The Evolution of Me: My Journey to Recovery

By Ronald E. White Jr.

I am nothing without God and everything with him. -Ronald E. White Jr. This book provides a glimpse of the emotional and mental traumas that overwhelmed Ronald throughout his childhood. As a young man, these trials and tribulations lead Ronald down a path of addiction. This work is an evolution of the man Ronald E. White Jr. from his many defeats to his many triumphs. He has gone through these trials and tribulations with the guidance of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 9, 2020
• ISBN: 9781098040604

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The Evolution of Me

My Journey to Recovery

Ronald E. White Jr.

Copyright © 2020 by Ronald E. White Jr.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Back in Georgia

First and foremost, I give God all the glory! For he sacrificed his only Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for my sins.

To my soulmate, my wife, Roberta White, I will always love you with all my heart. Thank you for giving me unconditional love even when I didn’t deserve it.

Lastly, to my parents, Ronald Earl White Sr. and June Ann White; my baby sister, Rhonda Denise White—may you all rest in peace.

Acknowledgments

During my childhood from around the age of seven to my early twenties, my mentors—Ralph Bynoe, Roe Whittington, and Pedro Morales from the Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club—played a major role in my life. They were an extension of my father. They chastised me, encouraged me, and inspired me to do great things in my life.

To all my mentors in the field of mental health services and substance abuse services who had confidence in my ability to the work, thank you to all who have encouraged me in my journey of providing services to the disenfranchised in our communities for the last twenty-nine years.

To my literary agent, Marie Lewis from Christian Faith Publishing Inc., thank you for your support and guidance. You continued to check with me periodically on my progress. I could have not done this without your assistance. You inspired me to write this book to reach out to others that needed encouragement. I will always be grateful to you. May God always bless your friend.

Introduction

My name is Ronald Earl White Jr., the oldest child of five. I was born on Wednesday, March 28, 1962, to June Ann and Ronald Earl White Sr. in Boston, Massachusetts. My mother, the second oldest of four, was born and bred in Boston, Massachusetts. My father, the youngest of three, was a country boy from Murfreesboro, North Carolina.

In 1960, my father—or Babe Boy as he was known—followed his older sister, Mary, to Boston, Massachusetts, who he really admired.

My parents were married in August of 1961. We lived in the south end or back bay area of Boston, Massachusetts. This was during the height of the civil rights era and was a dangerous time.

My first memories as a young child was around six years old. I remember my mother and father fighting physically and verbally. They were arguing all the time. Allegedly, my mother set my father up, reporting to the police that he was abusing her, causing him to be removed from the home. He was arrested and jailed. My mother would take me and my sister Robin on the subway to visit my father at the old Charlestown jail. I was very angry with my mother and this situation. I felt like she had taken my father away from me. I was hurt and resented my mother, but I was too young to express my thoughts and feelings.

I remember, one night, I was sneaking out of bed in the middle of the night. I saw a man in bed with my mother that was not my father. I knew that this was not right. I learned later on that this man was Fred Clark, my father’s best friend.

My father was released from jail and came back home. There were more arguing and fighting between my parents. At this time, my mother was expecting her third child—my baby brother, Reginald. My father was very angry as he did not believe that this child was his as he had been incarcerated for some time. My father was furious and denied that this child was his biological son. My brother was sent to live with my grandmother, Lucille White, in North Carolina.

I now had a little brother that was the result of a situation that had nothing to do with him, he was not able to live in the household with his other siblings. I felt that I was robbed by not having my brother live in the same household with me. All I knew was that I was angry with my mother and father. I was angrier with my mother. I felt that because she was caught with a man who was not my father; she bared more of the responsibility of the situation than my dad.

This gave me a view that woman could not be trusted. I believed that my brother, having to live somewhere else, would not have happened had my mother been a good wife. This was the beginning of my mistrust.

I remember sometime, around ages of six or seven, my mother became physically abusive toward me. In one incident, she threw a glass baby jar of food at me and cut me on my head. In another incident, she busted my head by hitting me with a belt buckle. Right after this happened, my father came from work. He went off on my mother for treating me in that manner. I was glad that he was home.

My father was my protector from my mother. When I was seven years old, my mother was so mad she took her anger out on me. She gave me a black eye. I thought I deserved it because I made her mad. I had to go to summer camp that year with a swollen black eye. I was teased by the kids in my neighborhood. I felt so embarrassed. I hated my mother for this abuse. The physical abuse stopped after this incident.

My father was back in