Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Converted
    Converted
    Converted
    Ebook137 pages2 hours

    Converted

    By Barry Holcomb

    5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    I sat down and cut off a little piece and snorted it, I didn’t feel anything. Maybe I did not do enough, so I cut off another piece.
    When the nurses and guards carried me out of the cell they pronounced me dead and pulled a sheet over my head.
    I felt myself surrounded in a blackness that cannot be explained with words. I felt like I was completely alone and drifting into deeper blackness. I knew without a doubt I was going to hell.
    When I came to in the ambulance the first thought that went through my mind was “thank you God.”
    The one thing I knew for sure was I had to reevaluate my thoughts on what it meant to be saved from the fires of hell, because what I thought I knew was wrong.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBarry Holcomb
    Release dateJun 9, 2014
    ISBN9781311349132
    Converted
    Author

    Barry Holcomb

    Barry J. Holcomb is an inmate at Crossroads Correction Center in Cameron Missouri. Barry has been in the New Leash on Life (NLOL) dog program for a number of years. The dog program affords inmates like Barry the unique opportunity to train dogs from the local rescue shelters. The dogs that come into the NLOL program are assigned to a set of offenders. The three of them live together in the prison. From that moment on the dog stays with one of the offenders pretty much at all times. The offenders have a kennel in their cell where the dog sleeps at night.The dog program is completely run on donations from the public. No Federal, State, or City tax dollars go to the dog program. The donations received allow the offenders and dogs to be provided with everything they will need for training; i.e. food, toys, treats, kennels, blankets, towels and much more that goes into the training of the dogs. The dogs usually stay with the offenders for a period of thirty to ninety days. Once the dogs pass their Canine Good Citizen Test, they are put up for adoption. Some of the dogs are chosen to receive additional training to be service dogs.Barry has trained an assortment of dogs during his years in the NLOL program. Most of the dogs he trains go to homes where they are lifelong pets. He has also trained dogs for Search and Rescue. He has trained comfort dogs. One of which went to a Veteran suffering from P.T.S.D. The day the Vet met his new dog was the first day the man had smiled since returning from war. Now he and his dog are inseparable, and he smiles a lot more. Barry has trained service dogs for people in wheel chairs and for people who walk with canes and other disabilities.Being in prison has given Barry the time to study an assortment of different training techniques. It has also allowed him to watch the techniques other inmate use for training. Barry has found that the most successful methods for dog training are the reward-based techniques. The techniques in this book are what Barry uses on every dog that he trains. Over the years, Barry has learned that every dog is different, and all dogs require the trainer to possess and use a different level of patience.Of all the dogs Barry has worked with; one always stands out in his mind. Karma, she is a full-blood Husky. When she got to the NLOL program, she was on her last leg. If she did not make it in the program, she was probably going to be put down. There was a twenty-minute meeting that took place between the heads of NLOL program before Karma was let into the program. Barry was told that if she had one incident she would be sent back to the pound. Karma had been through four other professional trainers at the shelter who could not do anything with her. She was wild and refused to listen to anything anyone said. She would turn and chew on anyone who tried to get her to do something she did not want to do. She would chew their hands and arms until they let her go do what she wanted to do. Karma spent seventy days working with Barry. At the end of their time together Karma was one of the top dogs in the program. She passed her Masters test (one of the top skill levels) before being adopted to a home where she is currently a loving pet to a family. She minds them very well, and the family would not get rid of her for all the money in the world.Being in the NLOL program has given Barry the opportunity to work with everything from very aggressive, to scared and timid dogs, and everything in-between. The techniques in this book have worked on all the dogs he has worked with. The NLOL program has taught Barry that the only thing a person needs to train a dog is patience and some good treats. The one thing he tells everyone attempting to train a dog; or who takes home one of his dogs is; REMEMBER SLOWER IS ALWAYS FASTER WHEN TRAINING YOUR DOG!If you have any questions about this book or training your dog, you can contact Barry at:Barry J. Holcomb 514068C.R.C.C.1115 E. Pence RdCameron Missouri 64429Money from the sales of this book will be donated to NLOL dog program and local animal shelters.

    Related to Converted

    Related ebooks

    Religious Biographies For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Q&A Percy Daggs III

      Mar 26, 2022

      Q&A Percy Daggs III
      5 min read

    • Article

      Joe Wicks

      May 23, 2022

      Joe Wicks
      5 min read

    • Article

      My Path to Redemption

      Mar 26, 2022

      My Path to Redemption
      6 min read

    • Article

      After Prison, I Became a Better Dad

      Jun 14, 2019

      “Even when a parent has been part of a child’s pain, that parent’s love can still be the antidote.”

