Bad habits are a lot like kudzu in that they tend to sleep, creep, and leap. For those of you unfamiliar with kudzu, I have included a lovely photo by Jack Anthony of Dahlonega, Georgia. This invasive weed and our destructive behaviors are also similar in the sense that you probably would rather not have either one–but we’ll stick to my primary analogy here.

At first, kudzu will “sleep”, taking a while to get firmly rooted. Similarly, our propensity toward certain bad habits or addictions often lays dormant for a long time, waiting for just the right conditions to start creeping in. At some point in life we all, inevitably, have to deal with stress, depression, grief, anxiety, or some other unpleasant condition. At those times, our dormant tendency starts to gain strength (laziness, overeating, smoking, etc.) as a coping mechanism.

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In one of my older Journals I kept a few reminders that at any given moment each decision I make can get me closer to, or further from, my goals. I need to make a dedicated effort to choose wisely. I need to embrace my free will in favor of spiritual growth and happiness. So I’d like to share that list here:

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I spend a lot of time thinking about the destructive habits we use to avoid or escape reality: vices, virtues (which are often just vices in disguise), and living vicariously through someone or something else. My initial assumption is that these v’s are interchangeable; they are all addictions (though some are more socially acceptable than others) and should be treated as such. We all, at some point or another, feel trapped by something, though the “ties that bind” are various and insidious. We have personal themes that we struggle to escape, even though to outsiders it seems like a simple choice: just don’t do it!

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