July 26, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Friday, July 26, 2024

Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

We may be the only Easter lily some people ever see.

-- Rev. R. Oelerich

Regardless of how strange it may sound, we are powerful people! We make a difference in others' lives, for good or ill. We enhance people's lives when we encourage, support, and congratulate. It is easy to downplay the importance of our lifting up our fellow pilgrims even though it is no small thing when we are the beneficiaries of such life-giving gifts.

The newspaper ran a story of a teenaged girl who had been a prostitute. The account was mostly an interview in which she repeatedly told of how she had been put down at home, was made to feel she didn't count, was denied affection, and came to believe that what she did mattered little because no one cared.

The story of her lifestyle change came as a result of a hard-won battle by a social worker who unfailingly mirrored back to the girl that she did count, and that she was a person filled with love and beauty. Perhaps neither the parents nor the social worker would think of themselves as powerful, but in this case they made all the difference.

Today, I will be aware that I make a difference. I will make the world a little better for my being in it.

Hazelden Foundation

July 26, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step
Friday, July 26, 2024

” …(T)his program is not for sissies for …it takes a man to make the grade. It is not too difficult nor easy to grasp. I have had many more reasons to drink since I have been in AA than I had in all the years of my drinking. I’ve had more problems but, thank God, I have had the teachings of AA with which to face them. …When I hear the more rugged stories of alcoholics who became sicker than I did with this affliction, I humbly thank God for showing me ‘the handwriting on the wall.’” — Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, Part II (“They Stopped in Time”), Ch 8 (“Rum, Radio and Television”), p 367.

Today, a Program that is not without work, that working it takes more courage than to keep drinking and that being sober will not shield us from the problems that non-alcoholics face but will arm us with stronger combat ammunition. I heed the word of the experienced and not set myself up for a slip or relapse if the promises of the Program don’t come quickly enough to me — because I haven’t worked for those promises. Nor will I dismiss the Program that it doesn’t work when I face the problems that everyone else has. Problems will continue to arise; how I handle them will depend on how I work the Program. For as courageous and bold my decision to stop drinking, I need even more to graduate from being dry to being sober. Today, I’m ready to give it my all, to “go to any lengths.” And our common journey continues. Step by step. — Chris M., 2024

July 26, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Friday, July 26, 2024

AA Thought for the Day
When we come to the end of our lives on earth, we will take no material thing with us. We will not take one cent in our cold, dead hands. The only things that we may take are the things we have given away. If we have helped others, we may take that with us; if we have given of our time and money for the good of AA, we may take that with us. Looking back over our lives, what are we proud of? Not what we have gained for ourselves, but what few good deeds we have done. Those are the things that really matter in the long run.

What will I take with me when I go?

Meditation for the Day
“Hallowed be Thy Name.” What does that mean to us? Here “name” is used in the sense of “spirit.” The words mean praise to God for His spirit in the world, making us better. We should be especially grateful for God’s spirit, which gives us the strength to overcome all that is base in our lives. His spirit is powerful. It can help us to live a conquering, abundant life. So we praise and thank Him for His spirit in our lives and in the lives of others.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may be grateful for God’s spirit in me. I pray that I may try to live in accordance with it.

Hazelden Foundation

July 26, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time
Friday, July 26, 2024

Reflection for the Day
Now that I avail myself of the letters H-O-W suggested by friends in The Program – Honesty, Open-Mindedness, Willingness — I see things differently. In ways that I couldn’t have predicted and surely never expected, I’ve come to see things quite differently from the person I was before coming to The Program. I feel good most days. I seldom feel bad, and never for long. Certainly never as bad as I used to feel all of the time.

Is my worst day now infinitely better than my best day previously?

Today I Pray
May I remember today to say “thank you” to my Higher Power, to my friends in the group and to the whole, vast fellowship of recovering chemically dependent persons for making me know that things do get better. I give thanks, too, for those verbal boosters, the tags and slogans which have so often burst into my brain at exactly the moments when they were needed, redefining my purpose, restoring my patience, reminding me of my God.

