Phonies

"I'm only bulimic when I throw up."
"I'm only an alcoholic when I get drunk."

How often do we use this sort of cop out to rationalize in our lives? It's as if downplaying our problems will minimize them completely. When Penelope says "I'm only bulimic when I throw up" implies that she cannot be categorized as bulimic at any other time. "I'm only an alcoholic when I get drunk."Try saying that when the definition of alcoholism is: a chronic disorder characterized by dependence on alcohol, repeated excessive use of alcoholic beverages, the development of withdrawal symptoms on reducing or ceasing intake. I've never really realized how often people do this in their lives until now. A woman in a book I'm reading right now, Eat Pray Love, seems to do this as well. She doesn't necessarily name herself as a Christian, but as religious, spiritual, believing. But as I read more and more about this woman and the decisions she makes in her daily life, it seems to me that she is not a practicing believer. Although she does speak of her prayer often. When I think about it, this would be her statement: "I'm only a christian/believer/spiritual person when I pray."
This is not so much a criticism as a realization. Because, really, who am I? I'm a human and as humans, we do not live our word. And when I think about the past generations of Native Americans, I believe they are much opposite of this. They lived everyday fully to what they believed and spoke little of it. They were honest human beings that did not boast about who they were. I admire this.