"In Time a Reckoning" by Thomas Gery

 – an undercurrent of wildness

Years became decades with the uniform of respectability worn only with effort.

Thomas Gery, a common man with uncommon experiences lives in Berks County, Pennsylvania. He served in the U.S. Army with duty in Vietnam. As a social worker he helped children, youth, and adults in a variety of practice venues and situations throughout a work life of 40 years. Married with two adult children and two grandchildren, he is currently writing his life’s story to provide answers to questions his kids will never ask. His first essay appeared in Personal Story Publishing Project—Lost & Found, 2023. 

Author’s Talk

Thomas Gery

I write for my daughter and son, and my benefit. I’m midway between two decades with more days done than not.  

Explaining, not excusing, failure requires strength to acknowledge weakness. 

In Time A Reckoning ends with my beginning a journey of sobriety. The narrative starts in the early years of addiction describing my life under the influence. It’s new information for my audience of two. I benefit by describing flaws.  

My life’s tapestry is woven-through with relationships, events, successes and missteps. It is a minuscule thread in the expansive, complex, and colorful fabric labeled “boomer generation.” I am attempting to describe person in situation. Reviewing my past is an examination of conscience with an added feature of recognizing the positive. The words offer opportunities to peer behind the curtain, to draw some conclusions, perhaps avoid some pitfalls. During the process I exercise the brain, apply discipline to retirement, and stay true to my commitment. Sobriety is one day at a time, lived transparently, infused with humility. 

Certainly, ego is involved; it contributes incentive to the mission. I desire for the record to reflect how events and circumstances of my time helped to influence me, for better and worse. And I want to leave that testimony behind. 

The Vietnam War was a signature event in our nation’s history. It had a momentous impact on my life during and after service. My story captures the ignorance of youth, the wisdom of age, and the value in understanding both. Comprehending how an uncommon experience effected a common man, then a boy, has allowed me to leave behind unwanted baggage. There were years of pretending and denial. Lessons are learned from failure. My hope by writing is to illuminate past darkness and light the road now traveled.—Thomas Gery