Today I Will Remember
How it was.

Hazelden Foundation

July 26, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener
Friday, July 26, 2024

Patience is a virtue that few alcoholics have. We want to do everything yesterday. Even after we sober up, we seldom acquire any substantial amount of this virtue. We feel a real need to make up for all our lost years; we fret and fume over delays; we feel the world should synchronize their watches with ours.

Like Phillips Brooks, we are in a hurry, but God isn’t.

Hazelden Foundation

July 26, 2024 - Good morning and say hello to a valued friend ...FRIDAY!

 

Good morning and greet another beautiful Friday that is always welcome ...enjoy this wonderful day, and don't be bothered by people and things that don't deserve our attention

July 25, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Thursday, July 25, 2024

Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

Guilt keeps us stuck.

Who doesn’t have some guilt? Surely no one we know has been "good" all the time. It's human to make mistakes and hurt others in the process. On occasion, we have even intentionally harmed someone. We can't undo the past. What's done is done. However, we can get free of the inhibiting shadow it casts over our lives today if we use the tools of this program of recovery.

The first step in shedding our guilt is to admit to ourselves that some of the things we have done are wrong. The next step is harder. We need to admit our wrongdoing to the one we have harmed and ask for his or her forgiveness. This can be made easier if we remember to bring along our Higher Power.

Why is all this necessary? As long as we have wounds in our relationships, we won't be able to see all the possibilities for growth and change that beckon us today. Our guilt keeps us stuck in the past, and it’s the present that promises us the happiness we desire.

How are my relationships today? Do any feel tense because of my past behavior? If I really want to get the most from what today offers, I need to mend the past. With God's help I can.

Hazelden Foundation

July 25, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step
Thursday, July 25, 2024

Today, self-pity comes off my dance card. Just as alcohol drove me to being sick and tired of being sick and tired, so it goes with self-pity. The reason for self-pity can never be justified. For me, self-pity ranks behind resentment as the quickest and surest way to a slip or relapse. I have to ask why I harbor pity for myself. Is it because I endured so many travails during and after my drinking days? Or maybe I lost a job or two, got a lifetime driver’s license suspension, drank my way into a sea of debt, got a divorce or two, have family who still wants nothing to do with me. Or maybe there’s death taking too much and too many from me. So what is the function of self-pity? Maybe my ego still requires me to be the center of attention, or maybe I have a victim complex, or maybe I’m looking for justification to start drinking again — or to keep drinking. Or maybe I simply don’t know how to deal with whatever psychic pain exists. Whatever its reason or purpose, self-pity serves only to impose isolation and keeps me from feeling and living something better. Today, just as it did with drinking, the same goes for self-pity: enough is enough! And our common journey continues. Step by step. — Chris M., 2024

July 25, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Thursday, July 25, 2024

AA Thought for the Day
We are living on borrowed time. We are living today because of AA and the grace of God. And what there is left of our lives we owe to AA and to God. We should make the best use we can of our borrowed time and in some small measure pay back for that part of our lives which we wasted before we came into AA. Our lives from now on are not our own. We hold them in trust for God and AA. And we must do all we can to forward the great movement that has given us a new lease on life.

Am I holding my life in trust for AA?

Meditation for the Day
You should hold your life in trust for God. Think deeply on what that means. Is anything too much to expect from such a life? Do you begin to see how dedicated a life on trust for God can be? In such a life, miracles can happen. If you are faithful, you can believe that God has many good things in store for you. God can be Lord of your life, controller of your days, of your present and your future. Try to act as God guides and leave all results to Him. Do not hold back, but go all out for God and the better life. Make good your trust.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may hold my life in trust for God. I pray that I may no longer consider my life as all my own.

Hazelden Foundation

July 25, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time
Thursday, July 25, 2024

Reflection for the Day
The slogans of The Program are seemingly clear and simple. Yet they may still have different meanings for different people, according to their own experience and reaction to the words and ideas. Take, for example, the slogan, “Let Go and Let God.” For some people, it may suggest that all we have to do is sidestep the challenges that confront us and, somehow, God will do all the work. We must remember that God gives us free will, intelligence and good sense — it is clearly His intention that we use these gifts. If I’m receptive, God will make His will known to me step by step, but I must carry it out.

