"Today's Hope"
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Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 19
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Be gentle first with yourself.
- Lama Yeshe
DAILY REFLECTION:
Let It Begin With Me
When I first started attending Al-Anon meetings I was afraid to speak for fear of sounding stupid. (My mother had gone to AA meetings and told me she never said a word. Soon after she stopped going to AA and she found herself in yet another treatment center.)
After several weeks I realized the members of my group who spoke seemed to be happier than the members who 'passed' and did not speak. Somehow I gathered up the courage to speak. Wow - no one called me 'stupid', no one laughed at me. Instead people said "We're glad you are here".
On the way home that night I realized that I did feel a little better. I have never been a big talker and my sharing is not long-winded, but I make a point to share every time for my own well-being, never expecting that what I have to say may help someone else. The first time I heard that my sharing of my experience helped someone, I felt like I was on a pink cloud. Now I listen closely to people in and out of meetings, hoping that I can spread some serenity by giving it away. I feel at times I have to get out of my comfort zone to move on.
If a shy person like me can speak, so can you, so let it begin with me.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Be gentle first with yourself.
- Lama Yeshe
DAILY REFLECTION:
Let It Begin With Me
When I first started attending Al-Anon meetings I was afraid to speak for fear of sounding stupid. (My mother had gone to AA meetings and told me she never said a word. Soon after she stopped going to AA and she found herself in yet another treatment center.)
After several weeks I realized the members of my group who spoke seemed to be happier than the members who 'passed' and did not speak. Somehow I gathered up the courage to speak. Wow - no one called me 'stupid', no one laughed at me. Instead people said "We're glad you are here".
On the way home that night I realized that I did feel a little better. I have never been a big talker and my sharing is not long-winded, but I make a point to share every time for my own well-being, never expecting that what I have to say may help someone else. The first time I heard that my sharing of my experience helped someone, I felt like I was on a pink cloud. Now I listen closely to people in and out of meetings, hoping that I can spread some serenity by giving it away. I feel at times I have to get out of my comfort zone to move on.
If a shy person like me can speak, so can you, so let it begin with me.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 20
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
When I hold onto resentment and blame, I occupy my spirit with bitterness. Today I will find a more nurturing way to fill myself up.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Shifting My Inner Awareness
Forgive and forget is a myth. You may never forget AND you can choose to forgive. As life goes on and you remember, then is the time to once again remember that you have already forgiven. Mentally forgive again if necessary, then move forward. When we allow it, time can dull the vividness of the memory of the hurt; the memory will fade.
-Larry Jones
I meet my inner world honestly and with integrity.
Forgiveness doesn't require erasing my memories. I can forgive and remember. And I can forgive over and over and over again. I need to forgive myself and others for being human, for living slowly, for our collective ignorance, so that I can enjoy my day unencumbered by tiny thoughts of judgment, control, and revenge. Today I recognize forgiveness as the quickest road to freedom and serenity. When I forgive my past, I release myself from the grip that it has on my present and on my future. It is difficult to live in peace today if I am psychically engaged in yesterday's battles. I will do what I need to do today to fully process the issues in my life that remain unresolved, so that I can let them go, knowing that the resentment and pain I continue to possess against another person actually possesses me.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
When I hold onto resentment and blame, I occupy my spirit with bitterness. Today I will find a more nurturing way to fill myself up.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Shifting My Inner Awareness
Forgive and forget is a myth. You may never forget AND you can choose to forgive. As life goes on and you remember, then is the time to once again remember that you have already forgiven. Mentally forgive again if necessary, then move forward. When we allow it, time can dull the vividness of the memory of the hurt; the memory will fade.
-Larry Jones
I meet my inner world honestly and with integrity.
