WEEKLY MEDITATION
Everything in moderation—including moderation.
-Oscar Wilde
This playful but poignant quotation is yet another reminder that balance is important. Living a life propelled by addiction is the very opposite of living in moderation. The need to have that to which we are addicted runs roughshod over the ability to create a balanced life, one in which moderation can be used to temper unbridled passion with conscious living. Even in recovery, when the bonds to our worst addictions have been successfully severed, we may find ourselves rigidly attached to our recovery routines. And routine, although preferable to chaos, can even become addictive in itself, as it can seem to offer an impermeable barrier through which the old habits of destructive addiction cannot penetrate. For a while this type of routine may represent an important tool through which to experience consistency and self-discipline. But it is important, too, to make sure that even moderation is used in moderation, so that routine doesn’t simply become a slightly safer prison—a more acceptable addiction—still keeping us from enjoying all that a truly full life has to offer.
