Two.
I thought for the longest time that I was going to hell because I was gay. I didn’t know any better. I was raised that way, attending a fundamentalist Christian church three times each week. It led me to drink and abuse alcohol. I married a woman and had a family thinking it would make me straight and save me from hell fire. The personal fire inside my head became greater than the fear of dying and going to hell, so I stopped living the lie and came out of the closet. Coming out is a process that took many years for me, but today, I’m happy and free. Also, my children love their gay dad.
Drinking excessively and abusing alcohol took me down a long path of great self-hatred. I believed that once I could accept my sexuality, I would be able to quit drinking. It didn’t work that way for me. I had to come to terms with my addiction. I had to take responsibility for it and work on it. After 12 years without a drink, I can say I love me. I’m not ashamed any more. Quitting drinking is something I’m enormously grateful for. It’s a gift.