Social Belief

I quit drinking. Alcohol is a socially acceptable behavior by everyone globally. Why is that? Why have we as a society consider it the norm to drink to be socially accepted? Am I an outcast for not following the crowd, for enjoying myself by being sober? I ask these questions because I find it fascinating that when I attend any event or a social gathering among'st friends I am considered a "loser" for not having any drinks and ordering a hot water with a lemon and honey. Yet when I tell people in general, not at any social gathering or party, that I quit drinking, I get praised and acknowledged that what I am doing is noble and wise for having the 'will power' to not drink in social gatherings. The reason I put will power in apostrophe is because I do not believe in will power. I believe in habits. We have the power to instill habits that are constructive or destructive. I was able to reconfigure my habits so they would serve me and not the other way around. Did I do it for myself or did I do it for recognition? That's an easy question to answer. I certainly did not do it for the fame. I highly recommend to read The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. I had read this book prior to quieting and what interested me was the fact that we are most times not even aware of our habits, we just do it because after every action > a reward happens. Becoming self-aware of your actions and why you do them your able to manipulate them with different actions and attain similar rewards. The worst is when I get pressured and constantly harassed by close friends to drink. I swear the drunker they get the more they resent my not drinking.

To be continued....