Jeremy, Jesus and the Beatles

Photos

Foreword

One strong metaphor we can all relate to is that of a journey. Every one of us can look back upon our lives as though it were a journey through times and seasons. There have been times of smooth travelling, and of course we have had our share of deep, dark valleys. Intersections represent those times when our serious choices and decisions have shaped us. Detours have often arisen from those choices and decisions, at times leading us far off the path. We have been to the mountaintops and gotten stuck in the mud at the bottom.

It’s important to take the time not only to review one’s own journey through life, but also to embark on other people’s journeys. At times we do this through family and friends, and at other times, such as with this book you are holding, we have the opportunity to travel with someone we may never have met. In this case, it’s Jeremy Woodley. Perhaps you’re one of those people who has a connection with Jeremy. Perhaps you’re someone who feels a strong connection because you’ve journeyed down similar paths.

In reviewing a life, we need to pick up the threads that connect all the seasons of life. For Jeremy, one of those threads is music. Consider how your own life could be illustrated through song.

And of course there is the abiding presence of God. Most of us can relate to the spiritual aspect of the journey, the times when God’s presence and guidance has been strong, and those other dry times when our faith has been challenged and we’ve wondered if God is still travelling with us. Yet the Shepherd is always there, calling us back to the path He desires for us to walk. He is there as Light. He is there through friends and those whom He places alongside us.

So take this journey through the life of Jeremy Woodley. Celebrate God’s presence in his life. Be thankful for those friends and supporters who have provided care. Sing along with Jeremy those great songs that have been the markers for our generation. Then return to your own journey, fortified by Jeremy’s story, so that you will know that in God’s hands you will be on the right path.

—Ted Creen, minister and author of

Get a Life!, Myrrh is Mine, and Say What?

Introduction

I’ve always wanted to write my life story, the tale of how I went from a childhood full of turmoil to living in a broken home and becoming addicted to alcohol and drugs, of how I left my hometown of Brantford and ended up in Owen Sound.

I’ll discuss the importance of my faith, music, and my relations with my family and friends, both my current ones and ones from the past, explaining why they mean so much to me, to this day. I didn’t see some of those people for many years, maybe even a decade or two, and then they reappeared. In each case, something they said or did has stood out to me.

I found Jesus on Friday, December 17, 2004. That’s the day I accepted Him in my heart as Lord and Saviour and became born again. That’s a day I’ll never forget. I’d always believed, but that day really pieced it all together for me. No one can tell me there’s no God.

I will illustrate how life can come full circle. I’ll share childhood memories, including my trouble at home, and write about the ways in which my friends in public school were a safe haven. I’ll also write about why staying in my room, listening to music, and daydreaming was the safest place for me.

In this book, I’ll share about an acid trip that got me into the Beatles, and how they ended up becoming my favourite band ever. I’ll also talk about hitting bottom, sobering up, going back to school, choosing to work in healthcare, working at the recovery home I originally went to for help, Christianity, and my burnout/depression, which led me to start my own business.

Also, after many, many years of not going to see the Leafs, Jays, or many concerts, I can now say that I’ve been to several concerts, many Jays games, and a handful of Leafs games. I’ve met famous people, including some heroes of mine such as Bret The Hitman Hart, Johnny Bower, and Mitch Marner.

Finally, I’ll discuss the loss of my mom, Tom Petty, and others who left my life too early.

Enjoy the read, and I hope you find it helpful, encouraging, and motivating. My goal is to show that anyone can overcome anything. Dreams do come true.

Through my story, you will be able to see how true God really is.

Chapter One

Life Is Great, But It Never Used to Be

I’m almost forty-two years old, and I’m going on eighteen years free of alcohol and drug addiction. I just take it one day at a time.

I was twenty-four when I left my hometown of Brantford. I didn’t know it at the time, but I would end up in Owen Sound. I’ve remained sober ever since. All I had when I arrived here, was a white grocery bag with pamphlets and a toothbrush that I’ve gotten from a detox clinic in Hamilton. I stayed at a recovery home in Owen Sound for seven months, and after a few months with a roommate I moved into the apartment where I still currently live. That’s the longest I’ve ever lived anywhere.

