Toxic people

A very dear friend of mine terms some of the people I associate with as "toxic". You see, I'm a non-active addict, who happens to have "friends" who use illegal narcotics. I don't consider myself to be better than they are. However, I will admit to having helped them in their own unhealthy endeavors.

This is how I perceive things: I was raised in a semi-upscale neighborhood in Sacramento, CA, however, for whatever reason, I have always frequented more impoverished areas. I identify with people that society has seemingly turned a blind-eye towards, or those who are termed cast-outs. That is, the criminals, mentally challenged, lame, drug addicts, gang members, prostitutes and dope-fiends. I don't see myself as part of the elite upper-class, and to call these people toxic I think is a misnomer. Rather, I think they have suffered just as I have.

Edited and posted by Julie Swartzendruber