Forgiveness doesn't require erasing my memories. I can forgive and remember. And I can forgive over and over and over again. I need to forgive myself and others for being human, for living slowly, for our collective ignorance, so that I can enjoy my day unencumbered by tiny thoughts of judgment, control, and revenge. Today I recognize forgiveness as the quickest road to freedom and serenity. When I forgive my past, I release myself from the grip that it has on my present and on my future. It is difficult to live in peace today if I am psychically engaged in yesterday's battles. I will do what I need to do today to fully process the issues in my life that remain unresolved, so that I can let them go, knowing that the resentment and pain I continue to possess against another person actually possesses me.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
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Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 21
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. *
- Mother Teresa
DAILY REFLECTION:
People Pleasing
For some of us, people-pleasing has become a way of getting our needs and wants met. But people-pleasing is manipulative and condescending. And it cheats us. When we are busy pleasing others, we are not being true to ourselves nor those we are pleasing.
Rather than manipulating people, let us simply ask for what we need and want. We are all lovable and deserving, just as we are. We can truly please ourselves and others by simply being ourselves.
The path to true connection is to be myself. The path to getting what I need is to ask for it
Do I ask honestly for what I want or need today?
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. *
- Mother Teresa
DAILY REFLECTION:
People Pleasing
For some of us, people-pleasing has become a way of getting our needs and wants met. But people-pleasing is manipulative and condescending. And it cheats us. When we are busy pleasing others, we are not being true to ourselves nor those we are pleasing.
Rather than manipulating people, let us simply ask for what we need and want. We are all lovable and deserving, just as we are. We can truly please ourselves and others by simply being ourselves.
The path to true connection is to be myself. The path to getting what I need is to ask for it
Do I ask honestly for what I want or need today?
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 22
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Experience is not what happens to you, it is what you do with what happens to you.
- Aldous Huxley *
DAILY REFLECTION:
Devils and Dust
I got God on my side
And I’m just trying to survive
What if what you do to survive
Kills the things you love
Fear’s a powerful thing, baby
It can turn your heart black you can trust
It’ll take your God filled soul
And fill it with devils and dust
"Devils & Dust", Bruce Springsteen
Before I found recovery, fear filled my soul with devils and dust. Now I can fill it with God instead.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Experience is not what happens to you, it is what you do with what happens to you.
- Aldous Huxley *
DAILY REFLECTION:
Devils and Dust
I got God on my side
And I’m just trying to survive
What if what you do to survive
Kills the things you love
Fear’s a powerful thing, baby
It can turn your heart black you can trust
It’ll take your God filled soul
And fill it with devils and dust
"Devils & Dust", Bruce Springsteen
Before I found recovery, fear filled my soul with devils and dust. Now I can fill it with God instead.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 22
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Experience is not what happens to you, it is what you do with what happens to you.
- Aldous Huxley
DAILY REFLECTION:
Devils and Dust
I got God on my side
And I’m just trying to survive
What if what you do to survive
Kills the things you love
Fear’s a powerful thing, baby
It can turn your heart black you can trust
It’ll take your God filled soul
And fill it with devils and dust
"Devils & Dust", Bruce Springsteen
Before I found recovery, fear filled my soul with devils and dust. Now I can fill it with God instead.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Experience is not what happens to you, it is what you do with what happens to you.
- Aldous Huxley
DAILY REFLECTION:
Devils and Dust
I got God on my side
And I’m just trying to survive
What if what you do to survive
Kills the things you love
Fear’s a powerful thing, baby
It can turn your heart black you can trust
It’ll take your God filled soul
And fill it with devils and dust
"Devils & Dust", Bruce Springsteen
Before I found recovery, fear filled my soul with devils and dust. Now I can fill it with God instead.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 23
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
We must alter our lives in order to alter our hearts, for it is impossible to live one way and pray another.
--William Law
DAILY REFLECTION:
I walked a mile with Sorrow,
And never a word said she;
But, oh, the things I learned from her
When Sorrow walked with me!
-- Robert Browning Hamilton
We may think that forgetting the past is essential for growth and peace of mind. It's a tempting idea: we'll start over again, we think, fresh and new. But if we lose that old pain, we'll also lose all that we learned. We may repeat our mistakes, or make even worse ones next time. Dwelling on the past is equally dangerous. We began recovery to build a better life.
