Addicts are Beautiful

I learned this exercise from a counselor of mine. Close your eyes, and now breathe, breathe in and exhale through your mouth, with your eyes still closed, let your imagination take you to the city, it's a weekend night- you can hear the cars horns blowing, loud music, let your imagination take you there and you take in the things you see or hear, imagine an addict and/or drunk. What was it that you saw? Did you know 90% will see a homeless guy with rags of clothes with a brown paper bag with alcohol in it, or they see a prostitute shooting up in the valley with some men.
You see we as humans label people without even being led to. It's our human nature to label drunks and junkies as homeless or prostitutes. In the U.S. alone, alcohol & other drugs claim more than 135,000 lives every year- 370 people every day- 15 every hour.
I'm sorry but you can walk into any AA/NA meeting and it's people that are well put together. Some are grandfathers/paw paws, some are people who hold a full time job and you could possibly work with them, there are some who are college students who are on a roll with their career of choice, in my case they are mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, and etc. I can go on for days.
You might be asking where are you going with this, but just hear me out. Addicts are beautiful! Yes, we have been damaged and some even broken. We have imperfections that we have out on display, for the entire world to see. It's the deepest most raw part of ourselves being pushed out into the open. I can just about guarantee that there is not one of you that walk about in their daily lives with your biggest flaw riding on your sleeve...?? So before you hear word that your high school friend was on crack, or your neighbor was using heroine, or your sister was smoking meth.... Don't give up on them and don't label them, because in all honesty we labeled ourselves when we come to realize our problems. I was angry with god for a while about why couldn't I be normal, why couldn't I have the strength, my boys didn't deserve this or me BUT TODAY I can honestly say,"I'm suppose to be here. I'm suppose to be broken and have the ability to start all over, and I'm suppose to be happy. Everyday I am growing and enduring the woman god has made me and following the path he has redirected me to. Addicts are beautiful."
When you put such a negative outlook on recovering addicts you never know who you just shot down. There were many occasions I can remember that I was wanting to cry out for help, but then I would think they are going to label me and like some family members have done give up on me.