      6 min read

    • Article

      When Your Dad Gets Locked Up—And Then Deported

      May 11, 2018

      I crossed the border from Mexico with my parents when I was 6 years old. I remember walking for a day and a half and wading through a river. I remember sitting on my dad’s shoulders, feeling his skin peeling and blistering. In Mexico, we had worked

      5 min read

    • Article

      Everybody Has A Story

      Feb 2, 2020

      Everybody Has A Story
      5 min read

    • Article

      The End Of The Line

      Mar 26, 2019

      The End Of The Line
      7 min read

    • Article

      My Life Was A LIE

      Jul 28, 2020

      My Life Was A LIE
      5 min read

    • Article

      The List

      Jul 30, 2021

      The List
      6 min read

    • Article

      60 Seconds That Changed My Life

      Feb 5, 2023

      DATE: December 2D, 1999, 8:15pm EVENT: Writer and broadcaster BENJAMIN LAW comes out to his mum about his sexuality. I GREW UP on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, the last mainland state in Australia to decriminalise homosexuality. That meant for a

      3 min read

    • Article

      60 Seconds That Changed My Life

      Feb 5, 2023

      DATE: December 2D, 1999, 8:15pm EVENT: Writer and broadcaster BENJAMIN LAW comes out to his mum about his sexuality. I GREW UP on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, the last mainland state in Australia to decriminalise homosexuality. That meant for a

      3 min read

    • Article

      Strength Training

      Mar 25, 2023

      Strength Training
      7 min read

    • Article

      FACING loneliness

      Oct 7, 2023

      FACING loneliness
      6 min read

    • Article

      ‘I Hate my Reality’

      Jul 22, 2022

      ‘I Hate my Reality’
      11 min read

    • Article

      Pops&Me

      Oct 1, 2021

      Pops&Me
      7 min read

    • Article

      Denise Mina

      Jul 11, 2022

      Denise Mina
      5 min read

    • Article

      Not Just For CHRISTMAS

      Nov 17, 2021

      Hello, anyone at home?’ I recognise my best friend’s voice, of course. Diane and I have been besties for 33 years. We met on our first day at the local comprehensive. Thrown together through a lottery of names, we stayed together because we made eac

      9 min read

    • Article

      Married With Benefits

      Apr 13, 2019

      Married With Benefits
      18 min read

    • Article

      The End Is Near

      Jul 31, 2022

      The End Is Near
      3 min read

    • Article

      Loving Our Children For WHO THEY REALLY ARE

      Sep 29, 2020

      Caroline Martin, 62, is from Lincolnshire. As soon as he started school, my little boy changed from being happy and carefree to quiet and withdrawn. He would cry at night and be in sheer terror whenever the school holidays ended. I’d ask him what wa

      4 min read

    • Article

      Permanent Resident

      Apr 27, 2017

      Permanent Resident
      5 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Converted

    5/5

    1 rating0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Converted - Barry Holcomb

      CONVERTED

      I Thought I Was a Christian, But I Went To Hell

      By Barry J. Holcomb

      Published at Smashwords by

      Midnight Express Books

      CONVERTED

      I Thought I Was a Christian, But I Went To Hell

      Smashwords Edition

      Copyright © 2014 by Barry J. Holcomb

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission of the author.

      Smashwords License Statement

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Published at Smashwords by

      Midnight Express Books

      POBox 69

      Berryville AR 72616

      (870) 210-3772

      MEBooks1@yahoo.com

      SPECIAL THANKS

      This book is dedicated to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you Lord for giving me an undeserved second chance at life and salvation. Thank you Mom for always being there for me no matter how bad I messed up. To my beautiful daughter Brittnie. I know we have never had a traditional father, daughter relationship, yet we have made the best of what we have. I am incredibly proud of you. It has given me great pleasure watching you grow into a young woman. You will always be daddy’s little girl. Cody, I love you son and pray God will keep you and bless you.

      INTRODUCTION

      This book tells the story of a man who lived his life trying to fill the void in his heart with the things of the world. Drugs, women, and money were the only things he was concerned with. This led him into a life of crime.

      His life of crime came to an abrupt halt one night when in a drunken pill-induced stupor he took the life of the woman he loved and their unborn son. He was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison for his crime.

      In prison, his drug use got worse and worse until the night he went too far and died from a heroin overdose.

      Barry had spent his life ‘believing’ the story he heard about Jesus and he thought he was a Christian. The night he died he stood at the gates of hell waiting to enter and found out he had been fooling himself. Not only was he not a Christian, but he was on his way to hell. A second chance at life compelled Barry to dedicate his life to Jesus.

