About replacing one addiction with a different one

Hand on heart:

Is there anything in your life you’re addicted to? For me triathlon was like an addiction, I think I can say that. And what does an addict do when she’s finally beaten her addiction? Exactly! She finds a new addiction.
I’m not the type for chemical drugs. When I drink too much alcohol I puke, and the next few days are shot. So, I chose something else. Something I can stomach better and wasn’t very far-fetched: Books. The justification I’ve had through my work. Of course, a German teacher has to read a lot! But I didn’t read. I battled my way through novels like through kilometers during training. Devoured one book after another, upping the stroke rate more and more. At breakneck speed I pounded down the pile next to my bed, not realizing this had already sneakily become my new competition. Exactly what I didn’t want anymore. To give the whole thing the pretense of a purpose I started writing reviews nobody had asked me for (and which nobody actually needed). Sure, reading in and of itself has a purpose. And I actually have to maintain that because of my job. But this purpose you can only determine for yourself.

Anyway, at that time I had no idea how all this reading would help me. But at least I did realize eventually that restlessness and continuous flow of new material are pointless.

Then there was this one very special novel that made me stop in my tracks. It opened my eyes and inspired me. Yep, really: The initial spark for my book was someone else’s book. What book that was and how it got me to start writing I’ll tell you in my next blog.
And because this text is so short, I’ll publish the next one today as well…