Need You Now

I heard this song this morning on the radio, and its sound still annoyed me, as it always has, but I also just appreciated the naming of an experience I've had many times, an experience known colloquially as the drunk dial:

It's a quarter after one, I'm a little drunk and I need you now

Said I wouldn't call but I lost all control and I need you now

Right before I switched over to the radio, I'd been listening to one of the wisest men I know (of): Eckhart Tolle. (There's a whole bunch of Eckhart on youtube -- if interested, you might start with this video, which shows the Grand Canyon and other natural scenes rather than his mug, complete with a cat around his neck in videos like this one. It's true: he's not a looker, he is seriously lacking in style, and his voice annoys some, but take it from me, his teachings are really powerful.) Anyway, he was talking about our ability to stay with our awareness, and how alcohol can reduce our awareness. This is true. Beer goggles are a case in point. But I also knew that wasn't the full story.

Because I think the other way to think about what alcohol does is that it reduces our defenses -- and sometimes, that's exactly what is needed in order to get what we as humans really need: connection.

So, while it isn't always the case, I think perhaps sometimes when I'm, as these song lyrics put it:

Reaching for the phone 'cause I can't fight it anymore...

Not fighting it is exactly what I need to do in that moment. I agree with Eckhart that awareness is priceless, but I believe that it arises not just by getting in touch with ourselves, but by allowing ourselves to be touched by others.