goes to Trisha for her bread.
They haven’t seen her for weeks now. “This city is really cursed”, Lino muttered. Could God abandon him? “ Pray Lino, and you will get your answers”, Trisha had said. Pray? What for? A lot of people pray in church. I hate them. They cannot even give me one peso!
Anyway, out of desperation, he closed his eyes, and said, “ God, give me one peso, so I could buy that ice water over there ( pointing to Manang Karmen’s store ).”
He opened his eyes and saw a white man—a foreigner with a Filipina who had long, black hair with him. He looked at him and begged. The man smiled, took his wallet, and gave him a five-peso coin! He jumped for joy inside. “Thank God!” ...But his joy only lasted for a short time.
Marko saw him while the white man was giving him the money. Marko was much older and bigger. He took Lino’s hand and tried to ask him the coin. “No!”, Lino screamed. He dragged him to a place near Magellan’s Cross. Marko pushed Lino hard that he was knocked down immediately. His frame was so thin that a slight push could bring him down so easily. He firmly clutched the five peso coin inside his small, fragile hand. The tight of his fist’s hold could break a glass. “ Give me the money, or you will die!”, Marko threatened him. He was not easy to give up. For the second time, he screamed, “ No!”.
Marko started kicking him on the butt, on the legs ,on the body. He could not move. His whole body ached. Marko then punched him on the face and tried to take hold of the five-peso coin from his palm. He punched him so hard on the face that it almost left Lino unconscious. Marko took the five-peso coin.
Lino sobbed.
His cry was not loud. He was thirsty, tired, hurt, bruised, and was under the heat of the sun that burned his body, and fried his bones. He really felt that it was better for him to die than suffer like that. He tried to lick his dry and wounded lips, and tasted blood. He could not close his eyes. Marko punched it so hard that he felt it was swelling immediately. He sobbed. God must have forgotten him.
The clouds started to cover the sun as “Potot” approached Lino. No one really called him by his real name. And No one knew his real name. Everybody called him Potot because he was so tiny...And ugly. And the dirtiest among them all. He had no shirt on nor a pair of Tsinelas. He was so tiny, dirty, shirtless, and the one who always felt cheery, showing shamelessly his toothless smile.
Last week, Potot’s mother died. They said she died in her sleep. Potot would say “ Jesus took her with Him in heaven “.
“There is no hunger there”, Trisha would describe heaven. Lino felt envious of Potot’s mother.
“Go away, Potot!”, Lino scowled at him. He hated his presence especially that he was in a state like that. Potot searched for the place if anyone was looking around. He placed something in Lino’s hand. He felt it. He knew what it was without even looking at it. That has been the thing people would usually give him except that day. “Why are you giving me this?!” Actually, he felt shameful... Potot could not be giving me his only one peso coin!
“Before Nanay died, she said “Give and you shall receive more”. Gi-atay, Lino thought. Why such faith? He did not understand that. But, he was convinced that Potot really believed that.
He stood up, walked to Manang Karmen’s store with the one peso Potot had given him in his hand.
Then the clouds darkened, the atmosphere slowly took away the heat that has enveloped the city. The blaze shifted to dying embers. Droplets of heavy rain fell.
Lino drank the ice water hungrily. He allowed the rain to caress his head then to his arms and into the soles of his feet. The coolness of every single drop soothes the pain of the sun that has smouldered his body unto his soul. It drenched him and satisfied his thirst for that rain of hope that he thought had left them. He looked up. His eyes glowed, and a smile was drawn on his entire countenance.
***End Of Short Story***
Correspondence in Ogdoc’s Short Story, “The Rain of Hope”
A Genre Crossing from Poem to Short Story
The Rain of Hope is a story about a street kid named Lino, who first believes that God has abandoned him, yet later found some hope in the end. In a time of drought in Cebu City, his only goal on a certain day was to drink a cold, ice water. He only hoped to have a one peso coin in order to buy the water and satisfy his extreme thirst. However, in a really bad twist of fate, certain people did not give him money on that day. And when a foreigner gave him a five-peso coin, another street kid who was bigger and stronger than him, Marko, robbed him of his money.
The drought is symbolic of a curse among the people. The people, even those “religious” people who went to church in Sto. Niño Basilica could not even spare a peso coin for a kid who only desired to drink. The people had been focused on themselves to the point of buying unnecessary or the not basic stuff in life, such as a “fancy pencil only worthy of display”. Their greed was the reason why God had placed a curse in Cebu City, even though it was a city that was filled with seemingly religious people.
