Watson surrounded by his La Casa teammates
“It’s about helping people think, to care about themselves and care about other people. We may be going through a rough time in life and we want to give up, but Back on My Feet gives us the motivation to keep going, to turn my life around. I’m a living example. Get involved, see what you can do to help other people, any way you can. But also to help yourself. We all go through ups and downs, and tribulations. It’s a good way to overcome problems, there is always someone there who will listen. That’s what a lot of people need sometimes, just someone to listen.”
This is what Watson M. had to say when I asked him what he wanted other people to know about Back on My Feet. As with many of our members, you first need to know who someone is, and where they have been in order to understand the weight that their words carry.
Born and raised in Washington, DC. He grew up with his father and his four older sisters, and a large extended family that was always around and always gave him a lot of attention. But somewhere deep inside of Watson there was anger and animosity. He was frustrated at growing up in public housing projects, with the racial and economic oppression faced in the 50’s and 60’s, as well as with the peer pressure and bullying he faced. Internalizing this pain and discontent with few healthy outlets, Watson turned to robbery when he was a teenager. A couple of years in jail with little focus on rehabilitation didn’t help him turn his life around after he got out. In fact, after he got out things became worse. He turned to drugs and alcohol to deal with the difficult things he was going through. Like for many others, drugs and alcohol became an outlet for him. While using he was able to suppress the insecurities he dealt with, fears no longer got the best of him as he self medicated in an effort to manage his pain.
This quick fix only brought more trouble into Watson’s life. A cycle of robbery, drugs, and incarceration enveloped his life for the next four decades. 2005 is when he found the beginning of a new sense of self. Surprisingly, he found this beginning in jail. Watson had finally reached a point where he was simply tired. Tired of abusing his body, tired of the cycle he found himself and tired of being unable to emotionally handle what his life was. When he found himself at this point, he prayed. He prayed for God to help him, to give him a path to help himself. In 2005 he went back to jail, but inside he was able to talk to someone and was able to begin the process of healing and recovery.
The process will not be quick, and it will not be easy, but neither of those things are going to keep Watson from being successful. In 2010 when Watson left prison he didn’t turn back to old habits, he didn’t go about dealing with things on his own, instead he sought out support with a willingness to try something new to help him turn his life around. At the Back on My Feet presentation held at La Casa in October of last year Watson was all questions. He wanted to know what the program had to offer him, how he could get involved, and if it was ok that he hadn’t been on a run in a few years. He saw Back on My Feet as an opportunity to get into something positive, to try something new. Where he used to regret past mistakes Watson decided instead to focus his energy on changing the things that he has going on in his life now.
For Watson, Back on My Feet provides motivation and support when it was needed most. “I’ve set goals, I have things I intend to do, and I try to not let anything get in the way. Back on My Feet has helped me keep trying to do the things I need to do. It helps me with my mental strength, and it helps me emotionally. I can’t seem to do without it.”
That strength and focus was needed while Watson trained for the SunTrust National Half Marathon. At the age of 62, Watson trained for and successfully completed the race in March of this year. Through the ups and downs of training, foot injuries, illness and never enough sleep, Watson kept his mental focus and worked towards his goal of finishing the race! “I was afraid I wasn’t going to run it. But I said don’t stop, don’t quit. I surprised me. I was able to finish the whole race without stopping.”
“I’m always trying to achieve something, keep moving forward and achieve something better. I’m looking to make Back on My Feet a lifetime commitment. It helped me, it helped me change the way I feel about myself and about people it can help anyone. I never thought I’d turn out to be anything, but I’m proud to be me. I’m proud to be Watson.”
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