Liquor Store Blues…What’s your vice?

Bruno Mars is a new artist who already has my fan card.  Although he is only 23 years old, his musical ability and lyrics are worthy of mention and admiration.  This latest single from his upcoming debut album “Doo Wops and Hooligans” hit me when I heard it because he speaks about one of the many vices that people run to when they are unhappy with their lives, alcohol.  I wonder what in our lives could be so unhealthy to our mental and spiritual well beings that we at times turn to an external source to numb the pain.  Quite possibly we could have a vice and not even realize it because it is so much easier to ignore the deeper issue inside and simply dismiss the vice as “having a good time”.

There have been many times when I have turned to a vice in order to drown my trouble, only to realize that the only way to obtain that true joy was to face whatever issue was driving me to this vice head on.  If that issue was a job I hated I had to make the conscious decision to leave because my happiness was more important than any amount of money I would receive from a job.  If it was a person in my life, whether a friend or companion, I had to find the strength to let that person go because I knew deep down that they were not what I needed in my life at the time.  Knowing when a persons season is up in your life can be hard, but if keeping that person in your life leads to abusing alcohol, drugs or even sex in order to escape from the pain then it is not worth it.

This song resonates with me as I am sure it resonates with many of you after hearing it.  The one topic that I will continue to stress throughout this blog is to never compromise your happiness in order to make someone else feel good.  There are enough blessings in this life to go around without you giving yours away in order to gain something that is of less value in retrospect.  I have had my share of nights when I had liquor store blues, but when I woke up the next morning the problem was still there and I had a terrible hangover.  Artificial satisfaction only lasts but for a second and after it goes away you will still have to face your problems until you are able to drown yourself once again in that artificial euphoria.

The pursuit of happiness is one that we should all be after.  Continual self evaluation is key in order to assess where you are in your life, how you can get better and what needs to be removed in order to get to where you need to be mentally, spiritually and physically.  There are many people wandering out in the world today who would rather ignore the issues inside of them instead of confront them.  Growing up in Brooklyn, I was thought to never run or back down from a situation that presented itself to me.  If I won’t run from others, then I shouldn’t attempt to run from myself either.  The truth hurts, but it can also free you from a cycle of self loathing.

Reflect on your life and state of being before you end up with the liquor store blues.

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