What If The Entire World Suddenly Had To Become 100% Honest?

When my friend Robb asked me to write about a topic that dealt with what would happen in our world if everyone suddenly had to become 100% honest, I immediately thought about the movie “Liar Liar” with Jim Carrey. In it, Carrey plays Fletcher Reede, a lawyer with a chronic lying problem. But when his son makes a birthday wish for him to be honest for 24 hours actually comes true, Fletcher’s world is totally turned upside down and much hilariousness ensues.

But I’m not so sure that hilariousness would ensue if this actually became true for our entire planet all at once. The only reason why I say this is for the fact that so many in our world don’t tell the full truth on any given day. Some withhold it for quite deceptive reasons, while others do it to prevent hurting another’s feelings, and then there’s those who just lie because of their deep-seated insecurities about themselves. Sadly, I’ve been guilty of each of these reasons at varying points throughout my life.

Nevertheless, getting back to the original question Robb posed, what would happen if everyone suddenly became 100% honest in our world? I think there’d initially be an incredible amount of chaos, violence, and destruction, even more than our world is currently seeing.

I think about all the people who would discover their partners had been cheating on them if this were to happen.

I think about all the people who would discover some of their friends don’t even like them if this were to happen.

I think about all the scandals in places of business and the political world that would come to fruition if this were to happen.

I think about all the suppressed hatred and racism that would emerge out of individuals if this were to happen.

And so on and so forth…

Each of these things would be equivalent in my book like a stick of dynamite, setting off an explosion of anger from one person to the next.

So am I saying that it’s not good to be 100% honest?

Absolutely not! Because what I really believe is that honesty is the only way to go in life, even when being that way might blow up in my face. Why? Because I always feel far better inside in doing so, as compared to how I used to feel constantly guilty, shameful, or in doubt, especially in the face of God.

The sad reality though is that I know of many who are still holding the truth back from others and it’s killing them inside like a slow toxic eating away within themselves. I’ve felt that very thing before and it was never pleasant. In fact, it pretty much destroyed my ability to be a spiritually centered and unconditionally loving person in life.

So initially I think if everyone had to become 100% honest, the world would erupt into a huge amount of pandemonium for a while, but eventually, I also think it would be the best thing that could ever happen for all of us.

There are way too many lies in this world and that only gives the darkness within it more of a chance to grow. I don’t ever want the darkness to invade my life ever again and lying only ever gave it room to breathe within me.

Thank God I’m not a liar anymore. Thank God I do everything I can to be an honest person in both my verbal and written actions. And thank God for the fact that if this philosophical question ever did come to fruition, I would have nothing to worry about, at least not within me, because everything I’ve ever done up to this point in life is already out on the table.

So take it or leave it, I believe 100% honesty is the only way to be Robb, even when it hurts, because the freedom from living that way is far better than the darkness that comes from doing the exact opposite…

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Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson

Another Reflection On My Former Sex And Love Addiction

It seems like it’s so hip and trendy these days for many famous people to talk about their recovery from alcohol or drugs. In fact, it’s not so faux pas anymore when anyone says they’re in a 12 Step program for either. But, there is an addiction that most people don’t or won’t talk about publicly if they’ve struggled with it and that’s a sex or love addiction.

I’m not one of those people though. Frankly, I don’t care if people know that my past involves that type of addiction, because it does. The reality is that if no one talks about it, then how is anyone ever going to know there’s hope and healing out there? I have over four years now of recovery from this addiction and in all honesty, this addiction destroyed my life far worse than alcohol or drugs ever did.

I lost many good friends because of the behaviors I did during my acting out years with it. For example, I once had a best friend back in the Boston area who was one of the most unconditionally loving, kind, and caring people I’ve ever met in my entire life, but I let my behaviors of this disease literally implode it. And I could never see it for what it was because I was so blinded by my sickness.

There are a number of other individuals as well who saw me go through the worst of this disease and even all these years later they continue to deny my friendship requests or any attempts to make amends as well. I don’t blame them though because who I was, what I did, and how I acted on a daily basis was so far from the spiritual being of light that I am looking to become these days.

Unfortunately, much, if not most of the suffering I’m going through nowadays is directly due to the consequences from this addiction. I’ve had to endure a tremendous amount of mental, emotional, and physical ailments for the past six years that aren’t within a doctor’s range of understanding or help. To put it simply, I literally programmed much of my brain and body in a toxic way with my sex and love addiction and what I’ve been going through is unravelling all of that out of me. And it’s never been pleasant. Truthfully, it’s been downright hell, especially over the past two years.

So how did I act out during all those years that made me this sick?

I used to regularly fantasize about very unhealthy sexual acts that all stemmed from being molested as a young kid and never knowing any better.

I used to watch pornography for hours on end, most of it being with people who looked like me, but were being taken advantage of by others. In other words, being used sexually.

I used to constantly chase after married or other unavailable individuals and fall for them, doing whatever they wanted me to do, all the while hoping they eventually fall for me. None ever did.

I used to engage in phone or cyber-sex more times than I can remember, creating live fantasies of the type of pornography I used to watch.

And I used to constantly juggle at least a few potential intimate relationships at once, so that if one ended or if I grew bored with another, I always had someone waiting in the wings so that I’d never be alone.

The sad thing is there are many people out there in the world doing behaviors just like these and more, every single day. Some of them know they’re sick but don’t know where to turn for help. Others are probably more like I once was, not even knowing just how sick they are becoming and instead thinking what they’re doing is normal and healthy.

But it was never normal and healthy for me, because it totally consumed my entire existence.

It made me very sick and spiritually imbalanced in life.

And it caused me to miss out on so many special things like family engagements, social get-togethers, and even potential long-term relationships.

Thankfully, I’m in recovery for this addiction now and doing pretty well with it. SLAA and SAA have helped me tremendously to get there. While I’m still tempted and maybe always will be on some level, God helps me to keep moving forward with my healing from this disease.

I truly miss my friend from Boston and a number of other people as well that got harmed from this addiction. But while I can’t take back what I’ve done, I can keep on working my recovery and looking to God for the strength to never return to any of the darkness this addiction once brought me.

I know I will fully heal from all of this eventually.

God willing.

It’s just patience and perseverance for now.

May you find courage in these words if you’re still suffering from this disease, as there is hope.

I’m living proof, thanks be to God…

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Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson