I have an addictive personality. (Anyone who knows me is laughing now..) I don't eat one Peanut M&M. I don't eat one small bag of Peanut M&Ms. I buy the larger SHARE BAG - eating all myself, of course, WITH a Snickers chaser.

Every time I see someone walking down the sidewalk in New York City texting, I think "addict." I mean THINK ABOUT IT. Never mind the fact that you are texting and won't see the crosstown bus jump the curb or that giant guy behind you that wants what's in your purse. Meditation seems to slow the avalanche of all the other addictive behaviors. The inner calm overrides the inner nervousness. And, when not nervous, you don't resemble a hyper chicken.  Meditation, I've realized,  makes me less of an idiot.

It seems to me that meditation breaks the spell of modern life. After meditation, I think "my phone is beeping" and keep walking. Before mediation, I think "life will stop if I don't answer this phone." I stand on the street corner, often dumping all the contents of my hobo bag all over 7th Avenue. It's a dumb way to live but I literally can't stop myself. I answer the phone and it's Mr. Kim, my dry cleaner.

Meditation stops the addiction chicken that runs in circles in my head. Meditation has enabled me to think, "who cares" when my phone beeps on 7th Avenue. Meditation has helped me prioritize, discern, analyze.

By allowing me to hear the quiet, meditation helps me understand the noise.