When “Potot”, an unlikely character to contain hope appeared, the “clouds covered the sun”. He had all the reasons to lose hope- his mother had just died, he was the least to possess anything than other street kids ( one who was shirtless and did not have slippers ), yet his strong faith in God made him filled with joy and hope. Most of all, he was the person who gave the “one-peso” coin, the one he ONLY had, to Lino. The act of selflessness opened the end of the curse that God has given through a drought.
Lino prayed for a peso coin and got it. The rain fell in the end, which is symbolic of renewed hope. It is symbolic that Lino’s belief of God’s abandonment of him is wrong. And that God actually thinks of him and hasn’t forgotten him.
***
In relation to the poem, The Search, which talks about a longing to have what the author desires in her heart, The Rain of Hope, is also a story of a boy who only does a lot of things just to get what he needs for that day. Both of them, however, put emphasis on divine intervention. The author of the poem and the main character of the story believe that it is in not in their power to get these things that they desire. For example, in the poem, the author’s lack of ability pushes her to pray for God to inspire her and give her that talent she knows she has but needs to improve on. In the short story as well, the situation of Lino, him being so poor and the people around being greedy, in addition to the drought, do not give any chance for him to satisfy his extreme thirst. The author and character believe that they cannot produce the resolution to their predicament because of the circumstances, so they look unto a Higher power for help and answers.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Short Story 1: Hey, Sheena
Hey, Sheena!
By Doris Ogdoc
“Hey, Sheena! You checked my paper wrongly! This is “emphasis”. And you marked it as incorrect.”
“ I’m quite sure you wrote, “imphasis”.
Tracy, the class president, sat down and frowned. As if something that belonged to her was stolen. She was the top scorer for the English test. Among the 50 items, she answered 47 correctly.
The next highest scorer only got 38 out of 50. And the rest got middle to lower scores. Her classmates looked at her as if she was a genius. She liked it. She was the princess whom all wanted to bow down to.
Not satisfied, she’d seen a way to escalate her score for another single point.
After their papers had been checked by their fellow classmates, she saw that she almost got the answer! Except that the word was spelled incorrectly. No one could have guessed that the rhymed word for oasis and the synonym for highlighting or stress was emphasis.
She was just nine, a grade three pupil. Emphasis...who would have really known that word? Only Tracy. Yet, she was frustrated enough that she got the spelling wrongly. I deserve to take a point for this, she thought.
What she did was take the eraser of the pencil, erased the pencil written “i” for her misspelled, “imphasis”, and changed it to “e”. And went to Sheena, her test paper’s checker.
After that encounter with Sheena, a few of her adoring classmates started to ask, “What’s the matter, Tracy?” She told them, that, Sheena would not correct that “correct” item of hers.
All eyes went to Sheena with a form of disgust. Tracy simply said, like a forgiving victim, “ Never mind”.
Isabel, a large, toughie of the class took Sheena by the arm and said, “ Why don’t you correct it, Sheena?” Sheena, a bit frightened, tried to defend herself,” I’m sure it was an “i”, not an “e””.
No one would believe Sheena.
She was tall, had a long, kinky hair, had a flat nose, and a thin body structure. Most of all, she had a brain as small as a pea. Among the 46 students, she ranked the 46th.
Ron, the guy who had been crushing Tracy for a long time involved himself and accused Sheena of being jealous of Tracy.
Another girl, Bea, who was Tracy’s best friend, grabbed Sheena’s long hair. Until Sheena sobbed.
Everybody was on her.
Guilty as she was, Tracy got out of the classroom, feeling terrible.
***
After the class ended, the pupils were rushing to go out and play. Some played basketball, others were on the swing, and a lot went to play Patintero.
Tracy had to be home early. She had to do a lot of school stuff. So, she met her dad at the guardian’s waiting area.
“ What is your English score like?”
“ Oh dad, I topped the class!”, Tracy reported jubilantly.
“ Let me see the paper.”, requested her dad.
“ Forty-seven out of fifty?! Couldn’t you do any better than that?! I’m sure there are students who have higher scores than you from the pilot section. You should have made this fifty out of fifty!”
Tracy’s gaze shifted down from his dad’s to the cemented ground. She was fighting back the tears.
