This has possibly been shared before, but I couldn’t find it in the search, so apologies if it’s a repeat. I’ve been thinking about this a lot. Stopping the drinking is an act of self love, but the rewards can sometimes feel slow in comparison to the immediate satisfaction of the high (which as we know, doesn’t last and messes life up for yourself and often everyone around you). It’s like farming or gardening. It takes patience; you have to nourish the soil and weed out the bad stuff and take care of that seed for it to bloom. When I drink, it feels good for that moment, but it devastates the soil, the weeds grow and suffocate the good things I try to plant, and life stays barren. I stop looking after my future self because I’m only thinking about the present. By stopping the alcohol, I’m looking after those seeds, I’m looking after my future self and good things slowly begin to emerge. It takes patience.
Anyway, this is a quote by Chuck Hogan from Devils in Exile, and I think it sums it all up. I hope it helps someone as much as me.
“The Tomorrow Man theory. It’s pretty basic. Today, right here, you are who you are. Tomorrow, you will be who you will be. Each and every night, we lie down to die, and each morning we arise, reborn. Now, those who are in good spirits, with strong mental health, they look out for their Tomorrow Man. They eat right today, they drink right today, they go to sleep early today–all so that Tomorrow Man, when he awakes in his bed reborn as Today Man, thanks Yesterday Man. He looks upon him fondly as a child might a good parent. He knows that someone–himself–was looking out for him. He feels cared for, and respected. Loved, in a word. And now he has a legacy to pass on to his subsequent selves…. But those who are in a bad way, with poor mental health, they constantly leave these messes for Tomorrow Man to clean up. They eat whatever the hell they want, drink like the night will never end, and then fall asleep to forget. They don’t respect Tomorrow Man because they don’t think through the fact that Tomorrow Man will be them. So then they wake up, new Today Man, groaning at the disrespect Yesterday Man showed them. Wondering why does that guy–myself–keep punishing me? But they never learn and instead come to settle for that behavior, eventually learning to ask and expect nothing of themselves. They pass along these same bad habits tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow, and it becomes psychologically genetic, like a curse. Looking at you now, Maven, I can see exactly where you fall on this spectrum. You are a man constantly trying to fix today what Yesterday Man did to you. You make up your bed, you clean those dirty dishes from the night before, and pledge not to start drinking until six, thinking that’s the way to keep an even keel. But in reality you’re always playing catch-up. I know this because I’ve been there. The thing is–you can’t fix the mistakes of Yesterday. Yesterday Man is dead, he’s gone forever, and blame and atonement aren’t worth a damn. What you can do is help yourself today. Eat a vegetable. Read a book. Cut that hair of yours. Leave Tomorrow Man something more than a headache and a jam-packed colon. Do for Tomorrow Man what you would have wanted Yesterday Man to do for you.”
19 Likes
Thanks for sharing this! I’m bookmarking your post for a rainy day reminder.
1 Like
Beautiful. Thanks for sharing. Time to be a better today man every day 
1 Like
This is really great, I’ve definitely never read it before. Thanks for sharing!
1 Like
Thanks for this post. Very good. My today man will be looking out for tomorrow man!
Bye for now…
1 Like