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Remember Mindfulness – breathe slowly

Self-knowledge

What is Man? That is one of the deep questions. Is he (or she) condemned to be free, as the existentialist writer Jean-Paul Sartre thought, or born free and is everywhere in chains, as fellow Frenchman Jean-Jacques Rousseau said? Addiction certainly feels like bondage and punishment, but we are free to start a new life if we choose, by following the Twelve Step programme. Perhaps we can say that Man is what he chooses to be. Do I understand that no matter what happens to me in my life, I have a choice as to how I respond?

In his book Man’s Search for Meaning, psychiatrist Viktor Frankel recounted his experiences in Nazi concentration camps during World War Two. His message is that man always retains that final choice, which cannot be removed – the choice of attitude towards the circumstances presented to him, no matter how dire or restrictive those circumstances may be. Over the centuries, thousands of ordinary people have borne witness to this truth even though it may have cost them their lives. I am grateful for their sacrifice which gives me courage to hold on to my beliefs.