“ Tito, no one can be greater than Tracy. The test was difficult, and most of us got 25 and below. You should be proud of her.”
As her eyes were finding for the owner of the voice, she swallowed her saliva as she found out who it was.
It was Sheena.
Tears fell down on Tracy’s face.
By Doris Ogdoc
“Hey, Sheena! You checked my paper wrongly! This is “emphasis”. And you marked it as incorrect.”
“ I’m quite sure you wrote, “imphasis”.
Tracy, the class president, sat down and frowned. As if something that belonged to her was stolen. She was the top scorer for the English test. Among the 50 items, she answered 47 correctly.
The next highest scorer only got 38 out of 50. And the rest got middle to lower scores. Her classmates looked at her as if she was a genius. She liked it. She was the princess whom all wanted to bow down to.
Not satisfied, she’d seen a way to escalate her score for another single point.
After their papers had been checked by their fellow classmates, she saw that she almost got the answer! Except that the word was spelled incorrectly. No one could have guessed that the rhymed word for oasis and the synonym for highlighting or stress was emphasis.
She was just nine, a grade three pupil. Emphasis...who would have really known that word? Only Tracy. Yet, she was frustrated enough that she got the spelling wrongly. I deserve to take a point for this, she thought.
What she did was take the eraser of the pencil, erased the pencil written “i” for her misspelled, “imphasis”, and changed it to “e”. And went to Sheena, her test paper’s checker.
After that encounter with Sheena, a few of her adoring classmates started to ask, “What’s the matter, Tracy?” She told them, that, Sheena would not correct that “correct” item of hers.
All eyes went to Sheena with a form of disgust. Tracy simply said, like a forgiving victim, “ Never mind”.
Isabel, a large, toughie of the class took Sheena by the arm and said, “ Why don’t you correct it, Sheena?” Sheena, a bit frightened, tried to defend herself,” I’m sure it was an “i”, not an “e””.
No one would believe Sheena.
She was tall, had a long, kinky hair, had a flat nose, and a thin body structure. Most of all, she had a brain as small as a pea. Among the 46 students, she ranked the 46th.
Ron, the guy who had been crushing Tracy for a long time involved himself and accused Sheena of being jealous of Tracy.
Another girl, Bea, who was Tracy’s best friend, grabbed Sheena’s long hair. Until Sheena sobbed.
Everybody was on her.
Guilty as she was, Tracy got out of the classroom, feeling terrible.
***
After the class ended, the pupils were rushing to go out and play. Some played basketball, others were on the swing, and a lot went to play Patintero.
Tracy had to be home early. She had to do a lot of school stuff. So, she met her dad at the guardian’s waiting area.
“ What is your English score like?”
“ Oh dad, I topped the class!”, Tracy reported jubilantly.
“ Let me see the paper.”, requested her dad.
“ Forty-seven out of fifty?! Couldn’t you do any better than that?! I’m sure there are students who have higher scores than you from the pilot section. You should have made this fifty out of fifty!”
Tracy’s gaze shifted down from his dad’s to the cemented ground. She was fighting back the tears.
“ Tito, no one can be greater than Tracy. The test was difficult, and most of us got 25 and below. You should be proud of her.”
As her eyes were finding for the owner of the voice, she swallowed her saliva as she found out who it was.
It was Sheena.
Tears fell down on Tracy’s face.
Cancer in Christ’s Body
Cancer in Christ’s Body
Controversy: the subtle acceptance of lie
Of seeming wisdom
Of taking offense, denying its existence
Like a tumor
Growing, forming a bump on the skin
Not curing it for the eyes do not see...
Lingers for a time-
The tumor ‘s metastasis
Invades the healthy cells
It penetrates the brain, the blood, the body...
When can you see
Till the bones break
Or immune system fails,
Hampering the breath,
Hammering the muscles,
To its pain...to its struggle
Toward death?
Controversy: the subtle acceptance of lie
Of seeming wisdom
Of taking offense, denying its existence
Like a tumor
Growing, forming a bump on the skin
Not curing it for the eyes do not see...
Lingers for a time-
The tumor ‘s metastasis
Invades the healthy cells
It penetrates the brain, the blood, the body...
When can you see
Till the bones break
Or immune system fails,
Hampering the breath,
Hammering the muscles,
To its pain...to its struggle
Toward death?