To find and maintain our balance, each area of our lives needs attention. A healthy mind in a healthy body is free to find God. And, with God's help, we can learn to recognize and forgive our past mistakes, while we keep the remarkable lessons we learned from life.
With our remembering, with our inventory, we can truly experience the repentance that frees us from regret and remorse. When we acknowledge our mistakes, we can learn from them and come to forgive ourselves.
Today help me use my memories.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
We must alter our lives in order to alter our hearts, for it is impossible to live one way and pray another.
--William Law
DAILY REFLECTION:
I walked a mile with Sorrow,
And never a word said she;
But, oh, the things I learned from her
When Sorrow walked with me!
-- Robert Browning Hamilton
We may think that forgetting the past is essential for growth and peace of mind. It's a tempting idea: we'll start over again, we think, fresh and new. But if we lose that old pain, we'll also lose all that we learned. We may repeat our mistakes, or make even worse ones next time. Dwelling on the past is equally dangerous. We began recovery to build a better life.
To find and maintain our balance, each area of our lives needs attention. A healthy mind in a healthy body is free to find God. And, with God's help, we can learn to recognize and forgive our past mistakes, while we keep the remarkable lessons we learned from life.
With our remembering, with our inventory, we can truly experience the repentance that frees us from regret and remorse. When we acknowledge our mistakes, we can learn from them and come to forgive ourselves.
Today help me use my memories.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 24
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Find a place inside where there's joy, and the joy will burn out the pain.
- Joseph Campbell
DAILY REFLECTION:
Perspective
We see things not as they are, but as we are.
- H.M. Tomlinson
I have learned in recovery that if I am bothered by something, the responsibility of that feeling falls on me. I process the world from my own tiny corner of the universe from which the view is quite skewed. I remind myself that if I am displeased or angry, it is my responsibility to adjust my behavior, not force my environment to change on my account. This does not mean that my view is absolutely right. It means that my view is right for me. Similarly, others will have a different view of the same situation that is right for them. Consequently, I must remember not only to respect my own views, but that I must respect others’ views even if they are different from mine. I can do this and maintain my serenity by being able to disagree without basing my value on my ability to force my beliefs and perspectives on others. What others think, believe, or feel is not my business.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Find a place inside where there's joy, and the joy will burn out the pain.
- Joseph Campbell
DAILY REFLECTION:
Perspective
We see things not as they are, but as we are.
- H.M. Tomlinson
I have learned in recovery that if I am bothered by something, the responsibility of that feeling falls on me. I process the world from my own tiny corner of the universe from which the view is quite skewed. I remind myself that if I am displeased or angry, it is my responsibility to adjust my behavior, not force my environment to change on my account. This does not mean that my view is absolutely right. It means that my view is right for me. Similarly, others will have a different view of the same situation that is right for them. Consequently, I must remember not only to respect my own views, but that I must respect others’ views even if they are different from mine. I can do this and maintain my serenity by being able to disagree without basing my value on my ability to force my beliefs and perspectives on others. What others think, believe, or feel is not my business.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 25
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
In my own deepening understanding of myself I find my capacity to serve others is deepened as well. The better I am at self-care the more genuinely nurturing of others I am able to be.
- Mary Anne Radmacher
DAILY REFLECTION:
When we lose God, it is not God who is lost.
--Anonymous
At times any of us can fall into the trap of trying to make deals with God. The thought seems to be, if I can make a deal with God, then I can control the outcome that God alone seems to determine.
We cannot make deals with God - not because God is so hard-nosed, but because we don't need to bargain with God. The good we are trying to bargain for is already precious in the mind of God. We don't need to bargain for the benefit of others because God already loves those people and wants only good for them.
Yet at times we hear ourselves or others say things like, "Why doesn't God come through for me? I put my money in the offering tray every week, and I do things for my neighbors and friends. I volunteer for good causes. Yet I still feel insecure and scared. Why doesn't God answer my prayers?"
