TEMPTATION: A PEREZ FAMILY GATHERING

A Perez family gathering happens twice every year. One of those times is today. The Perez's annual Thanksgiving fiesta. The Perez's are a rowdy bunch. They love good food and a good glass of wine or any other beverage.

I love my family. They make me laugh with their antics. My Tio tells the worst jokes. We laugh anyways. My Tia is loud and gets anyone in a good mood. She loves to cook. My Tia is always in the kitchen with my mom cooking up a storm.

My Abuela is in everybody's business including my own. She means well but it gets annoying. I love her for it. If my Abuela wasn't in my business I wouldn't be here today.

You see I use to be an avid drinker. I drank every day at all times of the day. I never listened to anyone. At every Perez gathering I drank so much. I wanted to keep up with my Primos. We always had a drinking contest and I was right there with them. We had fun together.

I was the only girl in a room full of boys. That was hard for me. I never had anyone to relate to. I was lonely. I wished every day to have at least one Primo that was like me, a girl. Being the only girl, I had to keep up with my Primos.

My Abuela always hated that I acted like a boy instead of a girl. She hated that I drank like a boy. My Abuela always used to tell me "Sophia, You are a girl. Act like one." But I never use to listen.

My Abuela was constantly at my house making sure I wasn't drinking, making sure I wasn't hiding any bottles. I was clever not to keep the bottle in the same place. When my Abuela didn't find any bottles, she would always call me a liar, that's what I was.

I loved drinking. This is what I had in common with my Primos but it was also killing my Abuela seeing me drink like that. At our last Perez gathering, I again was drinking. This time was different. I saw my strong, unbending Abuela crying.

I knew I had to make a change. I couldn't drink like this anymore. I was drinking myself to an early grave. I made a promise to God and to my Abuela that I would stop drinking. I worked hard, went to all my meetings and I'm proud to say I haven't picked up a bottle in a year and a half.

This is my first Perez gathering and I'm afraid my temptation to drink will be at an all time high. I've talking to my Abuela on the phone. I've been telling her about my worries. My Abuela told me "You are better than this, Sophia."

In all my years my Abuela has never lied to me. So, I believe her when she tells me I'm better than the drinking. I have to think positive. I want to see my family. I want to eat good food.

I can't for my Abuela and the rest of my family to see the new and improved Sophia. I worked hard to get to this point in my life. There was a lot of struggles. I cried a lot. I was mad at the world. I was mad at my family for drinking a lot.

I was mad at my mom and Tia for not stopping the constant drinking. Then I thought to myself, this is my family, this is who they are. I could have stopped myself but I didn't.

I'm in charge of my life. If anyone is to blame for my drinking it's me. I should have stopped myself. I didn't. I had to learn my lesson the hard way. There is no one to blame but myself.

There are lessons I learned from my meetings. The first lesson. Drinking doesn't make you happy. The second lesson. Drinking hurts the ones you love. I know that's true for me. The third lesson. Drinking kills you slowly. When I was struggling to come to terms with my drinking, I always thought of my Abuela.

Today is Thanksgiving. It's my chance to tell my Abuela thank you for never giving up on me and tell her I love her.

Okay, so I am on my way to my parent's house. I'm getting nervous. I haven't seen my family since the last family gathering. I'm a different person now than I was before. I hope my family is proud of me. My Abuela is proud of me. I'm proud of myself.

Temptation is a nasty word. I have to remind myself of that. I can't go down the rabbit hole and let my Abuela down. Strong is what I need to be. You can do this Sophia.

I arrive at my parent's house. I'm the last one here. Through the window, I see my dad, Primos and Tio drinking. I see the shots of Bourbon, Vodka and Tequila on the table. I see Wine and other drinks out on the table as well.

You can do this Sophia. You are better than this.Okay here I go. I get out of my car and walk to the front door. I knock on the door. The door opens. I'm greeted by my Abuela.

"Hola Abuela." My Abuela grabs me and hugs me.

"Hola my beautiful granddaughter."

My Abuela gives the best hugs. I walk inside. I say hi to my dad, Primos and Tio. This is so awkward. Nobody knows what to say to me. I don't even know what to say.

Thankfully my Abuela breaks the silence. "No need to stare at Sophia. Go back to whatever you all were doing." I whisper thank you.

I take a seat at my usual chair. My Primos are beginning the annual drinking contest. Remember Sophia you are better than this. Temptation is your worst enemy. Breathe in and out

.I see my Abuela watching me. I whisper to her "I'm okay." One of my Primos Hector places a bottle of Bourbon right next to me. My hand is itching to grab the bottle. My legs are bouncing up and down. Don't do it Sophia. You worked hard to stop drinking.

My Abuela is still watching me. I see how afraid she is. Temptation is your worst enemy. I keep repeating to myself.

I look at the bottle. I tell myself Bourbon you are not getting to me. I get up from my chair and walk to the kitchen. I open the refrigerator, grab the orange juice and pour myself a glass. I go to my Abuela, sit across from her and help her decorate the cookies.

My Abuela grabs my hand and tells me "Mi amor Sophia, I'm so proud of you."

"Me too Abuela me too. I love you and thank you."

The Perez family gathering is always loud and crazy, full of so much love. During dinner my Primos apologized to me for all the drinking. I apologized to them for my drinking. I apologized to my family for blaming them for my drinking.

My dad, Primos and Tio promised to scale down the drinking. I'm happy they are doing that for me. I'm proud to say the temptation to drink is no longer within me. Thank you Abuela for never giving up on me.