Monday, February 8, 2010
Feb 8 Monologue
met with Yana here at JY
to chat and remember
God, give Him honor
love Him more than anything
let her talk about how good
God had been,
that
He had not abandoned her,
ordered her walk...
She asked Him to give her grace
to choose
His decisions for her life.
Sometimes,
felt no good to teach His words
yet
believed that
It was Him who
gave
Him
worked
Him
and only
Him
That
deserved...
***
roamed at JY
did not know it had Wifi.
had planned to go to SM
using Time writing
and thinking
and
again,
thinking
as always
and has always been...
***
so sat at Angelica
with the black, brewed coffee
looked anything noteworthy
on the net and everything else
the coffee now cold
sweeping the bittertaste
on my taste buds
People coming in
Not wanting to let them
see this form of privacy
Yet I guess
felt like an invisible
like I have always been
like I have always been...
***
did not blame them
did not blame myself, either
weird.eccentric.enigmatic.
words I'd remember
people used
to describe me...
felt not different
not special
or anything deserving
be put on pedestal
yet again
yet again
weird.eccentric.enigmatic.
a psychologist friend
He had said
could not stop
himself from saying,
only rare
my kind is rare
"What kind?", I asked.
Said...heroic, brave...
a DNA of someone historic
did not believe him
nothing in me was worthy
to be called heroic
took personality tests
and unexpectedly
my kind of personality
was that of
two to four percent only
in the race of humanity...
***
my battery almost empty
had to sip
the last ounce
of the bitter, cold, black
coffee
to chat and remember
God, give Him honor
love Him more than anything
let her talk about how good
God had been,
that
He had not abandoned her,
ordered her walk...
She asked Him to give her grace
to choose
His decisions for her life.
Sometimes,
felt no good to teach His words
yet
believed that
It was Him who
gave
Him
worked
Him
and only
Him
That
deserved...
***
roamed at JY
did not know it had Wifi.
had planned to go to SM
using Time writing
and thinking
and
again,
thinking
as always
and has always been...
***
so sat at Angelica
with the black, brewed coffee
looked anything noteworthy
on the net and everything else
the coffee now cold
sweeping the bittertaste
on my taste buds
People coming in
Not wanting to let them
see this form of privacy
Yet I guess
felt like an invisible
like I have always been
like I have always been...
***
did not blame them
did not blame myself, either
weird.eccentric.enigmatic.
words I'd remember
people used
to describe me...
felt not different
not special
or anything deserving
be put on pedestal
yet again
yet again
weird.eccentric.enigmatic.
a psychologist friend
He had said
could not stop
himself from saying,
only rare
my kind is rare
"What kind?", I asked.
Said...heroic, brave...
a DNA of someone historic
did not believe him
nothing in me was worthy
to be called heroic
took personality tests
and unexpectedly
my kind of personality
was that of
two to four percent only
in the race of humanity...
***
my battery almost empty
had to sip
the last ounce
of the bitter, cold, black
coffee
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Imaginative Literature
..." as a conspiracy against their mental and emotional peace"
Have you practis'd so long to learn to read?
Have you felt so proud to get at the meaning of poems?
-WALT WHITMAN, "Song of Myself"
Have you practis'd so long to learn to read?
Have you felt so proud to get at the meaning of poems?
-WALT WHITMAN, "Song of Myself"
Friday, February 5, 2010
Finding IT
The Search
Searching the creative how-to
is special mix of drowning hue,
Squeezing hidden mem’ries of time
Of black and red, and violet-blue.
If I could just dance you or mime,
My body’s use wouldn’t be a crime.
Tis as easy as one-two-three
BUT I struggle to seize the rhyme.
Tis hard, I ask above and plea
to let me meet my destiny,
Of words, of sounds, of irony
My God, my God, bring it to me!
Searching the creative how-to
is special mix of drowning hue,
Squeezing hidden mem’ries of time
Of black and red, and violet-blue.
If I could just dance you or mime,
My body’s use wouldn’t be a crime.
Tis as easy as one-two-three
BUT I struggle to seize the rhyme.
Tis hard, I ask above and plea
to let me meet my destiny,
Of words, of sounds, of irony
My God, my God, bring it to me!
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Head at CNN
...just have to have this book marked ( a story a long time ago...yet still something quite inspiring ...)
