After many many years I met this dear friend of mine, who I have known her as a very active professor in Psychology in a reputed college. She has retired since, has grayed a little, adding to the dignity that she always commanded, has a slight limp and a slower gait, but one thing that has remained unchanged in her – the charming smile she always sported. I know that life has dealt several blows on her, one after the other and now she stays alone with children living far away. So I asked her, “What are doing these days?”

She promptly replied, “Oh I’m really busy and enjoying every moment” ” You know I’m now addicted to music. I’ve joined an amateur group of avid music lovers with similar musical taste. We listen, send our recorded singing on-line, get feed back, receive recorded songs, we also meet quite often and enjoy a full day of fun and music”. She continued, “before each recording, I search for an old melody, learn the lyrics, perfect my diction and practice it”.

I kept thinking of her long after we parted that day. What a beautiful way of living life, doing what you like most, meeting like-minded people, rediscovering your hidden passion without the anxiety of being judged, and above all being happy and healthy. If addiction can boost mental health, help productivity and give rise to withdrawal symptoms on abstaining from it,shouldn’t all of us drown in such addiction? I for one, would call it a ‘Positive Addiction’ which has only positive side effects . Each one of us perhaps need to find our own positive addiction.. I am almost at the end of my search.