Between the Lines

My aunt Mary was a brilliant artist who spent the last 17 years of her life addicted to crack. After she was killed in a car accident in 2007, I discovered hundreds of poems she had written. They chronicled her adolescence, college years, and the development of her addiction. Years of Mary’s life had been a secret, and I came to fully know her through her writing after she passed on. Her poetry has counseled me ever since. Her experience has provided lessons about warning signs, and how to love and support an addicted person without supporting their habit. It shows how to believe in someone even if you can’t believe them. Here is Mary’s story, in phases named after her favorite Grateful Dead songs. I also include her own work. Two dollars from the sale of each book will be donated to Columbus House, a homeless services agency in New Haven. Many of Mary’s friends had been helped by Columbus House staff, and they do wonderful work with people from all walks of life.