Perhaps the task is not to overwhelm God with all our effort but to quietly listen and discover that the gift was outside our door all the time. We were just too busy to pick it up.
Today I will be open to fresh insights about the God of my understanding.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
In my own deepening understanding of myself I find my capacity to serve others is deepened as well. The better I am at self-care the more genuinely nurturing of others I am able to be.
- Mary Anne Radmacher
DAILY REFLECTION:
When we lose God, it is not God who is lost.
--Anonymous
At times any of us can fall into the trap of trying to make deals with God. The thought seems to be, if I can make a deal with God, then I can control the outcome that God alone seems to determine.
We cannot make deals with God - not because God is so hard-nosed, but because we don't need to bargain with God. The good we are trying to bargain for is already precious in the mind of God. We don't need to bargain for the benefit of others because God already loves those people and wants only good for them.
Yet at times we hear ourselves or others say things like, "Why doesn't God come through for me? I put my money in the offering tray every week, and I do things for my neighbors and friends. I volunteer for good causes. Yet I still feel insecure and scared. Why doesn't God answer my prayers?"
Perhaps the task is not to overwhelm God with all our effort but to quietly listen and discover that the gift was outside our door all the time. We were just too busy to pick it up.
Today I will be open to fresh insights about the God of my understanding.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 26
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Sometimes the “It” in “Keep It Simple” can be how I work my Al-Anon program.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Insight
It is a gift to be able to discern the true nature of a situation.
Years of spiritual footwork and reasoning through my own problems and mistakes with mentors I trust has provided me with insight into my own motives and the motives of others.
After spending time really looking at "my part" in things, it becomes quite easy to see what I am no longer responsible for.
It also becomes easier to see when others are acting or reacting from their own "shadow self."
Today I am amazed at how often I can see exactly why someone has acted poorly, spoken cruelly, distanced themselves, or chosen to cling too closely.
By examining my own past, I am able to move forward with insight; I therefore step back from a situation and show empathy, compassion, and kindness when it truly is most needed.
Dear God, help me to see what is right in front of me. Help me to be kind when I find myself prepared to react.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Sometimes the “It” in “Keep It Simple” can be how I work my Al-Anon program.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Insight
It is a gift to be able to discern the true nature of a situation.
Years of spiritual footwork and reasoning through my own problems and mistakes with mentors I trust has provided me with insight into my own motives and the motives of others.
After spending time really looking at "my part" in things, it becomes quite easy to see what I am no longer responsible for.
It also becomes easier to see when others are acting or reacting from their own "shadow self."
Today I am amazed at how often I can see exactly why someone has acted poorly, spoken cruelly, distanced themselves, or chosen to cling too closely.
By examining my own past, I am able to move forward with insight; I therefore step back from a situation and show empathy, compassion, and kindness when it truly is most needed.
Dear God, help me to see what is right in front of me. Help me to be kind when I find myself prepared to react.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 27
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
If you figured it all out today, what would be the point of tomorrow? ENJOY the process of being a work in progress.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
I usually just lived one day at a time. I never had a sense of where I was going.
--Ruth Casey
Did any of us really know where we were going? We probably spent many hours, days, weeks even, making detailed plans for the people around us. These plans didn't usually suit others so they didn't often materialize. God, however, always had a plan in store for each of us, although sometimes we were the last to know it.
Is there any reason to think that anything has changed? Not really. We're still here, so that means God is still in charge of whatever should transpire today. Our part is to be willing to listen to God's direction and to follow it. We don't have to know where our steps are leading us. We can simply move forward, trusting that we will end up where we need to be.
We may have complicated our lives for too many years. That's not unusual. Busy people tend to do that. What we needed to do, where we needed to go, was always under the direction of God. It still is. Let's rejoice that our part is doable.
