Alissa Widman's Journalism 4950 Blog

While writing a story this summer, I interviewed a woman who uttered a quote that has lingered in my thoughts: “Everything is good in moderation — including moderation.”

She chuckled, continued the conversation, and I logged the statement in the back of my mind.

Although I never used her quote in my story — it was relevant to our trust-building small talk, but not my assignment — the borderline cliché is arguably the most influential thing a source said to me during my summer internship at The Columbus Dispatch.

I wonder, is it true?

Would it be best if all things were done in moderation? Or is it acceptable to occasionally succumb to the instinct to overindulge?

In my experiences, I’d argue the latter. Although we know moderation is good and usually desired, often we don’t realize it until we’re analyzing a situation in clearer hindsight.

It’s human nature to enjoy something in excess if it’s available. And each time we overindulge, during our analysis we’re reminded how important it is to moderate. Hence, the concept of “moderating moderation.”

Many of us have seen friends have too many alcoholic drinks in one sitting or children consume their entire bag of Halloween candy in one night. Likewise, most Bowling Green State University students have heard stories of best friends who chose to live together during college and, by the end of the semester, couldn’t stand to look at one another.

We all know how those stories end: with hangovers, tummy aches and hurt feelings.

These things, understandably, sound very negative. However, I think these unfortunate circumstances serve as necessary reminders to keep people on track.

Occasionally splurging makes a moment memorable — a celebratory bar crawl,  a night of downtown trick-or-treating or the months spent getting to know a new friend every day — but doesn’t constitute an everyday lifestyle.

Eventually, however, that splurging makes us learn that balance is key.

We soon realize the buzz from an alcoholic beverage every few weeks is better than daily binging, that eating only one piece of candy per day makes it taste that much sweeter, and that days spent away from friends make days spent with them much more meaningful.

I’m curious: What do you guys think?

Is it OK to moderate moderation? Is there anything in which a person can overindulge at no cost, or is less best in most situations?

Feel free to leave a comment and join the discussion.