Move a Muscle Change a Thought

James, who has a week of sobriety talks about taking walks at night to stay sober. He quotes this slogan: “Move a muscle; change a thought”. He describes feeling so crazy. He talks about “her.” I ask who she is and he says, “My ex, eleven years, really hard, over like that.” He makes a gesture as if a crumb is being brushed away. I think about how hard one week is. Yesterday he said he hit his bottom so hard it was like the space shuttle reentering and crashing and exploding on the ground. Now he’s walking at night, pumping his arms, talking out loud to God. The pain is so clear. I’m grateful I’m not him. “Don’t drink”, I think. And I mean this for him and for me.