Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand the benefits of daily journaling. When we journal we explore the realities of our lives, the difficulties of our lives, the hopes that we have, and we live out practical solutions which have made our happiness or our inner-peace possible. For those of us living in recovery we explore the realities of one day at a time living. We discover reality, balance, and freedom. We will not get to become perfect, we will still experience adversity and pain, and we will still know fear but we will uncover a courage that we never knew existed. Life becomes a welcomed experience. Journaling reveals this to us. We will get to see the importance of each and every person. We all matter. We were an interrupted reality which is now filled with emerging grace. We have found hope. Peace.
Many people who have been living in one day at a time recovery understand when grace comes calling we take its hand with our sweaty palm and follow its lead to wherever it might take us. Grace’s utmost reality is it guides us into one more day of abstinence and recovery. Such is the freedom from active addiction. We understand the reality of once a cucumber becomes a pickle it cannot be turned back into a cucumber. Our truth is that we would not want it to turn back because grace has given us new lease on life. In life we have recovery, joy, and freedom. Grace in all of its persistence brings a new calm that frees our souls. It’s a gift that does for us what we could not do for ourselves. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand that when we find reality we are developing the ability of being people who can teach others the importance of finding abstinence and reality for themselves. After all, the gift of desperation led us to a place where we sat down with ourselves and came to the realization that we simply had to stop using. There was a loneliness so deep inside that many of us felt hopeless and beaten. Some of us cried out, “God help me!” And God did. After being abstinent months, years, or decades later we discovered we were in recovery because of grace. We understood that God worked through other people and that in the togetherness with others we too could help others. Our loneliness had subsided and our stories became a beacon of hope for others. It’s our reality. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery come to an understanding that in all of our suffering God is with us, God was with us, and God will be with us. This is life and reality all rolled-up into a ball. We have heard it said that God takes care of drunks and fools. In a no uncertain way we know this to be true. Life, and recovery, would be a God-awful joke if it wasn’t. We get to see that we are living in the reality of grace and because of grace we learn to suffer well because our thinking is no longer impaired. Now we live in the midst of being free from active addiction. Because of this we find reality, love, and hope. It’s all part of a journey that we have to travel. Peace.
Many people who live life one day at a time eventually learn that recovery is not a competition. It is not about who gains the most amount of time with continuous abstinence. Those of us who have been around for a few years are soon to understand that time in recovery is in all actuality a break from our ill-fitted fate. It’s a combination of desperation, commitment, and grace that enables us to gather any amount of substantial time in which we are abstinent, healthy, and free from active addiction. Although many of us become spiritually fit we realize that we haven’t become conquerors in spiritual warfare. We are people who have surrendered to the idea that we need to remain abstinent just for today. We also understand we can only keep what we have by giving it away. Recovery is not a competition. It’s a gift. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand that there are times when living in recovery is supposed to be hard. This reality becomes increasingly evident when we argue with others over reasonable solutions that might help us to overcome difficulties. To do so we need to participate in doable actions. Such doable actions are to live one day at a time and also to let go of the reality of blame. We also practice the reality of mutual respect. In doing so we understand the reality of we. When we understand we, we understand the gift of one day at a time recovery. Togetherness is the reality of grace. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery know the reality of remembering forgotten roads of long ago. Most of the time such roads are memories of an ill-spent youth. Some would say that we lived the lives of prodigal children. What some would call teen-age wasteland was an impaired and troublesome period of our lives. As we walk down these roads we see we were like bulls running wild in a china shop and the damage we did we cannot fix. We are not those of us who can say that we have no regrets. The wise amongst us have told us to believe in grace which is always revealed to us in one day at a time living. Most of us know this. It’s part of the journey. Peace
Most people living in one day at a time recovery know that we need to be heard. When we are heard and not negatively judged we feel a measure of acceptance. When feeling heard and not being negatively judged we feel as though we are people worthy of respect. Acceptance and respect help us on our journey of living in recovery. What we have discovered is that there are people who live with a fair amount of integrity who can show to us enough acceptance and respect that we know we will be heard. Very often this happens in the rooms of recovery. Often we turn to therapist or other professionals in our search to be heard. One day at a time we understand that we all need to be heard. We are all worthy of love and belonging. We need to accept it. It’s all grace. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand that even though we have been abstinent for fair amounts of time we know that it is never safe for us to return to active using. People who had been abstinent for long periods of time proved to us that when they had just one drink, puff, snort, or hit it brought with it all chains of active addiction. From what we have witnessed and what we have done we know that using even just once takes us to the places of unmanageability making our lives completely out of control. What we know is it is easier to remain in recovery than it is to find recovery once again. Our witness or our actions are sufficient proof for us. We need to reach out. It’s our saving grace. It works. We know this. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery believe that staying abstinent is a simple reality to finding hope. For many of us we find being frequent visitors who participate in the give and take that occurs in the rooms of recovery actually helps us to find a strength of freedom and grace which for many of us comes from the inextricable connection we find with each other. We are grateful because we don’t have to feel alone because we are frequent visitors and supporters to the rooms. Even those of us who were living introverted lives find we are part of a social species. We find that today we are living in and with the promise of hope and freedom from active addiction. It’s a simple reality. Peace.