Do I sometimes act as if surrender to God’s will is a passport to inertia?

Today I Pray
May my “passport” be stamped with “action.” May my travels be motivated by challenges I can readily recognize as things to do, not things to watch. I pray that I may make the most of my gifts from God, of talents that I am aware of and some I have yet to discover. May I not “let go” and give up but keep on learning, growing, doing, serving, praying, carrying out the will of God as I understand it.

Today I Will Remember
God meant me to make the most of myself.

Hazelden Foundation

July 25, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener
Thursday, July 25, 2024

Poverty will often force a man into sobriety because of the lack of funds with which to purchase more to drink. Prosperity, on the other hand, gives us the money, the leisure and inclination to celebrate that prosperity.

Far too frequently the new man climbs out of the gutter, gets a job and becomes re-established with his family and does well until a payday puts cash in his pocket again.

That bank roll which you think you want may be the very thing you least want.

Hazelden Foundation

July 25, 2024 - Good morning and let's get rolling on what's going to be a fantabulous Thursday

 

Good morning and here's a cute little smiling ape to help get your Thursday going on an uplifting note ...have a really good day, and don't allow anything and anyone to screw it up

July 24, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Wednesday, July 24, 2024

Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

Recovery depends on continuing revelation.

-- David Crawford

Perhaps we sense that something is still standing in the way of our usefulness to our Higher Power, ourselves, and other human beings. We may be aware of a habit that feels addictive or of fears or resentments that are holding us back, preventing us from fully using our gifts.

Step Six suggests that we become entirely ready for change. This means letting go of our illusions about the ways we limit our freedom and happiness -- letting go of any denials or excuses. It means trusting that our attitudes and behaviors are capable of transformation. It does not mean attempting to force situations in which our fantasies of control haven't worked before. Being entirely ready means that we're honest about what hasn't succeeded in the past and that we're willing to accept our Higher Power's help. Genuine honesty and openness to change are the essence of the humility we need in order to grow.

Today, I look honestly at what stands in the way of my life's usefulness.

Hazelden Foundation

July 24, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step
Wednesday, July 24, 2024

Today, gratitude as attitude. Gratitude for even the smallest of gains, seen and unseen, as opposed to complaining that the gains aren’t big enough. My attitude is a reflection of the quality of my recovery. Even in the most demanding of days when most things seem to go wrong and few of them right, I must pause before reacting in a way that I will likely regret later and remember my attitude in my drinking days. Then, my attitude was based on feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, fear, anger, regret, revenge, apathy and self-centeredness. They are the character defects as confessed in my Fourth Step, and confession alone does not mean those defects are gone. They remain; my Program is to improve on them day by day until they exist no more. Today, my attitude is not to rekindle the defects of my character but to disempower them with humility, empathy, answering a call to service and remembering, always, that my attitude defines me as either sober or as a dry drunk. And our common journey continues. Step by step. — Chris M., 2024

July 24, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Wednesday, July 24, 2024

AA Thought for the Day
AA is like a dike, holding back the ocean of liquor. If we take one glass of liquor, it is like making a small hole in the dike and, once such a hole has been made, the whole ocean of alcohol may rush in upon us. By practicing the AA principles, we keep the dike strong and in repair. We spot any weakness or crack in that dike and make the necessary repairs before any damage is done. Outside the dike is the whole ocean of alcohol, waiting to engulf us again in despair.

Am I keeping the dike strong?

Meditation for the Day
Keep as close as you can to the Higher Power. Try to think, act and live as though you were always in God’s presence. Keeping close to a Power greater than yourself is the solution to most of the earth’s problems. Try to practice the presence of God in the things you think and do. That is the secret of personal power. It is the thing which influences the lives of others for good. Abide in the Lord and rejoice in His love. Keep close to the Divine Spirit in the universe. Keep God close behind your thoughts.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may keep close to the Mind of God. I pray that I may live with Him in my heart and mind.

