Credit: https://freerangestock.com/photos/7953/girl-with-white-blanket.html

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We are asked to interpret the image above and to write an article on it.

As soon as I saw the picture it made me think of my childhood friend. It's taken me over a day to sit and write this as it is still so painful.

We met when we around 8 or 9 years old and we were absolutely inseparable. She only lived around the corner from me, so I was always found at her house. Or when I wasn't there, she was round at mine.

We stayed close for the best part of 30 years, there were a few years where we were closer than others. You know what it's like, when one of you is in a relationship and the other isn't, your lives kind of run on different lines and things aren't as close.

But she was always there for me.

Like I was always there for her.

She'd always been a bit of a wild child. Even when we were so so young, she would be the one that would suggest bunking off school or she was the one that would suggest getting up to mischief.

Around 15 years ago, we were both in a little bit of a bad way having big home through some bad times, but we stuck together and we supported one another, and I knew this rough patch was just the same as any other tough patch and so it would pass.

We started spending much more time together. She practically moved into my home with me in the evenings and at the weekends. We spent most of our time together, sitting and chatting and drinking. Sometimes just sitting. We would often go out together to the cinema or to a pub or to a show. But always together.

We were each other's support.

I knew we were going to get through this.

But then things started to change. She wasn't coming over so much. And then she wasn't even answering her phone to me. I was upset because I liked spending time with her, but at the same time I understood that it probably meant that she was getting over what she was going through, so I was happy for her.

I kept in contact and invited her over regularly, I invited her to the places we always used to go, but she rarely responded to my texts or calls.

I didn't have any other friends, so I started going to the places on my own. It was fine.

One night in a pub, I saw her. We spoke. She was there on her own. I didn't understand why she had ignored my invitation for us to go somewhere together, just to then go there alone. It hurt.

I still saw her on rare occasions. She still came round from time to time. But something wasn't right. Her behaviour was odd, she was paranoid, irritable and would absolutely fly into a rage over nothing.

It got to the point where I wouldn't hear from her for over a month. And then I would randomly hear from her asking "can I come round now". If I said no, even if it was because she was asking me at 11am on a Tuesday when I was at work, she would fly into a rage, sending me hurtful spiteful text messages telling me I was an awful friend, and then I wouldn't hear from her for another month.

I know now that she was an addict. Her life was completely ruined by addiction. She was floored by it.

Addiction can ruin a person.

Thank you for reading my tale.