Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand that the more time we spend being abstinent the better we understand the reality of time. We have often heard people who have been abstinent say that the reality of time is time takes time. We also understand that time passes by very quickly. Twenty, thirty, or even forty years seem to pass by in a flash. For many of us the sum of our knowledge is recovery is a gift given to us through grace. In other words the gift of desperation was held fast in our beings and abstinence just happened. Foolish are those of us who believed that we controlled our own destiny. When we have been around for a while we understand that there are no accidents in God’s universe. The reality of time reveals this to us. We’ve been blessed. We are grateful. Peace.
People who are living in one day at a time recovery can be sure of one thing. This is if we do not use we will not get wasted or buzzed. This is the reality of remaining abstinent. In all certainty, no matter what we or anyone says, recovery is to be experienced by living life one day at a time. A ginormous change happens to us when we are abstinent which is we become strong recovering people by seeking support from other recovering people. In doing we lose the aloneness we once felt because aloneness cannot grow in the togetherness of we. Even those of us who are introverts are people who understand the reality of we. Together we can do what we could never do alone. This is the reality of not picking up that first one. Recovery becomes an experienced and shared reality. We live it. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand the reality of when the piper has called. This is not a pleasant time for us and neither should it be a pleasant time for us. This is the reality of remembering the past. In early abstinence we become the victims of every wrong that has ever been done to us. We just love to pass the blame on to others. No wonder we were we (or so we thought). Then we start to look at the wrong we have done to others. This is the really hard part and this is when the piper calls. This is when we need help because few of us are prepared to do this alone. What we need to know is that our thinking was impaired and still is to some degree until we learn the true reality of grace. When we know the reality of grace we are then prepared to face the piper when the piper has called because the piper knows three places that he will take us. They are guilt, shame, and remorse. The reality of grace makes it so that the piper cannot keep us there because grace gives us forgiveness even when we don’t feel forgivable. When we understand this we are no longer victims of our disease. We become free people who know the meaning of “it is what it is”. Grace becomes a permanent reality for us. One day at a time reality becomes the cornerstone of our recovery. The piper can harm us no more. Welcome to maturity. Welcome to life. The chains are broken. We deserve all the goodness that recovery has in store for us. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand the need we have for our lives to become mature. Those of us who are older know that just because we grow up (or get older) it doesn’t mean we have matured. Often the control freak who lives inside of us will retard our maturity as much as it possibly can. In other words we have difficulty with maturing in regards to our levels of flexibility and adaptability and when we cannot be flexible or adapt to reality the struggles of anxiety’s cumbersome grip causes havoc with our peace of mind. This becomes the reality of accepting reality which is to simply let things and other people be as they may. In other words we just need to let it go. This simple act really makes life easier. It’s a tried and tested reality. We know this. Welcome to reality. Welcome to growth. We now understand what grace is. Both giving and receiving. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand the importance of having a morning routine. Many of us who do have a prayer life will thank God, the spirit, or the universe for waking us for another awakening and we will ask for help to face the day clean and sober. We will also ask for help to participate in life and recovery responsibly and do what it is we must do to be responsible and helpful in our daily affairs. Most of us believe this helps us to start the day the right way. Some of us then choose to meditate or contemplate in moments of aloneness (but togetherness with the other) while being aware to the reality of the moment. Some of us read daily messages and some of us write. We know this is a good way to start our day. It helps. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery often come to an understanding that as they grow into recovery they become woke. What happens is we start to realize we have compassions and concern not only for ourselves but for other people in their suffering and we also learn how to celebrate their wellness, their accomplishments, and their overall being. Why do we do this? We do this because we know that when we rise to face the day as recovering people who know the reality of love and one day at a time recovery. If people are to criticize us for this we might ask them, “Did you know us when we were not in recovery?” It took a lot of compassion, love, and concern from others to help us grow and we are grateful we have become woke. It’s a big part of our recovery. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery discover when we become abstinent and become people who frequent the rooms of recovery we will pick up tiny bits of knowledge. Phrases like take it one day at a time, grace is a gift, the gift of desperation, and let go and let God become tidbits of food for our souls. Such tiny pieces of knowledge help us to identify with the experiences of one day at a time recovery. Realizing together we can find reality we become maybe just a little wiser as to how to face adversity while remaining abstinent. The experience, strength, and hope of others often shows us how to learn this reality. We become humble understanding that God, the spirit, or the universe is there for us. We become grateful people gaining a little knowledge day by day. It all helps. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery eventually understand that trees shall bend in the wind but we do not get a chance to experience this until we do find recovery and in that recovery we discover life on life terms is about being resilient. Being resilient, or becoming resilient, is a gift that opens the doors to understanding the responsibility of grace and in such grace we become flexible enough to ride out the storms of life bending as trees do as they bend in strong winds remaining abstinent and giving recovery the opportunity to grow and be of help to others who are seeking the reality of recovery one day at a time. Many of us do this when we meet in the rooms of recovery which is recovering people helping recovering people. We bend and model a new reality. It’s all about resilience. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery know that abstinence often leads us to the beginning of new ties. The new ties that we begin to develop often occur in the realities of relationships, jobs, studies, and hobbies. Those of us who like to participate in the rooms of recovery often build and develop new friendships with people we meet in the rooms. Some recovering people also start new jobs and some even become people who work with other recovering people. This is more common than we might think. Some of us go back to school and further our studies. Some of us start new hobbies and pastimes. Perhaps we paint, exercise, or create or collect music. These are all some of the natural activities of recovery that start anew or in some cases become active again. They all help. Welcome to recovery. Welcome to grace. Peace.
Many of us who are people living in one day at a time recovery know people who in our knowledge have never fallen. This is how we create legends in our hopeful and hoping realities of recovery. We always seem to look up to these people with our innocent longings of how could we be like them. In reality we just haven’t been around them long enough to see them when they did fall. Their fall is the reason they are in recovery. They too had hit a bottom but of course we excuse them because at the time of their bottom they like us knew no better. This is the distortion found in the false experiences in our minds. You see – they were just like us. They too were human. What we need to realize is we all had to and have to pay our dues. Just like them our pain is real. When we learn this we learn how to give ourselves grace. The tree that hasn’t fallen doesn’t exist. We all belong. Peace.