It’s been fourteen months now since I lost my mom, who passed away on November 26, 2016.

On the surface, 2017 was a good year. I met my favourite current hockey player, Mitch Marner, as well as Connor Brown of the Leafs on the same day. Later that year I met Roger Hodgson, formerly of Supertramp fame, who is one of my all-time favourite musicians and singers. I had listened to his music all my life, and then there he was in front of me.

On New Year’s Eve, when I posted about this on Facebook, many wrote things like Hard to top a year like that.

I saw Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers in Toronto last summer at the Air Canada Centre. Ten days before that, I saw Bob Dylan. There was a time in my life when I never got to see concerts, live hockey, or baseball games.

I’m fortunate to be alive. My mom nearly lost me during pregnancy. She did lose another one.

I ended up suffering from alcoholism and drugs for a decade, and the one thing in life I enjoyed was music. Many groups and singers have touched my heart, but none like the Beatles did. How could they inspire me as a teenager growing up in the 1990s? Well, they were singing about things I felt deep inside. Although they recorded their music in the 60s, their music is timeless, and they are still popular to this day.

I wasn’t raised in a Christian home, but I believed from afar and my family relations are great. I have an awesome kinship with my old man, even though there were lost years when we had little contact. Thanks to Facebook, several of my childhood friends and teachers have resurfaced. It’s interesting how life comes full circle.

Two years ago, when I was approaching my fortieth birthday, I felt depressed one day. Memories of my childhood friends came back to me, and for some reason I was saddened. Maybe it was sentimental, but I was bothered by the fact that I was still single. Then my friends Tyler and Cody reminded me of what I had done, and then I realized that, yeah, I had done a lot.

Here I am today, a young man from the Grand River, now enjoying life around Georgian Bay. God isn’t finished with me yet. The desires of my heart will be fulfilled.

Chapter Two

It Seemed Like a Good Start

My journey began Sunday, March 14, 1976 in Brantford, Ontario. I was born at 3:30 p.m. to Fred Woodley and Bev Froman. Brantford, known as the home of Wayne Gretzky, is named after Joseph Brant, who discovered the Grand River. Brantford is also known as the telephone city. Why? Because that’s where Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone.

Anyway, I’m of Native and German heritage. My mom was from Six Nations, and my dad’s great-great-great-great-grandfather emigrated from Germany. He first came to the United States to fight in the War of Independence, and then he migrated to Nova Scotia and settled in the Oakland area.

My mom was raised by her grandparents, Earl and Minnie Froman, who had eight kids and took my mom on when she was born to her biological mother. I knew Earl and Minnie as my grandparents, but they were really my great-grandparents. They raised my mom as one of their own.

Mom had a love for animals, cats especially. She wanted to be a vet and had the grades to do so, but she ended up leaving home for the city of Brantford and got in with the wrong crowd. My dad, already in Brantford, was young, in shape, strong, and tough. He loved to play guitar and get into fights. He had ambitions of becoming an electrician, but just like with my mom, booze and partying got in the way.

They first met through my Aunt Kathy, who had become friends with my mom somehow. Kathy brought her home for a visit one day, and my dad, Kathy’s brother, just happened to be there. He wore a muscle shirt and shorts, muscles sticking out, and had plenty of attitude.

From there, they began to see one another and hit it off. Soon Mom moved in with him and brought two cats. They lived above a bar then called The Alpine.

On my dad’s side of the family, I have two uncles, John and Jimmy, and two aunts, Karen and Kathy. His parents are named Russ and Marjorie. My Aunt Karen, the oldest, was living in London, Ontario at the time. She had lived there many years before relocating to Bruce Peninsula. Aunt Kathy, on the other hand, eventually left for Halifax, while Uncle Jimmy left for Calgary. Mom got along with all of them. They