Living one day at a time works best. I'll give up thoughts of all else today.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
If you figured it all out today, what would be the point of tomorrow? ENJOY the process of being a work in progress.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
I usually just lived one day at a time. I never had a sense of where I was going.
--Ruth Casey
Did any of us really know where we were going? We probably spent many hours, days, weeks even, making detailed plans for the people around us. These plans didn't usually suit others so they didn't often materialize. God, however, always had a plan in store for each of us, although sometimes we were the last to know it.
Is there any reason to think that anything has changed? Not really. We're still here, so that means God is still in charge of whatever should transpire today. Our part is to be willing to listen to God's direction and to follow it. We don't have to know where our steps are leading us. We can simply move forward, trusting that we will end up where we need to be.
We may have complicated our lives for too many years. That's not unusual. Busy people tend to do that. What we needed to do, where we needed to go, was always under the direction of God. It still is. Let's rejoice that our part is doable.
Living one day at a time works best. I'll give up thoughts of all else today.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
FEBRUARY 28
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
For me, alcoholism has proven to be a bittersweet legacy in my life—bitter, because of the pain I suffered, and sweet, because if it weren’t for that pain, I wouldn’t have searched for and found a better way of living thru the Al-Anon program.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
We are not alone
If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
- Mother Teresa
When I am caught up in fear or frustration, I am usually focused on my own problems and my own perspective. I need to remember that I am not alone. I do not live in isolation. My actions can help or hurt others. Similarly, the actions of others can help or hurt me. In times when I am afraid or angry, I realize I am being self-centered and can reach out to others to help me gain perspective so that I can maintain peace and serenity. I reach out, not for judgment, but for understanding. I look not for advice on my situation, but rather I look to hear others share their own experience with similar situations. In the same way, when others seek me out, I will try not to judge or give advice; I will focus on being compassionate and share of my own experience.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
For me, alcoholism has proven to be a bittersweet legacy in my life—bitter, because of the pain I suffered, and sweet, because if it weren’t for that pain, I wouldn’t have searched for and found a better way of living thru the Al-Anon program.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
We are not alone
If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
- Mother Teresa
When I am caught up in fear or frustration, I am usually focused on my own problems and my own perspective. I need to remember that I am not alone. I do not live in isolation. My actions can help or hurt others. Similarly, the actions of others can help or hurt me. In times when I am afraid or angry, I realize I am being self-centered and can reach out to others to help me gain perspective so that I can maintain peace and serenity. I reach out, not for judgment, but for understanding. I look not for advice on my situation, but rather I look to hear others share their own experience with similar situations. In the same way, when others seek me out, I will try not to judge or give advice; I will focus on being compassionate and share of my own experience.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
February 29
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
What you think of me is none of my business.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Whatever you may be sure of, be sure of this, you are dreadfully like other people.
-- James Russell Lowell
Sharing our many experiences with our friends in Twelve Step meetings helps us understand how very similar we all are. We are unique only in the sense that each of us has a special contribution to make in life, one not quite like anyone else's.
Keeping secrets from others can make us fearful. We think, "Could they really like me if they knew this?" Yet we feel profound relief when we share our most shameful secrets in a meeting and the men and women listening to us don't blink an eye.
We no longer find rewards from pretending we're someone we're not. Our greatest reward now is the peace we experience from not having anything to hide. We have learned genuine humility and that we are equals with other people. No better, no worse.
Today I will enjoy the serenity of having no more secrets and will celebrate my humanity.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
A LEAPING dog for Leap Day!
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
What you think of me is none of my business.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Whatever you may be sure of, be sure of this, you are dreadfully like other people.
-- James Russell Lowell
Sharing our many experiences with our friends in Twelve Step meetings helps us understand how very similar we all are. We are unique only in the sense that each of us has a special contribution to make in life, one not quite like anyone else's.
Keeping secrets from others can make us fearful. We think, "Could they really like me if they knew this?" Yet we feel profound relief when we share our most shameful secrets in a meeting and the men and women listening to us don't blink an eye.
