Many people who live in one day at a time recovery know that recovery is a marathon. We know that we do not sprint from day to day to day to day. The days go by fast enough even when we are pacing them. Sprinting causes us to burn out. We need strength for when we need to go uphill, and we need strength for when we need to go downhill. Both can be difficult. When we learn this, we learn that recovery is not a race. We are simply travelling a distance of recovery that we hope will be the length of a marathon. We might even walk a while, and as we meet others we enjoy it. This is the joy of the marathon. As we walk we will see sprinters running by. As we continue we will meet sprinters who have gone lame. We will help them and they too shall walk with us. These sprinters were lucky enough to have the opportunity to continue the marathon. Some sprinters simply faded away much too fast. So day to day we travel the marathon. Most of us walk enjoying our recovery. It’s not a race. Enjoy it!
Many people living in one day at a time recovery receive what can only be described as a profound glimpse of their lives. This usually happens to us when we are a little older in years and such a glimpse portrays to us the reality of the mistakes we have made and the pain we have caused others. In as such our awakening has almost come to its fruition. Part of this awakening is that we are far better people today and we have probably been so since we’ve come into recovery. Even with such a reality some of us cannot say that we have no regrets because our past reality reveals to us that to have such regrets would only be human. We are not, never were, or never will be saints. We were broken and ill and are now left with the remnants of such ill-adventurous living. Our reality today is that we know and accept that we were ill. Many of us have spent years trying to help others to become or to continue being well. We did so and we do so simply because it is the right thing to do and helping others helps us to help ourselves. This is part of the inextricable connection that we have with those we are akin with. We are people living with humility who accept our imperfections. It’s the gift of reality and compassion. Our awakening continues one day at a time. It’s part of the journey. Peace.
Many of us who live in one day at a time recovery understand that each day starts out like a blank piece of paper waiting for the present to begin and then happen. Often it is about the power of now. What most of us experience is that the now is not necessarily experiencing a mystical and rare moment of perfect peace and perfect tranquility but it is the doing of what is right in front of us. During such an endeavor our paper becomes our story and in our story we live the freedom from active addiction with its twists of grace and other interventions from God, the spirit, or the universe which can be as simple as the breaths we breathe in one day at a time reality. If we are paying attention we are watching a a modern day miracle unfold. Try to enjoy it. Peace.
Those of us who are living in one day at a time recovery understand the reality of peace of mind. We understand that peace of mind is neither perpetual happiness or endless serenity. In all reality we can can see that peace of mind is the calm we find when we have come through the other side of emotional, spiritual, and/or economic hardship. It is the joy we experience when it seems all of life’s dots are connecting and it is also the reality of accepting hardships such as divorce, failing physical health, and death. It is the peace we find in one day at a time abstinence and it is the lessening of worry and sleepless nights. To sum it all it up it is the reality of grace which gifts us with the reality of freedom. It’s what one day at a time recovery is all about. Peace
Many people living in one day at a time recovery are quick to realize that we don’t find perfection when we come into recovery. To believe we have found perfection, or will eventually find it, is an unrealistic goal of what recovery is all about. Recovery is all about living in imperfection and realistically navigating the joys and adversities found in life while still finding the freedom and the happiness we experience from living in abstinence from our addictions one day at a time. Because of our abstinence we become bold enough to believe we might be able to be supportive to others seeking recovery. And we can one day at a time. We seek progress not perfection. We simply want the humble reality of living manageable lives. It’s a gift. Enjoy it. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery know the importance of a year spent in recovery and each subsequent year spent in recovery there after. Though many people celebrate one year and each additional year as milestones, we know that the year or the many years we remain abstinent we are actually celebrating continuous sequences of many, many, one days at a time. Another reality is that many of us who actively find support and give support in the rooms of recovery know that such rooms are the on going reason we have found and live in the reality of long term one day at a time recovery. Quite often we celebrate with cake. Everyone is welcome to celebrate at such events. We call them birthdays or anniversaries. They are inspiring realities of hope for us all. The miracle can and will continue. Peace.
Many of us who are living in one day at a time recovery know the reality of living unmanageable lives. What most of us have discovered is that life will eventually become manageable. It just tends to become our reality. The first difficulty that we face in recovery is getting through physical withdrawal. Often we need a safe environment to do so safely. Some of us needed and need medication to do so. After that we need support be it professional or peer support. Many of us needed or need both and there is a whole bunch of us who sought and seek the intervention of of a divine entity be it called God, the spirit or the universe or whatever else our conception of that entity might be. We needed to and still to this day need to reach out even after years of recovery. It’s our strength and it works. Life will eventually become manageable. In finding this we will become supports for others. That’s how recovery works. It becomes our reality. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery seek out to live a life of being in recovery because the cost is too high when we live in a life of active addiction. Active addiction cost us our mental and spiritual health while rapidly attacking our physical health to the very point that we could very well die. Suicide, overdose, and avoidable accidental death are more than common to those we are akin with. Those of us who find recovery are the lucky ones. Often we are the ones who our neighbors said were the walking dead. Our spiritual tombstone could be clearly seen in our eyes. Treatment and support from our peers brought us the reality of recovery. One day at a time we learned that we had paid our dues. The cost is too high to continue doing so. Reach out. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery know the reality of living life on wide open roads. It’s living life as an adventure of freedom. The only confines of this adventure are that we be responsible enough that we do such an adventure knowing full well that we must do so with those who are our loved ones and we need to accept guidance and assistance from those we gather with in the rooms of recovery. It also helps to recognize that we all travel these roads because we have found grace given and gifted from that which we call God, the spirit, the universe, and those we are inextricably connected with. It can become quite a wonderful journey regardless of any adversity we encounter. We will learn that the wide open roads are the discovery of peace. It’s the gift of doing by the practice of faith. This is the reality of living life on wide open roads. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery have found one day at a time humility. When we discover this reality we have uncovered a spiritual reality. The spiritual reality of humility is a modest commitment that we endeavor to fulfill by sharing peace, joy and love. We do this by accepting we are worthy of grace. What we need to understand is being worthy of grace is a paradox. When we do this we know we can never force our peace, joy and love on another person, or other people. The spiritual reality becomes a grandiose delusion should we try to. People need to be heard should they struggle. At such a times we have shared peace, joy and love with others because they know they have been heard. We know this from experience. It’s important. Some call it empathy. When we understand the spiritual reality of humility we know we are not always the ones with answers. Our reality is we are people living in one day at a time recovery who know we are worthy of grace. We know we’re not saints, but we do have the humility to know we have peace, joy and love to share, and it’s a modest endeavor. Peace.