A Love Letter to Alcohol

Dear Alcohol

You used to be such a positive aspect of my life. You used to make me happy and bring down my anxiety, but the effect you have on me has evolved into an unhealthy dependence that has all together lowered the quality of life I'm living. Still I turn to you, even though I know you are detrimental to so many parts of my life. I turn to you because you are a source of temporary comfort. You are a way for me to put off dealing with my problems, and destructive as it may have been, in some ways I'll always appreciate you for that. I truly do enjoy the way I feel when I'm drunk on you. I feel like I'm on top of the world, like I can do anything, and I'm truly happy. However, I know that those euphoric feelings aren't real. They're artificial happiness, they're an illusion, a façade that I create for myself that comes crashing down as soon as I sober up and return to the real world. I love you, but you've turned me into a person that I hate to see in the mirror, and it's for that reason that I must wholly and finally remove you from my life. For many people, you are a very good thing. For many, you provide relief and a brief moment of relaxation when taken at a healthy pace, but throughout the years you have been a part of my life, I've come to firmly understand that I'm not one of those people. So this is it, we've had good times, but those times are over and it's time to say goodbye.

-Gabriel Smith