The First Reading for the Mass of the First Sunday of Lent is about the Temptation of Eve.

In it we read that the object of the temptation is pleasing to the eye, and that partaking of it will open the eyes to wisdom and knowledge. Just eating of the Tree of Life, one can transcend the limitations of knowledge and awareness and gain insights into things like God.

Kind of like the false promise of alcohol. We’ve all been there and had that feeling: after a few drinks of vodka, rum, tequila or whatever, we seem to gain deep and profound insights into inner truths and realities. The effect is transformative: we feel more than human, perhaps god-like.

Of course it’s false. It is just the effect of alcohol on the brain and the releasing of mental inhibitions; perhaps digging deep into the subconscious and dragging into light submerged ideas and such. Perhaps this is why many writers drink. I think Hemingway said something like “Write drunk, edit sober.”

I fell for that trap and couldn’t get enough; probably you can relate.

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