Monday, February 1, 2010
Quitting Cold Turkey
( I just happened to browse the net and actually read this. I knew about Fieldy becoming a Chrisian from Christian Broadcasting Network. But I never knew details about him, really. I was simply chuckling finding out that he had really been a "sicko" before he became a Christian. hehe.) :
March 13, 2009, Huntingpost.com:
CHICAGO - The members of Korn are about to get a big apology from one of their own -- and you can read it along with them.
Bassist Fieldy has released a book, "Got the Life: My Journey of Addiction, Faith, Recovery and Korn," this week. The book includes letters Fieldy (born Reginald Arvizu) wrote to each band member apologizing for his past bad behavior.
Fieldy said he gave an advance copy to guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer but he has yet to hear his reaction. He said he expects frontman Jonathan Davis to read it as well. He didn't give them the letters privately because he wanted to be open about his sobriety.
Fieldy, 39, struggled with alcohol, drugs and overeating. He would even eat food off other people's used room-service trays -- even trash cans. He also was a womanizer and liked to intimidate anyone, male or female, who disagreed with what he calls "Fieldy's rules."
He quit cold turkey when his father, a born-again Christian, told him his dying wish was for his son to find God. Now he's married with three children and working on a new album with Korn and his side project, Stillwell.
AP: You were kind of a jerk when you were on drugs.
Fieldy: I was as bad as it gets. What I wrote in the book, I was probably worse than that. I couldn't really explain how bad it was. Me trying to kill people wasn't as bad as me tearing people down and making people cry and ripping them apart, because words never heal. That's what I've learned. I'd rather raise my son and tell him, "If you get in a fight with your friend, just punch him. Don't say anything, because the next day he doesn't get over that.'"
AP: How old were you when you became an alcoholic?
Fieldy: About 13 or 14. I was full-blown. Every day we would hide the alcohol, stealing from stores or stealing it from our parents and hiding out in dirt fields and drinking it before school and after school.
AP: What could someone have said to you then to make you stop?
Fieldy: If somebody told me, "Not a good idea," I would've said, "No, it's probably a good idea if you get drunk with me." I would've flipped it around on them. There was no way you could tell me anything. I wasn't listening to any type of reason.
AP: You mention in your book you got your pills from "rock doctors." How did that work?
Fieldy: In the rock 'n roll slang world, they're called rock doctors, or rock docs. They would come out to shows and like to hang backstage. You could get a prescription for anything you want from them. They just want to hang out and party. It's crazy because you can get a prescription to anything. It doesn't even matter what kind of doctor they are
AP: You quit cold turkey -- no rehab, no Alcoholic Anonymous meetings. How did you pull that off?
Fieldy: I talk to people who go to rehab, and they get this AA book that they've got to read everyday -- really thick book. They go through all these 12 steps and do all this and that. It's crazy how everybody can sit and talk about rehab but if I come to say Christ was my rehab, it's not cool to say that. ... For me that's my rehab. That's what happened with me and it's an amazing and powerful thing.
AP: Your former bandmate, Brian "Head" Welch, faced criticism when he decided to follow God and quit drugs. Do you think you will too?
Fieldy: I didn't go and quit anything. I remained who I am, so I don't know if anybody wants to criticize. I'm still me. I made some changes, I didn't go around telling everybody I was ready to make changes, I just remained me. I may get more criticism today in putting this book out than I have. You know, maybe this is my time, but I'm ready to take the criticism and answer anybody's questions.
___
On the Net:
http://www.Korn.com
***Meanwhile...
---In February 2005, Head shocked the music world when he resigned from Korn to re-dedicate his life to Christ and focus on raising his daughter, Jennea, as a single father. The event set off a media frenzy as observers around the world sought out to understand what led this rock star out of the darkness and into the light.
Significantly, and perhaps most importantly, upon his resignation from Korn, Head made clear to the music world that he had not retired from the music and entertainment industry. With his newfound calling, Head is committed to changing the youth of this nation through his music and other entertainment ventures. In this regard, Head penned an autobiography of his life, picked up and released by Harper Collins Publishers in July 2007, entitled, "Save Me From Myself." Head gained further acclaim as a successful author, when the book quickly hit the New York Times Best Seller List (non-fiction). In his memoir, Head talks for the first time about his shocking embrace of God, and the tumultuous decade of drug and alcohol addiction that led him to his faith, where he was completely and instantly healed of his addictions.
http://www.brianheadwelch.net/bio.html
***
more on "Head"'s song:
http://www.myspace.com/brianheadwelch
March 13, 2009, Huntingpost.com:
CHICAGO - The members of Korn are about to get a big apology from one of their own -- and you can read it along with them.
