I promise you I don’t write these with solely alcoholics in mind, but here is a question that might be useful to the alcoholic: Did you know you don’t need alcohol to become extremely intoxicated? You can become intoxicated in a myriad of ways, the most notable way being a continual feeding of an insatiable ego. No alcohol is required to walk around all day bombed out of my freaking mind with the idea that I am more intelligent than another, better than another, deserve more than another, or better looking than another, which is a wild thought to have considering the fact that I know I’m a five-out-of-ten. That’s the thing about the ego, however, isn’t it? Maybe it’s the fault of competitive sports that I have a complex like the one described. The goal of sport is to be better than your opposition – better than the person you are playing against, and if you aren’t better than them, you do everything you can to bring that person down to your level.
Have you ever not done your homework, then when you get to class, and it’s time to turn the homework in, you look around the room hoping that somebody else hadn’t done theirs just so you aren’t the only asshole who didn’t? Well, I hope some of you “didn’t do your homework” in this case. I don’t need much out of the opposite sex, really. As a matter of fact, I only “need” one thing – to interact with this person for as long as it takes for me to believe that they like me, and after that, they can go on about their business. I’m not necessarily suggesting that I do this *now,* although I will catch myself from time to time, but I definitely did that a lot *then.* If I could convince somebody of a plethora of things that aren’t true while simultaneously boosting the insatiable ego, that was perfection in my eyes.
Okay, well, if you are at all like me, how do we combat this? We must deflate the ego with the pin of humility. I (or we) do not need to make ourselves feel better; we need to make others feel better, and the great thing about egotistical dickheads like us is that we know precisely how to do that. At least, we should. In the end, we are specks of dust within a 93 billion-light-year Universe. Imagine being a speck of dust (which is what we are) that thinks it’s more important than another speck of dust? Do ants crawl around thinking they are bigger than other ants or are they just ants? The largest ant of all the ants can get stepped on just the same. It is the same with us. Does it not feel this way when somebody offers us the slightest bit of criticism?
Today, if you feel the need to deflate the ego with the pin of humility like I do, may we pray something like this:
Lord, I am far too much influenced by what people think of me.
Which means that I am always pretending to be either richer or smarter or nicer than I really am.
Please prevent me from trying to attract attention.
Don’t let me gloat over praise on the one hand or be discouraged by criticism on the other.
Nor let me waste time weaving imaginary situations in which the most heroic, charming, witty person present is myself.
Show me how to be humble of heart like You.
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