Hi all. That is news to me that the alcohol doesn't burn off as much as folk stories tell us it does--thanks, Dee. OL, I would have eaten it too since it was served to me at someone else's house, but I wouldn't order something cooked in alcohol on a menu, and I don't cook anything prepared with rice wine vinegar or sherry, mostly because I don't want the leftover left in my house. Glad you made it through! So, did you like their salmon even though you don't particularly care for salmon?
Else, I am so glad to hear that you are feeling better. You sound really good. Reading your description of your experience reminded me of the Anais Nin quote, "And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." It is so fitting for the slow, continuous journey we experience as we get further into recovery. You deserve all the happiness in the world.
V, great to hear that the date went well and your cruise sounds delightful! I doubt I can add more to the wisdom of OL and Else, but you definitely have my support. Your 18 months is coming up in the 15th...just a week after you return! I have no doubt you will get through the cruise. You are strong willed and determined and resourceful. I have a feeling that you are going to find all sorts of interesting distractions and people to talk to.
To all of us introverts on the board, this meditation from the Nepo book really spoke to me and I've been mulling over it for the past few days:
Meeting the World
You must meet the outer world
With your inner world
Or existence will crush you
There is a wind that keeps blowing since the beginning of time, and in every language spoken, it continues to whisper, You must meet the outer world with your inner world or existence will crush you. If inner does not meet outer, our lives will collapse and vanish. Though we often think that hiding our inwardness will somehow protect or save us, it is quite the opposite. The heart is very much like a miraculous balloon. Its lightness comes from staying full. Meeting the days with our heart prevents collapse.
This is why ninety-year-old widows remain committed to tending to small flowers in spring; why ten-year-olds with very little to eat care for stray kittens, holding them to their skinny chests; why painters going blind paint more; why composers going deaf write great symphonies. This is why when we think we can't possibly try again, we let out a sigh that goes back through the centuries, and then, despite all our experience, we inhale and try again.
--Center yourself and breathe slowly and deeply.
--As you breathe, feel your lungs fill and empty like a balloon.
--As you breathe, realize that your heart is filling and emptying itself of an inner air.
--During your day, let this inner air meet the world whenever you feel overwhelmed.
(The Book of Awakening, Mark Nepo, pp. 32-33)