The Trickle Down Effects of Drugs

The Trickle-down effects of drugs

Its 6:00 in the morning and Billy is lying in bed reading a letter his sister wrote him. Although Billy has been in prison for four years, the letter takes him back to when he and his sister were both kids living with their grandmother in Albany, Ga. Billy is incarcerated and separated from his family due to the devastating effects of drugs within our homes. Drugs are not only very addictive, but cause people to make wrong decisions, cause death, and lead to prison. Billy now realizes that not only were wrong decisions made on his part, but his family as well.

When Billy and his sister Chris's grandmother got sick, their mother decided to move them in with her in Atlanta. They lived with their Grandma Ann for ten years and never developed a relationship with their mother. Billy, now at the age of 15 and Chris 12 didn't like the decisions of leaving Albany or his grandmother.

Six months had passed; Billy and his sister were now use to living in a 2 bedroom apartment with their mother Karen. Billy hated the apartment because it was roach infested, there were always gun shots, and it was always noisy outside. Billy always resented his mother for leaving them with their grandmother. A few years ago he overheard a phone conversation between his mother and grandmother in which he discovered his mother used drugs. At that moment Billy knew that grandma Ann was not going to allow him and Chris to suffer in a home with a mother on drugs. Chris always slept in bed with her mom; as soon as she was asleep Billy would her Karen leave the house. Karen leaving them at night turned from overnight, to gone for a day, to a few days. Billy knew that his mother was not only using drugs but neglecting them in the process. Karen stopped working and would do anything from selling her clothes to selling her body to get drugs. When Billy's grandmother found out about what was going on, she was hurt and shortly thereafter died of a stroke. Karen decided to move her boyfriend Sammie into the apartment. Not only was Karen's boyfriend on drugs, but he sold drugs as well. Billy knew that was the worse decision his mother made moving Sammie in. The effects of the drug addiction on Karen not only caused her to continue to make poor decisions, but would later cause another death.

Billy hated his mother after Grandma Ann died and blamed her drug addiction for causing his grandmother's stroke. Billy decided to get a job at a grocery store in walking distance from the apartments. He realized that he was the only one that would be able to take care of his sister. Billy didn't like the thought of leaving Chris alone with his mother and Sammie in the apartment. Usually when Billy got home from work, Chris was asleep in his room. One night Billy got home from work to find that his mother and Sammie were both gone leaving Chris sleep