We no longer find rewards from pretending we're someone we're not. Our greatest reward now is the peace we experience from not having anything to hide. We have learned genuine humility and that we are equals with other people. No better, no worse.
Today I will enjoy the serenity of having no more secrets and will celebrate my humanity.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
A LEAPING dog for Leap Day!
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
March 1
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
The road to recovery is always under construction.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
To give, to have
… we cease to give, we cease to have. Such is the law of love.
The essence of our program is in giving of ourselves to each other. Step 12 states that we “tried to carry this message to others”. My experience is that when I am carrying the message, I am also receiving the message. Sometimes it is because I am reminded of where I came from, and how far I’ve come. Sometimes it is because I am forced to really think about how I understand and practice “these principles in all [my] affairs”. Whenever I share the message with others, the workings of the program in my life are strengthened and deepened. In doing so, I also pass on the love I have received, and receive love in return. But, if I close myself off, if I stop carrying the message, if I try to keep all my love within myself, then I will also stop receiving those benefits, and what I have will slowly wither and die. In order to keep it, I have to give it away.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
The road to recovery is always under construction.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
To give, to have
… we cease to give, we cease to have. Such is the law of love.
The essence of our program is in giving of ourselves to each other. Step 12 states that we “tried to carry this message to others”. My experience is that when I am carrying the message, I am also receiving the message. Sometimes it is because I am reminded of where I came from, and how far I’ve come. Sometimes it is because I am forced to really think about how I understand and practice “these principles in all [my] affairs”. Whenever I share the message with others, the workings of the program in my life are strengthened and deepened. In doing so, I also pass on the love I have received, and receive love in return. But, if I close myself off, if I stop carrying the message, if I try to keep all my love within myself, then I will also stop receiving those benefits, and what I have will slowly wither and die. In order to keep it, I have to give it away.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
March 2
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Choose Inner Peace. Nothing is worth losing your inner peace. Take action as circumstances require, but never surrender your inner peace. Stop. Breathe deeply. Close your eyes and breathe deeply again. Then, and only then, take action - from a peaceful heart.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie
DAILY REFLECTION:
Fear vs Fact
Sometimes, when I am worried about something and don't have all of the information to negate my feelings, I begin to operate on fear instead of fact.
I allow my anxiety to fuel this fear and soon I am working through every outcome I can imagine, hoping that in some way I will be better prepared when I do know what is going on.
But the truth is that I am not becoming better prepared each moment I spend obsessing on a fantasy. All I'm really choosing to do is mentally spin my wheels, wasting my time and a perfectly good day ruminating on outcomes that may never come to pass on a fear that may not even exist.
I must make a conscious effort each day to wait for facts before allowing fear to take over.
I do myself a disservice, and everyone around me a disservice, if I focus on fear instead of calmly waiting for accurate information.
Then, once I know what I must deal with, I can logically work towards a solid solution if necessary.
Dear God, help me to let go of fear. Help me to make decisions based on fact and to let go of a problem until I am sure of all it entails.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Choose Inner Peace. Nothing is worth losing your inner peace. Take action as circumstances require, but never surrender your inner peace. Stop. Breathe deeply. Close your eyes and breathe deeply again. Then, and only then, take action - from a peaceful heart.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie
DAILY REFLECTION:
Fear vs Fact
Sometimes, when I am worried about something and don't have all of the information to negate my feelings, I begin to operate on fear instead of fact.
I allow my anxiety to fuel this fear and soon I am working through every outcome I can imagine, hoping that in some way I will be better prepared when I do know what is going on.
But the truth is that I am not becoming better prepared each moment I spend obsessing on a fantasy. All I'm really choosing to do is mentally spin my wheels, wasting my time and a perfectly good day ruminating on outcomes that may never come to pass on a fear that may not even exist.
I must make a conscious effort each day to wait for facts before allowing fear to take over.
I do myself a disservice, and everyone around me a disservice, if I focus on fear instead of calmly waiting for accurate information.
