Remember the jack-in-the-box toy? His body was a big spring coil and he had a plastic head and arms. He was in a box and when you wound the little handle on the side, he popped out! It was always worth a jolt & a laugh when you were a child.
I felt like that jack-in-the-box! I would pop out of my box and my little head would bob around and I'd glimpse the world and then, somebody would come along and shove me back inside and close the door quickly.
Then one day, I just kicked out all four sides of my box. Wham! Wham! Wham! Wham! Four sides of the box fell to the ground and I was looking in four unlimited directions. I had a view. And it was inviting!
My view was unobstructed. Who did this for me? I did! I did! I did! I can't tell you how important that is. That is what they call "empowerment." And every single one of us has to understand empowerment in order to win this battle with this addiction.
An addiction breeds on slavery. An addiction thrives on your blind, mindless, "I am following orders" mentality. Your mind is brainwashed to obey the addiction. It is only when you empower it enough to kick out of your addiction box, that you win this battle. It is only when you take control of your life and stop following directions that are leading you nowhere, that you have the hope to beat this addiction.
If I could, I'd kick out your box for you. But guess what? It won't work that way. How many friends and family tried to kick my box in from the outside? I was supporting the box from the inside. I was holding it together with my own self. And, the only way you can bust out of a box is from the inside and the only person who can do it - is you!
When I did, it was like a new world was laying at my feet. It was a moment in a day that was truly, "the beginning." It was absolutely jolting to my entire system to grasp it and understand it and then step out of it. I had lived in that box for 30 years. I can't tell you how very very accustomed I was to it. When I shed that box, it was the best thing I have done for myself in 30 years. I have no idea why I stayed in it for so long. But, that is neither here, nor there! What counts is that glorious moment when you break out and know that the world lies in front of you, in any direction you want.
And it is a beautiful view!
