Language of Letting Go - August 2
 

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go

In Between

Sometimes, to get from where we are to where we are going, we have to be willing to be in between.

One of the hardest parts of recovery is the concept of letting go of what is old and familiar, but what we don't want, and being willing to stand with our hands empty while we wait for God to fill them.

This may apply to feelings. We may have been full of hurt and anger. In some ways, these feelings may have become comfortably familiar. When we finally face and relinquish our grief, we may feel empty for a time. We are in between pain and the joy of serenity and acceptance.

Being in between can apply to relationships. To prepare ourselves for the new, we need to first let go of the old. This can be frightening. We may feel empty and lost for a time. We may feel all alone, wondering what is wrong with us for letting go of the proverbial bird in hand, when there is nothing in the bush.

Being in between can apply to many areas of life and recovery. We can be in between jobs, careers, homes, or goals. We can be in between behaviors as we let go of the old and are not certain what we will replace it with. This can apply to behaviors that have protected and served us well all of our life, such as caretaking and controlling.

We may have many feelings going on when we're in between: spurts of grief about what we have let go of or lost, and feelings of anxiety, fear, and apprehension about what's ahead. These are normal feelings for the in between place. Accept them. Feel them. Release them.

Being in between isn't fun, but it's necessary. It will not last forever. It may feel like we're standing still, but we're not. We're standing at the in between place. it's how we get from here to there. It is not the destination.

We are moving forward, even when we're in between.

Today, I will accept where I am as the ideal place for me to be. If I am in between, I will strive for the faith that this place is not without purpose, that it is moving me toward something good.

From The Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie ©1990, Hazelden Foundation.

This is another one of my favourite readings from that book.

I know this was hard for me. I was used to my codie ways, as exhausting as they were, and it was the exhaustion that left me too tired to try something new, a better way of living.

In the end, it was exhaustion that brought me to my knees to surrender and just give it all up...to God.

Today I know that it can be confusing to sit in that "waiting room" called in-between. Whether waiting for a job or preparing ourselves for a new relationship, there comes a time when we just wait while life unfolds.

Waiting is a healing time, a time of reflection of all that has been and preparation for all that is to come. It is a vacation from "events" where we can just sit with our recovery tools and feel gratitude for the transition.

"In between" is the bridge that takes us from where we were to where we're going, and it's a bridge of courage, faith and strength.

Hugs

Ann,

thank you so much for sharing these each day. I wish there was a way I could get my parents a copy of this book without offending them. They would really benefit from it.