Hazelden Foundation

July 24, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time
Wednesday, July 24, 2024

Reflection for the Day
How, exactly, can a person turn his own will and his own life over to the care of a Power greater than himself? All that’s needed is a beginning, no matter how small. The minute we put the key of willingness in the lock, the latch springs open. Then the door itself starts to open, perhaps ever so slightly; in time, we find that we can always open it wider. Self-will may slam the door shut again, and it often does. But the door can always be re-opened, time and time again if necessary, so long as we use our key of willingness.

Have I reaffirmed my decision to turn my will and my life over to the care of God as I understand Him?

Today I Pray
May I reaffirm my decision to turn my will and my life over to a Higher Power. May my faith be staunch enough to keep me knowing that there is, indeed, a power greater than I am. May I avail myself of that Power simply by being willing to “walk humbly with my Lord.”

Today I Will Remember
Self-will minus self equals will.

Hazelden Foundation

July 24, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener
Wednesday, July 24, 2024

Last year I attended the Southeastern Convention at Miami Beach, and I had a grand time. Yet I do not recall, offhand, the name of a single speaker I heard, but I do remember the name of the man whom I called upon as a Twelfth-Stepper.

I fretted somewhat, at the time, that this man caused me to miss several meetings of the Convention, yet today it is my highlight of the affair. This man is happy on the AA Program, and I am happy that I was forced to forego some of the pleasure I traveled all the way to Miami to enjoy.

Hazelden Foundation

July 24, 2024 - Rise 'n shine for a totally fantabulous and worthwhile Wednesday

 

Good morning and here's hoping for a totally great and uplifting Wednesday for everyone, and let's just put our everyday worries on the shelf and simply enjoy the day

July 23, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Tuesday, July 23, 2024

Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

We are coming to believe in unconditional love.

Being loved unconditionally may be a new experience. Most of us were trained to get good grades or be extremely well mannered if we wanted to be loved. There were conditions, always.

We may have been raised to believe in a judgmental God too. If so, the God of this fellowship seems hard to trust. ("You mean, no matter what I do, I'll be loved and forgiven by my Higher Power?")

And because of our upbringing, we may be good at setting conditions for family members and friends who want our love. For instance, we may think that they can't let us down in any way or we won't love them.

We're fortunate indeed that we have the example of so many other women and men who have walked this path before us. It has to be possible for us to change too. We must be patient with ourselves. We lived with a very solid mindset for many years. We won't change overnight. But we can change, if we really want to.

I will affirm that I am loved unconditionally many times throughout the day. Time will heal me and change my understanding.

Hazelden Foundation

July 23, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step
Tuesday, July 23, 2024

“I took everything that AA had to give me. Easy does it, first things first, one day at a time. It was at that point that I reached surrender. I heard one very ill woman say that she didn’t believe in the surrender part of the AA program. …Surrender to me has meant the ability to run my home, to face my responsibilities as they should be faced, to take life as it comes to me day by day, and work my problems out. That’s what surrender has meant to me. I surrendered once to the bottle, and I couldn’t do these things.” — Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, Part II (“They Stopped in Time”), Ch. 4 (“The Housewife Who Drank at Home”), p 340.

Today, surrender and its various interpretations that can be integrated into my own recovery. While surrender arguably may be interpreted most often as entrusting our very lives to a Higher Power, surrendering is also regaining the ability to take back and carry out our responsibilities and meet problems head-on and work them out. This requires sobriety and being clean. Today, I long for those promises of recovery and, today, I become responsible enough to work for them. And our common journey continues. Step by step. — Chris M., 2024

July 23, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Tuesday, July 23, 2024

AA Thought for the Day
We should remember that all AA’s have “clay feet.” We should not set any member upon a pedestal and mark her or him out as a perfect AA. It’s not fair to the person to be singled out in this fashion and, if the person is wise, she or he will not wish it. If the person we single out as an ideal AA has a fall, we are in danger of falling, too. Without exception, we are all only one drink away from a drunk, no matter how long we have been in AA. Nobody is entirely safe. AA itself should be our ideal, not any particular member of it.

