Human experience can be lonely and miserable. Some choices we make are simple moments of lessons learned and heeded, while others can thrust us into the deepest pit of suffering and despair in the blink of an eye. Help does not come easy, and clawing at the mud that is addiction makes for a lifelong struggle searching for stable ground. This collection captures the essence of relapse, chaos, and collapse, as cries for help are ignored and attempts to recover are met with indifference.

It explores the hopelessness and breakdown experienced by those battling addiction, shedding light on the stigma that haunts them.

Addiction shows no mercy or remorse; it tracks every failure, as the suffering becomes fodder for those immune to it. The bottom dwellers are mocked, their struggles turned into jokes behind closed doors, while their dignity is forgotten. "Valedictorian of the Bottom Feeders" is the third book in Miller's poetry series "Destined, but...," aiming to expose the harsh truths and emotions tied to the bitterness and spitefulness of today's world.

This chapbook offers a perspective from the depths, looking up through the harsh glare of judgment. It reveals the desperate attempts to keep up with societal pressures, even as we are consumed by addiction. The poems capture the guilt and toxicity that stain our fingers, as we sacrifice hope for the lure of dope, straying from the path of redemption to spiral further into darkness.

It's easy to get lost in the emotion; as the reader, you possess the ability to choose to leave. We, however, do not.