"Only a person who can live with himself can enjoy the gift of leisure" Henry Greber

As a problem drinker, I could not tolerate my own company for long. I was forever telephoning somebody, going over to a friend's house, inviting people in, creating an "occasion" so I did not have to think or, at least, think about myself. Being alone terrified me. I was terrified because I would begin to think about what was happening in my life and I did not want to face it.

Some years ago I decided to encounter the real me, painful but necessary. I began to develop an awareness of who I am. Acceptance followed.

Today, I know me. Today I like me; today I can love me - and this awareness brings with it a knowledge of myself, with nature and with the universe. Today I can love my neighbor as I love myself.

Song to listen to as you read, R.E.M. "Sweetness Follows"