Bassist Fieldy has released a book, "Got the Life: My Journey of Addiction, Faith, Recovery and Korn," this week. The book includes letters Fieldy (born Reginald Arvizu) wrote to each band member apologizing for his past bad behavior.
Fieldy said he gave an advance copy to guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer but he has yet to hear his reaction. He said he expects frontman Jonathan Davis to read it as well. He didn't give them the letters privately because he wanted to be open about his sobriety.
Fieldy, 39, struggled with alcohol, drugs and overeating. He would even eat food off other people's used room-service trays -- even trash cans. He also was a womanizer and liked to intimidate anyone, male or female, who disagreed with what he calls "Fieldy's rules."
He quit cold turkey when his father, a born-again Christian, told him his dying wish was for his son to find God. Now he's married with three children and working on a new album with Korn and his side project, Stillwell.
AP: You were kind of a jerk when you were on drugs.
Fieldy: I was as bad as it gets. What I wrote in the book, I was probably worse than that. I couldn't really explain how bad it was. Me trying to kill people wasn't as bad as me tearing people down and making people cry and ripping them apart, because words never heal. That's what I've learned. I'd rather raise my son and tell him, "If you get in a fight with your friend, just punch him. Don't say anything, because the next day he doesn't get over that.'"
AP: How old were you when you became an alcoholic?
Fieldy: About 13 or 14. I was full-blown. Every day we would hide the alcohol, stealing from stores or stealing it from our parents and hiding out in dirt fields and drinking it before school and after school.
AP: What could someone have said to you then to make you stop?
Fieldy: If somebody told me, "Not a good idea," I would've said, "No, it's probably a good idea if you get drunk with me." I would've flipped it around on them. There was no way you could tell me anything. I wasn't listening to any type of reason.
AP: You mention in your book you got your pills from "rock doctors." How did that work?
Fieldy: In the rock 'n roll slang world, they're called rock doctors, or rock docs. They would come out to shows and like to hang backstage. You could get a prescription for anything you want from them. They just want to hang out and party. It's crazy because you can get a prescription to anything. It doesn't even matter what kind of doctor they are
AP: You quit cold turkey -- no rehab, no Alcoholic Anonymous meetings. How did you pull that off?
Fieldy: I talk to people who go to rehab, and they get this AA book that they've got to read everyday -- really thick book. They go through all these 12 steps and do all this and that. It's crazy how everybody can sit and talk about rehab but if I come to say Christ was my rehab, it's not cool to say that. ... For me that's my rehab. That's what happened with me and it's an amazing and powerful thing.
AP: Your former bandmate, Brian "Head" Welch, faced criticism when he decided to follow God and quit drugs. Do you think you will too?
Fieldy: I didn't go and quit anything. I remained who I am, so I don't know if anybody wants to criticize. I'm still me. I made some changes, I didn't go around telling everybody I was ready to make changes, I just remained me. I may get more criticism today in putting this book out than I have. You know, maybe this is my time, but I'm ready to take the criticism and answer anybody's questions.
___
On the Net:
http://www.Korn.com
***Meanwhile...
---In February 2005, Head shocked the music world when he resigned from Korn to re-dedicate his life to Christ and focus on raising his daughter, Jennea, as a single father. The event set off a media frenzy as observers around the world sought out to understand what led this rock star out of the darkness and into the light.
Significantly, and perhaps most importantly, upon his resignation from Korn, Head made clear to the music world that he had not retired from the music and entertainment industry. With his newfound calling, Head is committed to changing the youth of this nation through his music and other entertainment ventures. In this regard, Head penned an autobiography of his life, picked up and released by Harper Collins Publishers in July 2007, entitled, "Save Me From Myself." Head gained further acclaim as a successful author, when the book quickly hit the New York Times Best Seller List (non-fiction). In his memoir, Head talks for the first time about his shocking embrace of God, and the tumultuous decade of drug and alcohol addiction that led him to his faith, where he was completely and instantly healed of his addictions.
http://www.brianheadwelch.net/bio.html
***
more on "Head"'s song:
http://www.myspace.com/brianheadwelch
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