      Now he is sure he is a Christian and he lives every day of his life in grateful service to the Lord that has filled the void in his heart and shown him undeserved mercy.

      CHAPTER 1 – The Beginning

      Hello, my name is Barry Holcomb. I came into this world on October 29th, 1972. My parents were married after my mom got pregnant with me, and they were divorced before I was out of diapers. The old saying about it taking a village to raise a kid was true in my case. My mom was only 17 when she had me so she needed help taking care of me. My mom is the youngest of four, with three older brothers. Thanks to her brothers and her mom, we survived my toddler years. My mom is a strong woman and did what it took to take care of me the best she could. My dad had gone his own way after the divorce. With the exception of a few occasions I was not around him until I was in my teens. My mom used to let me go to his parent’s house and they would watch me from time to time. They would take me to church on Sundays, while I was at their house. That was when I was first introduced to Jesus.

      When I was three my mom got remarried to a man who called himself Bubba. He did not think I needed to go around my dad’s family any more. So my trips to Grandma and Grandpa Holcomb’s pretty much came to an end.

      I still went down there every once in a while. My mom made sure I went down there for Easter so they could take me to church if she did not take me. Easter and funerals were the only times my mom went to church. Although my mom and Bubba both believed in God, God was not a part of our everyday lives on any level.

      My dad refused to pay any child-support or have anything to do with me, so Bubba figured I would be better off without any of the Holcomb’s in my life. He decided he was going to be my dad. I don’t remember when it happened, but I started calling him dad.

      Bubba was from southern Louisiana. He was of the school of thought that children were to be seen and not heard. He also believed his belt was the answer for every mistake I made. It seemed like he found a reason to whip me with that belt three of four times a week. I never will forget the sound his belt buckle made when he took it off. His belt was made of thick leather, and the buckle had two prongs on it that rang like a bell as he walked down the hall toward my room. What started out as fear quickly became hatred for both that belt, and him. I am a believer in spanking a child, but the consequences for over doing it can be very great. The sad thing is, I believe he like most people who abuse their kids, actually thought what he was doing was right. As I said earlier, my mom was young when she had me. So she really did not know any better herself, and her dad had punished her brothers the same way. Although I do not blame the treatment I received as a child for how I turned out, I do blame it for teaching me how to hate, and not fear consequences for my actions. After a while I became used to getting whipped, and I did not care about consequences for doing wrong.

      Growing up, I was the kid who was always the first to try something. If someone built a ramp, I tested it out. I was the first kid on my block to smoke a cigarette. It usually did not take long for the neighbors to figure out I was not the best kid for their kid to hang out with. By the time I was 8 or 9, I became immune to the belt. I lost all fear of it and what it represented. I figured I was going to get it at least a couple times a week anyway, so I might as well do as I pleased. Don’t get me wrong I was not blatantly disrespectful and I did everything possible to get away with my antics. It did not take me long to figure out I could be the cool kid if I took everything a step further than the next kid was willing to go.

      On top of being an extreme disciplinarian, Bubba was an alcoholic and marijuana addict. When he and my mom first got married he had a good job and worked regularly. His drinking and pot smoking led to him losing a couple of good jobs. Sometimes he would not work for months at a time. I think the longest he went without working was two years. This caused us to have to move around all the time. People are kind of funny about not wanting you to live in their houses if you don’t pay the rent. A few times we would have to live with family or friends. Bubba’s alcohol problem caused my mom and him to fight more than they got along. Many times their battles turned physical and on more than one occasion I found myself in the middle of it. They would split up for awhile then get back together again. While they were separated I would usually go stay with one of my uncles or my mom’s dad,

      Grandpa A.J. This was an ongoing pattern until they finally split up when I was thirteen. I never could figure out why none of my mom’s brothers would come rescue us. I guess they figured she was a big girl and could take care of herself.

      After they split up my mom thought it would be a good idea for me to get re-acquainted my dad’s family. My dad’s brother Gary, (my mom and dad both have brothers named Gary) would let me come and spend weekends with him and his wife. I think my dad was in Texas at that time. I was told he went there to avoid paying child-support. My Uncle Gary had nice cars and the best clothes and shoes on the market. His pockets were always full of money. He had more friends than I could count. There was always people coming in and out of his house and they all seemed to look up to Gary. It did not take me long to figure out Uncle Gary was a drug dealer. It wasn’t long before he was letting me smoke pot with him and his friends. He thought it was funny to get me stoned, and I thought it made me cool. He became someone I wanted to be like. My mom and all her brothers worked hard for their money. Working no longer seemed like a good idea. I finally knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wanted to be a drug dealer.

      CHAPTER 2 – The Go-Cart

      My mom did not have any idea

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1