My Unlikely Friend

who made me look at things differently

The cliffs of Portugal have nothing to do with this essay other than being a reminder that, no matter what is happening in our human lives, some things remain constant. 📷me, recent vacay

Michael and I are unlikely friends. He’s a young, hip skateboarder from Australia and I am a not-so-young, decidedly un-hip woman from Canada. The only time I used the skate park in our town was to try out my son’s BMX bike and it got ugly. However, some force bigger than Michael and I decided we should accidentally meet online, we helped each other out with our newsletters and our friendship unfurled from there. What we didn’t know until later was that we shared a couple of very important things – we have both chosen a sober lifestyle and know a lot about back pain.

Of the ties that bind, sobriety and pain are big ones. Michael has lived with pain for years and I have treated pain for years (not his or I wouldn’t be sharing his story).

I’m introducing you to Michael because he is an amazing guy who ins…