Am I putting my trust in AA principles and not in any one member of the group?

Meditation for the Day
The inward peace that comes from trust in God truly passes all understanding. That peace no one can take from you. No person has the power to disturb that inner peace. But you must be careful not to let in the world’s worries and distractions. You must try not to give entrance to fears and despondency. You must refuse to open the door to the distractions that disturb your inward peace. Make it a point to allow nothing today to disturb your inner peace, your heart-calm.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may not allow those about me to spoil my peace of mind. I pray that I may keep a deep inner calm throughout the day.

Hazelden Foundation

July 23, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time
Tuesday, July 23, 2024

Reflection for the Day
Today I’ll try to settle for less than I wish were possible, and be willing to not only accept it but to appreciate it. Today, I’ll not expect too much of anyone — especially myself. I’ll try to remember that contentment comes from gratefully accepting the good that comes to us, and not from being furious at life because it’s not “better.”

Do I realize the difference between resignation and realistic acceptance?

Today I Pray
May I not set my sights unrealistically high, expect too much. May I look backwards long enough to see that my self-set, impossible goals were the trappings of my addiction; too often, I ended up halfway there, confronted by my own failure. Those “foiled-again,” “I’ve-failed-again” feelings became monumental excuses to give in to my compulsion, which blanketed my miseries. May I avoid that sick old pattern. May I be realistic.

Today I Will Remember
Good is good enough.

Hazelden Foundation

July 23, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener
Tuesday, July 23, 2024

We alcoholics feared loneliness as much as anything else on earth. Even the companionship of the bull pen was preferable to being alone. The quality of our company made no difference, for it was preferable to our own thoughts; certainly, it was not as critical. We just couldn’t stand our own company.

In AA, we were told to establish conscious contact with the Man Upstairs and we marveled at the ease with which this was accomplished after a little effort on our part. Now we are never less alone than when we are alone.

Hazelden Foundation

July 23, 2024 - Good morning with confidence that it's going to be a fantastic Tuesday

 

Good morning and now that we've gotten through a manic Monday, let's get onto a fantastic 
Tuesday ...have a really great day and don't empower anything and anyone to ruin it

July 22, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Monday, July 22, 2024

Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

Reflection for the Day

I admitted that I couldn't win the battle against substance abuse and compulsions on my own. So I finally began to accept the critically important fact that dependence on a Higher Power could help me achieve what had always seemed impossible. I stopped running. I stopped fighting. For the first time, I began accepting. And for the first time, I began to be really free.

Do I realize that it doesn't matter what kind of shoes I'm wearing when I'm running away?

Today I Pray

May I know the freedom that comes with surrender to a Higher Power -- that most important kind of surrender that means neither "giving in" nor "giving up" but rather "giving over." Like a weary fugitive from spiritual order, may I stop hiding, dodging, running. May I find peace in surrender, in the knowledge that my Higher Power wants me to be whole and healthy. My Higher Power will show me the way.

Today I Will Remember

First surrender, then serenity.

Hazelden Foundation

July 22, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Step by Step

 

Step by Step
Monday, July 22, 2024

“The words of Dr. Bob and Bill are with me all the time. Dr. Bob said, ‘Love and service keep us dry,’  and Bill said, ‘Always we must remember that our first duty is face-to-face help for the alcoholic who still suffers.’  Dr. Bob tells about keeping it simple and not to louse it up. …(T)here are some of us who, at times, try to read extra messages and complexities into the Steps. …AA is within the reach of every alcoholic, because it can be achieved in any walk of life and because the achievement is not ours but God’s. …(T)here is no situation too difficult, none too desperate, no unhappiness too great to be overcome in this great fellowship …” — Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd Edition, 1976, Part II (“They Stopped in Time”), Ch 11 (“A Flower of the South”), p 395.

