My name is Jenny Jones. I am twenty eight years old. I have a beautiful eighteen month old daughter named Erin Mary. She shows no side effects from crystal meth, yet. I have to believe that she won't.

I started doing crystal meth three years ago. I found it was much cheaper than cocaine and everyone had it. I started to get into stealing cars and trucks - stripping them down. I got arrested and charged for one of them. I went to probation and I kept breaking my parole because I had to lie bout having a home address. I lived on the streets. Ya - Me. I had a beautiful home before and everything I ever wanted. A beautiful sports car, beautiful furniture... And here I was having to lie to police about having an address. I said I was living in Abbotsford because that was the only person I knew with an address. I could make it to Abbotsford to the parole offices. So there I was - having to run from the cops - scared they would put me in jail.

I really became a different person. So much so that I forgot about my hopes and dreams, my family. It is unbelievable that crystal meth could take so much away from me. I slept in the Salvation Army when I wasn't sleeping in clothing drop boxes - you know the ones you donate clothes to. I became pregnant. I didn't even know I was until I was four months. I thought I had a bad flue. I tried to slit my wrists at least twice. I was really messed up.

If it hadn't been for the Salvation Army and the good work they do, I would never have met two amazing strangers who made themselves available to be my friends. Gord would take me to the Court House and promise not to let the officers put me in jail. He even went as far as bailing me out of jail. His beautiful wife, Mary Robson, took me to the doctor for the first time. I was so high I could barely sit still in her van. I clearly remember telling the doctor that I would not be high the next time he saw me. I remember how scared I was of Mary finding out and not wanting to help me anymore. I asked the doctor not to tell her and promised again that I would not do it. So that was the last time I was high.

Mary and Gord Robson were the only friends I had. They truly gave me my baby's life and my own back. Mary was there my whole pregnancy. She bought me clothes, took me lunch, made sure I had enough food for the day and she always somehow made me feel beautiful and reminded me how good it was to smile. I saw Gord at the Salvation Army every day. It felt like seeing a rainbow after a storm. He was always smiling and teasing me. I would like to take a very special minute to thank the Robsons for sharing themselves with me and to thank the good people at the Salvation Army. ....Thank you.

My story doesn't end here unfortunately.

I had my baby and the fight was on. Social Services tried their hardest to take her away from me, but having Gord and Mary was like having an army on my side. So to make it short, we fought with all the love we had and I went home to Campbell River with my daughter. Mary and Gord are baby Erin's God Parents and wonderful at it. We visit once a month.

One year from last Saturday, my younger brother Cory passed away in my mother's arms at her house. She had been taking care of him for eight months. He had found a lump in his throat about four months before he got help. Cory had nasal cancer. The doctor said it had most likely been caused by Crystal Meth. Cory had been 21 years young. I say that because he was my baby brother.

Three months ago I found a lump on my throat while I was blowing drying my hair for school. Shortly after that I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. That means cancer contained to the lymph nodes. So I gave up my apartment, quit school, moved in with a family member and started coming here to Victoria for chemotherapy once every 15 days. It just so happens that I'm coming to the same place as my brother Cory did.

You have no idea how scared I have been for my daughter. I mean really what would happen to her, where would she go. I truly believed that I would not make it. Every 15 days I would come home sick, would have to take three different kinds of medication and try my hardest to be stronger. So there I was. I had decided that baby Erin would go to the Robson's and I would just have to try not to ever cry.

At my last visit to Victoria, the doctor told me that I would only have to come one more time then start radiation. He would like me to get a cat scan. It is his belief that I will make it. He changed the odds from seventy-thirty to eighty-twenty. Right away I felt very angry. They told this to my mom who has already lost one child. She looked like she was going to float out the window. How could she believe them? I couldn't. And to tell you all the truth, I really don't have the strength to believe it. I don't believe it.

