Today's Thoughts

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You are reading from the book Today's Gift.


Let your conscience be your guide.
--Jiminy Cricket

Crickets sing on summer nights because it's their nature to do so. They
don't think about whistling or trumpeting or sleeping or changing the
world. They've figured out their role on earth, and they do it.

We are a bit more complex than crickets, and most of the time that's
lucky. In most of our affairs it's our conscience more than sheer
instinct that helps us choose those thoughts and acts and feelings that are
right for us.

Each of us has that little voice inside, relentless as a chirping
cricket, telling us what to do. Even in the middle of our toughest
decisions, we always have within us the solution that is right for us. All we
have to do is listen--and trust.

What does my inner voice say about today's decisions?
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You are reading from the book Touchstones.


Choice of attention - to pay attention to this and ignore that - is to
the inner life what choice of action is to the outer. In both cases, a
man is responsible for his choice and must accept the consequences.
--W. H. Auden

Many of us have said, "I can't help myself!" when we tried to stop our
constant thinking about other people or their behavior. "I know it's
not good for me, but what can I do when they keep acting that way?"

Let us think of ourselves as living in a house with many windows. At
each window is a different view, and within each view are many things to
catch our attention. Perhaps there are some people, some traffic, some
buildings, a horizon, and some trees. If we always go to the same
window and focus on the same object, we are not using all our choices. We
may have overlooked some things in our lives that need attention. There
are many things we are totally powerless over. Our power exists in
changing the focus of our attention.

Today, I will notice where I am choosing to pay attention. I pray for
guidance in being aware of my options.
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You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.


. . . we could never learn to be brave and patient if there were only
joy in the world.
--Helen Keller

We chase after joy, like a child after a firefly, being certain that in
joy all problems are solved, all questions are answered. Joy has its
rewards, and we deserve them. But life has more to teach us.

We need to learn patience; through patience we come to respect time and
its passage, and we are mellowed. We need to learn tolerance; through
tolerance our appreciation of another's individuality is nurtured. We
need to learn self-respect; self-respect prepares us to contribute more
freely to our experiences, and we find wholeness.

Life's travails are our opportunities for lasting, enriching joy. The
rough spots deepen our understandings. And these help us to bring joy to
the lives of the friends near and dear.

I need not turn my back on joy. But I will be glad for all life's
experiences. The panorama will sustain me more fully.


You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.


Being Vulnerable

Part of recovery means learning to share ourselves with other people.
We learn to admit our mistakes and expose our imperfections -- not so
that others can fix us, rescue us, or feel sorry for us, but so we can
love and accept ourselves. This sharing is a catalyst in healing and
changing.

Many of us are fearful of sharing our imperfections because that makes
us vulnerable. Some of us have tried being vulnerable in the past, and
people tried to control, manipulate, or exploit us, or they made us
feel ashamed.

Some of us in recovery have hurt ourselves by being vulnerable. We may
have shared things with people who didn't respect our confidence. Or we
may have told the wrong people at an inappropriate time, and scared
them away.

We learn from our mistakes -- and despite our mistakes, it is still a
good thing to allow ourselves to be vulnerable and honest. We can learn
to choose safe people with whom to share ourselves. We can learn to
share appropriately, so we don't scare or push people away. We can also
learn to let others be vulnerable with us.

Today, God, help me learn to be appropriately vulnerable. I will not
let others exploit or shame me for being vulnerable, and I will not
exploit myself.