He states it's a wonderful blessing, to be relieved of the terrible curse
Even though at times he wished for a bottle from which to nurse
He felt sorrow for those if for some excuse AA they have not tried
Whether atheist, agnostic or skeptic, or filled with intellectual pride
The man was known as Dr. Bob, his story I'd like to share
Of how his life became a dream, where once was a nightmare
He was born in a New England village of seven thousand souls
After he finished high school, college was his goal
In college he drank more and more, a major activity
He graduated "Summa Cum Laude" by the drinking fraternity
After three years in sales, off to study medicine he did go
By now the morning jitters caused by alcohol started to show
His drinking went from bad to worse, he left school his sophomore year
He later decided to return to class after the fog did clear
Completing school, no easy task, his mind drenched in alcohol
He drew a blank during finals and returned to complete in the fall
After two years as an intern, his own office he opened up
But his physical health paid dearly, brought on by the drinking cup
In sanitariums a dozen times, this by his own choosing
His friends would smuggle him quarts so he could continue boozing
Then when in this country the 18th amendment passed
He thought he'd be free from drink, he thought he was free at last
The bootlegger then came 'round, Bob drank with moderation at first
Then back to his old habits of quenching his alcoholic thirst
For many years he'd hide his stash in every nook and cranny
He hid four ounce bottles in his stocking tops 'til his wife saw 'Tugboat Annie'
He took sedatives for nerves by day, liquor for sleep at night
With a phobia of sleeplessness and running out of booze a fright
He tried experimenting with beer, no one ever got drunk that way
But soon he was downing this at the rate of a case and a half a day
He met a man through his wife, Bob's ways he tried to mend
Bob gave it a try, three weeks dry, then drunken oblivion again
In the morn he had another beer, 1935, the day June 10
From that day forth, until he died, he would never drink again
His story he shares with others, his message precise and sound
He said "Your Father in Heaven will never let you down!"
Brett Martin Smith © 1995
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