Today, remembering when life without drinking was unthinkable much less a dream beyond dreaming, can any problem in a sober life be any worse or beyond resolution or reconciliation? While AA is a lifeline, we had to muster more strength and courage than we thought we had to grab and hold on by admitting we are powerless, by coming to believe and by going to any lengths. Nor does the Program come without responsibility as suggested in Step 12 — to carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers, and to keep the Program simple without inserting “extra messages and complexities.” Today, if I think something in my life is hopeless, I need only to remember so it was as a drinking alcoholic, to realize that nothing now is beyond hope. And our common journey continues. Step by step. — Chris M., 2024

July 22, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Twenty-Four Hours a Day

 

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Monday, July 22, 2024

AA Thought for the Day
One of the finest things about AA is the diversity of its membership. We come from all walks and stations of life. All types and classes of people are represented in an AA group. Being different from each other in certain ways, we can each make a different contribution to the whole. Some of us are weak in one respect, but strong in another. AA can use the strong points of all its members and can disregard their weaknesses. AA is strong, not only because we all have the same problem but also because of the diversified talents of its members. Each can contribute his part.

Do I recognize good points of all my group’s members?

Meditation for the Day
“And greater works than these shall ye do.” Each individual has the ability to do good works through the power of God’s spirit. This is the wonder of the world, the miracle of the earth, that God’s power goes out to bless the human race through the agency of so many people who are actuated by His grace. We need not be held back by doubt, despondency and fear. A wonderful future can lie before any person who depends on God’s power, a future of unlimited power to do good works.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may not limit myself by doubting. I pray that I may have confidence that I can be effective for good.

Hazelden Foundation

July 22, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: A Day at a Time

 

A Day at a Time
Monday, July 22, 2024

Reflection for the Day
The Program has taught me that the essence of all growth for me is a willingness to change for the better. Following that, I must have further willingness to shoulder whatever responsibility this entails, and to courageously take every action that is required.

“I am and know and will;
I am knowing and willing;
I know myself to be and to will;
I will to be and to know.” — St. Augustine

Is willingness a key ingredient of my life and the way I work The Program?

Today I Pray
I pray for willingness to do what I can, willingness to be what I can be — and what is sometimes hardest — willingness to be what I am. I pray, too, for energies to carry out my willingness in all that I do, so that I may grow in the ways of God and practice the principles of The Program in all my affairs.

Today I Will Remember
“I am and know and will.”

Hazelden Foundation

July 22, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: The Eye Opener

 

The Eye Opener
Monday, July 22, 2024

Those of us who have our drinking tamed do not necessarily have our thinking or our actions under control. We are not under control until all our actions are under the domination of our intelligence, and our intelligence cannot properly function until we have thoroughly schooled it into instinctive sober and sane thinking. This constitutes one whale of a big job, one that will last a lifetime — but we can start on it today.

Hazelden Foundation

July 22, 2024 - Good morning with a good vibe that we can handle another Monday and new week

 

Good morning and no need to fret about another Monday and new week ...we got this and don't need to focus on people and things that don't offer us anything good

July 21, 2024 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Sunday, July 21, 2024

Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

Slowly Ease the Pain

Each and every day I ask, What do I have? What have I been left with? What can I do with what I have? Who was I then? Who am I now? What can I do with who I am now? Where did I end up? What can I do with where I ended up? How can I accomplish success in small increments? How can I do more in life? What more can I do in life?

I can keep asking questions. Look for answers. Make plans with the answers. Pray a lot. Try to keep calm and clear. Learn meditation. Learn how to react to the people around me with smoother responses. Remind myself that I am eternally sanding down the rough edges. Be thankful I got to see and live through another day.

My disability limits me. My disability creates a new life that I can explore. I can have full life. Life, liberty, and the pursuits of happiness are possible. My job is to understand my past and keep on the path of life. My life is like an ongoing patrol. My never-ending mission. I accept this.

Today I will learn to love and appreciate those around me and what we can do together.

-- Moe A., U.S. Marine Corps, 1962–1966

Hazelden Foundation