In 1990, Mental Health Awareness Week was established by the U.S. Congress in recognition of efforts by the National Alliance on Mental Illness to educate and increase awareness about mental illness. It takes place every year during the first full week of October.
This month is a fitting time to read first-time author David Pruitt’s memoir, “Relative Distance,” about one man’s journey of faith and restorative resilience.
I will share with readers from the outset that the subject matter is not pretty, particularly for those of you who have no personal connection with the effects of childhood abuse, homelessness, and mental illness.
Not Worth Nothing
According to data collected by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, between 2015 and 2017, 61 percent of adults in America today reported being abused in some manner, either verbally, sexually, violently, or as victims of neglect as children. One in six adults experienced four or more types of childhood abuse. And most live in silence.Generally, when a statistic of staggering numbers is shared, the general reaction is to sigh and count your blessings that you are not among those numbers or know anyone who is. Numbers can be numbing and difficult to relate to in mind and heart.
But the poignancy and connection are made when we hear the story of one of those numbers: one of those individuals. It is then that we are touched emotionally and spiritually.
This is one man’s memoir which includes the fates of his two brothers, and will leave readers with an uplifting message of hope and renewal. But the path—his path—was not taken easily. It is not one that many might have the courage to venture on or believe they have the fortitude to try.
David Pruitt didn’t have to write this book. It’s his story and it’s one that reveals an unhappy childhood, a youth where the overriding message was that he wasn’t worth anything. He made the decision to put his painful past on the pages of a published book in the hope of helping countless others who have lived in darkness with monsters not of their creation.
Two Paths, Two Trajectories
Raised in North Carolina, David Pruitt is the youngest of three sons. His brothers, Billy and Danny, share similar experiences of verbal and physical abuse by an overbearing father as they grow up in the early ‘80s. During this time, their mother suffers from mental illness; she hears strange voices and is most remembered for her vacant stares and detachment.Early on, the dysfunction is handled by divorce, and soon the boys have a stepmother, Helen. While she attempts to diffuse the violent nature of her husband, she is not able, or willing, to provide a permanent shield.
Fear is a constant given and, while all three at times resist, their most vivid memories are being laid low in body and spirit by an unrelenting and unforgiving father. Their desire for unconditional love and approval goes unrewarded.
The narrative predominately follows the fates of two of those brothers: Danny and David (the author).
Danny hits the homelessness trail for decades. After dropping out of high school, his skills exceed in street survival and shelter hopping. He can jump onto a freight train. He can outrun the threat of a backpack bad guy.
David could follow the same path, but he has several epiphanies. His path takes him out of a hellish household and into the hallways of the University of North Carolina. He becomes a first-generation college graduate from UNC Greensboro.
Attaining his CPA license, he starts his business career in an entry-level accounting position. Continually bolstering his own mental and spiritual stamina through good mentors and a strong belief in God, he accepts a job with Performance Bike.
Moving Forward
Retired in 2016 from corporate America, the author decided to share his story and began work on this book. His life as an abused child could have left him permanently scarred, but he learned how to overcome these obstacles and propelled himself into a successful business career.Along the way, he created and cultivated a family of his own: a loving and supportive wife and two sons. These sons do not suffer the fate of their father. That cycle is broken.
Pruitt not only shares his story, but he also leaves readers with a to-do list of powerful suggestions. Lifelong challenges from facing abuse don’t have to be a life sentence. Harsh, hurtful experiences can be lessons.
They can open the doors to limitless possibilities through determination and faith.
