The Drunk Man's Daughter

By Daveta Watson

Bitterness, anger, and shame stemmed from the unforgiveness that lingered in my life for years.  In my memoir, I share how being raised in a home with an alcoholic father taught me pain. I allowed the pain to grow into unforgiveness that changed me and my perspective on everything, especially how I loved myself.  I could only see myself as "the drunk man's daughter".  Through forgiveness and opening my mind to letting it all go, I released all that held me back. I embraced forgiveness and it changed me forever.  I am honored to share this freedom with you. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Daveta Watson
• Release date: Mar 12, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201005658

Book preview

Dedication

This book is lovingly dedicated to the beautiful memory of Evoria Vernetta Hanshaw Watson, my late grandmother that I know passed this writing gene down to me.  This book started as a letter that you found and you inspired me to write my story.  Even in your absence, I can still hear her advice.  I am thankful for the years of training and just enjoying you as my grandmother. In loving memory of my father, Joseph Leon Faulk.  I love you for the life that has taught me so much.  Many may not have understood you or even knew you, but many judged you.  They had no clue until they came further in contact with you that your heart was big and your intentions were always the best.  Thank you for teaching me to love despite everything.  I dedicate this book to you because you gave me the ok to write it and said, Daughter, tell your story, and I’ll be alright because there are people that need to know how to forgive.  Thank you for doing the very best with what you had.  The world has not been the same since you left, but we continue to keep going as you taught us.  Continue to sleep in heavenly peace.  To my mother, Alice Louise Faulk.  You have always been my number one supporter.  Thank you for walking out these years so that I could learn valuable lessons from a strong woman.  You have pushed me to be great, but you’ve also lived out the example. Thank you for believing in me even when I didn’t believe in myself.  I love you and thank you for all the times you put your feelings and needs on the back burner for us.  Your sacrifices have not gone unnoticed.  I love you.

This dedication is also to my beautiful siblings, Demetrius Faulk, Travis Faulk, Tracy Faulk, Shamika Lewis, and Quinshar Kellam.  We all have overcome so much as a unit that it’s impossible not to share how we came through.  I love each and every one of you dearly.  I know we have not all experienced the same things from Dad, but we are all experiencing the love that he always desired for his family to have. Flaws and all, you are the perfect bunch and I love you all.  Tracy, I want you to know that your support in my life has been everything.  You always saw the best in me.  You have always cheered me on.  Your encouragement and pep talks have been like Grandma Evoria’s. You have so many of her characteristics.  Thank you for allowing God to use you to be Him on the earth.

To my Greater Love Outreach family under the leadership of Pastor Raymond and Shawneeque Little and Apostle Gary Rodgers and Prophetess Faultine Rodgers.  Thank you all for watering, nurturing, and believing in the gifts that God placed in me.  Many times, I doubted, I didn’t believe in myself.  Pastor and Co-Pastor Little, thank you for continuing to preach faith until I birthed what I was pregnant with for so many years.  You have taught me that I am blessed and I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.  I have no need to fear because God is with me in all things.  Thank you for teaching the Word and standing firm in it. 

A special shout out to my Golden Girl, Shaunte Tester.   I have been so inspired to tell my story because of your story.  Let’s tell these stories before we become Dorothy and Blanche for real and forget them.  I love you for showing me a better me through all of my circumstances.  I never questioned why we met.  I am just so thankful that we did. To every guy that I have encountered that has shown me that I need to be healed from past trauma, thank you for helping me to understand that I have gotten it wrong somewhere.  There are lessons in everything and I am thankful for every situation, encounter, or experience that brought me to this very place.  I have no regrets.  I pray that you find the healing that you need to live a successful life. I ask you to forgive me for expecting you to be who you were never designed to be.  To Daquan Collins.  I really have to thank you for encouraging me through calls, texts, and telling me over and over, YOU GOT THIS.  Everything will be okay.  Thank you for pushing me to complete what I started.  You are wise beyond your years and I learn from you to never give up on my dreams.  I love you and I am thankful for you.  To, Auntie’s Divas.  Thank you Xuine’ Brionna, Gracie Louise, and Zoe Madison, and Imani for showing me why I had to break the curse.  Your auntie loves you soon to be ladies so much.  You remind me that I have work to do to help the next generation understand how to deal with pain and use it to grow, instead of allowing it to stop you. You inspired me to finish what I started and I am grateful to God for listening.  Love you to life.  To my sounding boards, Nicole Watson, Jermaine Abbott, Kisha James, and Wanda Gibson.  I love you, ladies, because you have heard my cries, many of them, and have been right there.  Thank you.   To my prayer warriors Pedro and Joyce Hanshaw.  Thank you for your dedication in prayer.  I dedicate this book to you all.  You all have helped me in my journey.  I am so thankful to God for the love He has shown me through all of you.

