ADDICTION. Whenever the word comes up,
it brings to mind images of junkies and alcoholics, passed out on some high.
Indeed, as one dictionary puts it “It is a habit or practice, that damages,
jeopardizes or shortens one’s life but when ceases causes trauma”. If you are
being truthful to yourself, most of you agree with this definition as this is
what most of us think about addiction. We hear addiction and all that comes to
mind is negatives. Well here’s a shocker, I don’t fully agree with that
description. If this were a questionnaire, I would tick the box that says
“strongly disagree”.
I would rather align myself with the
definition that describes addiction as “the state of being enslaved to a habit
or practice that is psychologically or physically habit forming, to such an
extent that its cessation causes trauma”. Pause. Now go back and read that
sentence, it makes mention of habit forming. I believe that addiction can
either be good or bad, positive or negative. ~as we all know, there are always
two sides to a story, two sides to a coin and the same can be said for
addiction.
If I may be bold to say, scratch that, I
am bold enough to say that I am an addict. Yes, you read that right, I am an
addict and my addiction is READING. *laughs*. What were you expecting?? Drugs?
Alcohol? Stealing? NO, my poison is reading. When I say reading, I am not
referring to academic books, nah, I have what can only be referred to as a
love-hate relationship. I love when exams are on the horizon and hate once it’s
passed. My reading addiction has to do mainly with fictional work, I love to
lose myself in the stories of men and women whose imaginations and thinking
patterns have transcended the plane of the normal man. To lose myself in a
world where anything and everything happens. I revel in the ups and downs, the
sorrows and the rejoicing, the heartbreaks and the makeups. I always find
myself connecting with the people in the books and the environments, it is my
drug and I don’t see myself letting go anytime soon.
Of late, I find myself digressing from
fantasy and into real world principles from those who have gone before. I have
developed an interest in motivational and inspirational books and hopefully
it’s not just a passing phase. But that is beside the point, what I am trying
to get across to you, is the fact that not every addiction needs to be bad as I
have once heard a notable man of God say “I am addicted to preaching the word
of God”. Of course, most addictions that we know of are, but not everyone needs
to be. You can have an addiction that is beneficial to your life, that one
thing that you can’t do without that has no negative effect on your life and
the people around you. Find that habit, and make it your addiction. Repeat it
as often as possible until it becomes a part of your person.
However, be careful what you make your
addiction. Any one single addiction can be your downfall and any one single
addiction can be your launching point. The choice is yours, choose wisely and
you will grow, choose poorly and you will languish. A word they say, is enough
for the wise.
Awesome write-up...
ReplyDelete