Thank you for listening to my story and thank you to the Salvation Army and all the people who have helped me get my life back. And most of all
I love you Baby Erin - Jenny

Sewer Rats (Crystal Meth Poem)
Rats, rats manufacturing sewer rats,
Turning ordinary people, into much less than that.
One puff on the pipe and out into the night,
Goes a good man or woman
So high ñ canít be right.

Rat, rats, theyíre making sewer rats
Digging for treasures, thru garbage, this and that.
Scrounging for morsels, pushing carts full of tin,
Rat rats, making sewer rats
another cycle - begins.

Stealing the stolen, from this cart or that
There seems no way out, for the newly made rats,
Tarps in the bushes, a place they call home,
But deep down inside, theyíre forever alone.

Gone are the days of family picnics & P.N.E.,
Now replacing that fun are a string of B & Eís
Theyíll steal what they can, as the king rat demands
Oh what a shame, this shell, left of man.

Gone are the days of the lake and the beach,
Now a 3 day old donut is found for a treat
Like pirates they roam, but on land not on sea,
And all that remains, is a brain like swiss cheese.

Rats, theyíre making sewer rats,
Turning ordinary people into much less than that
One puff on the pipe, is all that it takes
Please pay close attention ñ donít make that mistake.

Sandy Watkins October 2005 (s.watkins@shaw.ca)

The following was written by a young girl who was in jail for drug charges, and was addicted to methamphetamine (meth).

She wrote this while in jail. As you will soon read, she fully grasped the horrors of the drug, as she tells in this simple, yet profound poem. She was released from jail, but, true to her story, the drug owned her.

Apparently they found her dead not long after, with the needle still in her arm. Please keep praying. This thing is worse than any of us realize.

I AM METH

I destroy homes, I tear families apart,
I take your children, and that's just the start.

I'm more costly than diamonds, more precious than gold,
The sorrow I bring is a sight to behold.

If you need me, remember I'm easily found,
I live all around you - in schools and in town

I live with the rich, I live with the poor,
I live down the street, and maybe next door.

I'm made in a lab, but not like you think,
I can be made under the kitchen sink.

In your child's closet, and even in the woods,
If this scares you to death, well it certainly should.

I have many names, but there's one you know best,
I'm sure you've heard of me, my name is crystal meth.

My power is awesome, try me you'll see,
But if you do, you may never break free.

Just try me once and I might let you go,
But try me twice, and I'll own your soul.

When I possess you, you'll steal and you'll lie,
You do what you have to -- just to get high.

The crimes you'll commit for my narcotic charms
Will be worth the pleasure you'll feel in your arms.

You'll lie to your mother, you'll steal from your dad,
When you see their tears, you should feel sad.

But you'll forget your morals and how you were raised,
I'll be your conscience, I'll teach you my ways.

I take kids from parents, and parents from kids,
I turn people from God, and separate friends.

I'll take everything from you, your looks and your pride,
I'll be with you always -- right by your side.

You'll give up everything - your family, your home,
Your friends, your money, then you'll be alone.

I'll take and take, till you have nothing more to give,
When I'm finished with you, you'll be lucky to live.

If you try me be warned - this is no game,
If given the chance, I'll drive you insane.

I'll ravish your body, I'll control your mind,
I'll own you completely, your soul will be mine.

The nightmares I'll give you while lying in bed,
The voices you'll hear, from inside your head.

The sweats, the shakes, the visions you'll see,
I want you to know, these are all gifts from me.

But then it's too late, and you'll know in your heart,
That you are mine, and we shall not part.

You'll regret that you tried me, they always do,
But you came to me, not I to you.

You knew this would happen, many times you were told,
But you challenged my power, and chose to be bold.

You could have said no, and just walked away,
If you could live that day over, now what would you say?

I'll be your master, you will be my slave,
I'll even go with you, when you go to your grave.

Now that you have met me, what will you do?
Will you try me or not? It's all up to you.

I can bring you more misery than words can tell,
Come take my hand, let me lead you to hell.

Judy West