Then, once I know what I must deal with, I can logically work towards a solid solution if necessary.
Dear God, help me to let go of fear. Help me to make decisions based on fact and to let go of a problem until I am sure of all it entails.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
March 3
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Detachment allows me to let go of my obsession with another’s behavior and I can begin to lead happier and more manageable life. A life with dignity and rights, a life guided by a Power greater than myself.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Hope is a good breakfast, but it is a bad supper.
--Francis Bacon
Each day we hope for accomplishment and satisfaction, and we'll achieve these when we scale our hopes to our real capacities. There's no more satisfying feeling than finishing a project we've set up ourselves, tailored to our abilities, and worked at with patience and care. Our lives can be filled with such successes.
Learning to live means learning to keep ourselves in the present. This day is all we really have to work with. 0f course today will be influenced by what has already happened; and its influence will extend to tomorrow, next week, and beyond. But all we can make or do lies here, within this window of space and time.
May my supper be contentment. I'll breakfast on hope again.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
Detachment allows me to let go of my obsession with another’s behavior and I can begin to lead happier and more manageable life. A life with dignity and rights, a life guided by a Power greater than myself.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Hope is a good breakfast, but it is a bad supper.
--Francis Bacon
Each day we hope for accomplishment and satisfaction, and we'll achieve these when we scale our hopes to our real capacities. There's no more satisfying feeling than finishing a project we've set up ourselves, tailored to our abilities, and worked at with patience and care. Our lives can be filled with such successes.
Learning to live means learning to keep ourselves in the present. This day is all we really have to work with. 0f course today will be influenced by what has already happened; and its influence will extend to tomorrow, next week, and beyond. But all we can make or do lies here, within this window of space and time.
May my supper be contentment. I'll breakfast on hope again.
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 11,481
March 4
This is posted from the "Today's Hope" site of Alanon.
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
I do not need anyone's permission to be my true self.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Accept Myself
Today I can accept myself for what I am because I know that whatever happens, I have a Higher Power and a group of people who will love me anyway.
— In All Our Affairs
It was in the rooms of Al-Anon that I first experienced the unconditional love of my Higher Power. After my first meeting, a couple of members gave me their phone numbers and told me I could call anytime. I came to understand that I could talk of my deepest secrets and pain, and that I would be received with understanding, empathy and love. I could speak about my small triumphs, my tiny steps of progress, and know that you understood how hard they were, and how proud I was, but also how much I longed for more. As I “came to believe”, I saw that my Higher Power was working through you, and that the love I felt in the rooms was freely available to me at any time. As I came to know that I was loved, I was able to begin to accept myself for who I am, and to begin to love myself. It’s a long road from shame and self-deprecation to self-acceptance and self-love. I am grateful to have the support of all the people in the program and of my Higher Power on that life journey
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
DAILY SLOGAN/SAYING:
I do not need anyone's permission to be my true self.
- Heard in a meeting
DAILY REFLECTION:
Accept Myself
Today I can accept myself for what I am because I know that whatever happens, I have a Higher Power and a group of people who will love me anyway.
— In All Our Affairs
It was in the rooms of Al-Anon that I first experienced the unconditional love of my Higher Power. After my first meeting, a couple of members gave me their phone numbers and told me I could call anytime. I came to understand that I could talk of my deepest secrets and pain, and that I would be received with understanding, empathy and love. I could speak about my small triumphs, my tiny steps of progress, and know that you understood how hard they were, and how proud I was, but also how much I longed for more. As I “came to believe”, I saw that my Higher Power was working through you, and that the love I felt in the rooms was freely available to me at any time. As I came to know that I was loved, I was able to begin to accept myself for who I am, and to begin to love myself. It’s a long road from shame and self-deprecation to self-acceptance and self-love. I am grateful to have the support of all the people in the program and of my Higher Power on that life journey
Daily share from the forum can be found here: Today's Sharing - Today's Hope
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