The following are excerpts from Craig Lewis' newest book The Craig Lewis Guide to Surviving the Impossible." Craig has joined Erin on two podcast episodes over the past two months. He is honest, raw, and complicated as he openly shares his experiences with abuse, abandonment, and self-destruction on the path to healing and peace.
If Your Animal Companion Loves You Unconditionally…
If Your Animal Companion Loves You Unconditionally, maybe they see the true beauty that exists within you.
I will always always always cherish the love of my sweet little boy, Max the Cat.
No matter where on this Earth he is, breathing or resting in peace; he loves me and I know it.
Saying goodbye to Max the Cat was one of the hardest and most painful experiences of my life
I feel that I abandoned my child, my rescued best friend to whom I dedicated myself to caring for for the rest of his life.
How blessed are we all to know that months after he returned to the street, after his foster mother who loved Max as much as I did was displaced and has now passed away; that he is now adopted by a loving family; once again, and he is now safe and cared for for the rest of his life.
I call him my “Sweet Beast”, and he is my best friend.
Through thick and thin; this 28 toed furry creature loved me; in defiance of my many hard times, my ups and downs and several instances of absolute chaos and crazy.
It has been a long time since I felt the warmth of Max the Cat, however, I will never forget the power of his love for me.
If he loves me, no matter how rough or terrible things were with me; then I must be worth it, right?
People often say “Animals know”, so if your four legger, your feathered friend, your amphibous roomate, your fish friend, even your arachnid…
So perhaps, on those days, in which it is hard to imagine that tomorrow could ever come, like I felt a mere three days ago, perhaps remember that if you have ever been loved unconditionally by your animal companion; maybe they know what they are talking about…
Question #1: What is your most beautiful memory or thought of an animal companion that's been or currently is in in your life?
Question #2: Do you believe that your animal companion views you as the most beautiful, perfect, special and wonderful creature in their life?
Question #3: If your animal companion said to you, in words, how much they love you; what would those words be?
A poem entitled: "You're Not That Important"
You're not that important, that's the first thing you need to remember.
You think you're important but you're really not.
You really don't matter and you really need to shut up.
Remember you're not that important so get it through your head.
Your feelings don't matter so please stop trying.
You are a problem.
You are a problem.
You are a problem.
You're not that important.
Abuse is as American as apple pie.
Treat people with love, kindness, honor and compassion and watch them heal.
It's as easy as that.
The people who have taught you via their words and actions that you don't matter; they are liars.
Except they're not lying to you; they're lying to themselves.
You are important; read these words and know they are true.
You are not a problem.
Your feelings matter.
You deserve to be treated with dignity.
You deserve to be treated with love and honor and compassion and kindness.
I'm so sorry that you were abused.
"You are not that important" is what they said to me.
It's a direct quote.
To all the people out there who have been told that you deserved to be abused, let this survivor remind you; you have been lied to.
You are important.
You are worthy of dignity, compassion, love and honor. You are worthy of having your story be known and validated.
You really do matter.
I am 100% certain that you matter.
I love you and I love me.
I wrote this poem instead of drinking a glass of bleach.
I like metaphors.
If I can choose to transcend my darkest moments; you can choose to transcend yours.
Love,
Someone who understands the brutality of invalidated pain.
Craig Lewis chooses to be happy. During the past five years, Craig has been healing from a traumatic brain injury, he was disowned by his family for speaking about childhood abuse, he was disinherited by his working community in the United States after he reported sexual and ethical violations in the workplace, he spent 15 months homeless mostly in Europe and while there he gave more than 50 professional mental health trainings and community empowerment events and now he has just celebrated his one year anniversary of living in Mexico, where he arrived with nothing but a backpack and the clothes on his body, and without speaking the language. Craig has published two books (one of which is currently available in 10 languages) and in the next few months he will be publishing three new books including a coping skills workbook based on what he has learned during the past 5 years, titled, “The Craig Lewis Guide to Surviving the Impossible”. Craig lives his life with Viktor Frankl and other brilliant spirits whispering in his ear, and this has resulted in his happiness.
Punk Rock Mental Health and Recovery Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/898953743881374/
Email and Paypal: punx.in.recovery@gmail.com
Book orders and inquiries can be made via email
Contact Craig via WhatsApp: 527771885400
Sanity is a Full time Job: Marginalized Folks Supporting Marginalized Folks; an Etsy shop with art made by people in Recovery. This shop supports people who are trying to make a living through their art while focusing on their recovery and working to eliminate the stigma associated with mental health and related issues.