Spirituality can be defined in both a religious and non-religious way. In most religions, the concept refers to the belief in a higher power and most cases, God. An individual has a connection with something intangible, and we feel that it has a way of controlling how one acts or treats those around him or her. For those who do not believe in religion, the term is defined as the belief that there is something greater than self. Some acts of spiritually filled people can include sharing, caring, kindness and many other virtues.
Throughout this course, my previous perception of life has been changed completely. I previously thought that helping others mainly involved financial help. I was of the opinion that once a person is satisfied financially, all the rest will and must fall into place eventually. The resources that we have been reading through the course have helped change this lousy perception. I have learned that people not only go through financial problems but also experience emotional and psychological problems that have a major impact on the outcome of their lives.
Recently I visited a rehabilitation center where I met people who have been through the worst situation in life. What I found most interesting was that a majority of them came from wealthy families. Drug use had ravaged them to a point where they could no longer function efficiently in society. The rehabilitators allowed us to have one-on-one sessions with some of the drug addicts to better understand how such people could end up being so miserable in life. I met a gentleman by the name of James Fodley. James narrated to me how the habit began so innocently when he was in college. He was born into a well-off family and parents who were active participants in the Catholic Church.
All his life, his world revolved around church and school up until he joined college. In college, he was in the eyes of his parents and could do whatever he wanted. He joined a group of friends who partied most days of the week and started drinking alcohol. He always had a constant flow of money due to his wealthy parents. He soon graduated to taking drugs such as cocaine and heroin. I wondered how such a person brought up in church for most of his years could fall so low. James told me that the church was just there. It was a formality and he never actually learned anything there. His parents were never there to advise him or guide him spiritually at any given time.
James’ story is similar to that of most adolescents. We, as caregivers, strive only to provide physical help and rarely focus on the spiritual aspect of healing. The emotional strength of a person is what largely determines whether he or she recovers from any setback in life. I am determined to study counseling as a major in the future. The course will enable me to teach religion and its benefits in helping the troubled in society. I also wish to focus more on mentoring the youth to curb the increased rate of irresponsibility and drug abuse among the group. I hope to bring positive change in the community and open a counseling center based on the different religions in the future.
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