Lastly, I dedicate this work to the reader, you.  You are the reason that I am sharing my story.  To everyone that has been labeled as someone’s something and not seen as an individual.  To the one who feels misunderstood and angry because of what someone else has done to you.  You may feel like you can’t remove the label, but through forgiveness, we can wear the label that God gave us...whole, complete, free, and wanting nothing.  I dedicate this book to you.  Together we will get from under those labels, forgive, and live our best lives.  I love you all.  We pray for many books to come.

This book is in no way to speak negatively of my father, the late Joseph Leon Faulk, or anyone that the book may mention.  This book tells the story of my life and how God changed my life through forgiveness.  These events are to just give facts to the story and I ask for forgiveness if anyone is offended.  This is my truth and I speak only to give reference to where I was and where God has taken me.  God bless you all and I thank Him in advance for your healing and understanding. 

Table of Content

Introduction

Chapter 1 Where it All Began

Chapter 2 The Growth of Unforgiveness

Chapter 3 Becoming Unforgiveness 

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Chapter 4 The Turnaround

Chapter 5 Putting in the Work

Chapter 6 By and By

Introduction

Many times, in life we may be labeled as the drunk man’s daughter, the crack head’s son, or the homewrecker’s child.  Phrases like, the apple don’t fall far from the tree or You’re just like your dad.  These labels are unfair because they have nothing to do with who we really are.  Sometimes in life, we have to learn to forgive the past of our parents or forefathers and cast down those curses so that they will not be passed down to us.  In this book, I will tell my story of how I took on the label of the drunk man’s daughter and how I allowed it to destroy my happiness for many years.  I allowed this label to alter my view of how people saw me because I felt that they saw me only as of the daughter of a man who is an alcoholic. 

Throughout this entire process, God was trying to teach me how to love my father as he was.  Even though I did not understand why he was the way he was, or even why our relationship was the way it was.   At some point, I had to embrace forgiveness and let all of the anger go.    Through forgiveness, I was able to drop the label and love him as the father that God blessed me with, Flaws and All.  Once I did, I embraced a relationship. 

In Chapter 5, we will together fight unforgiveness and be God in the earth as He intended.  Why walk around angry while losing out on the blessings of God?  We will walk out the forgiveness process and let the people off the hook who have hurt us.  Until we can take the blinders of anger and unforgiveness off, we can see God’s plans come together in our lives.  Let’s make up our minds before we start this journey that we will come out successful and free of unforgiveness.  If you have a digital copy, grab a journal and pen to write in for the participation part in Chapter 5 and beyond.  I love you all. Let’s get free together.

Chapter 1

Where It All Began

I was born and raised on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.  This 70-mile strip of land that is separated from the rest of Virginia by the Chesapeake Bay consists of Northampton and Accomack Counties. When people think of the Eastern Shore, they think of fresh seafood or Pony Swimming on Chincoteague Island.  At one time, when I thought of the Eastern Shore, I thought of pain, dread, misery.

I was born in Northampton County at Shore Memorial Hospital when it was in Nassawadox, Virginia, the only hospital the entire Eastern Shore has.  I was raised in Accomack County on the shore.  The Eastern Shore is known to many travelers as the strip of 13 traveled to get to New York and neighboring states.

Many may think of great seafood or vacationing spots when the Eastern Shore is mentioned.  I