Daily Motivation 6-22-10

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Today's Gift

My father didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.
—Clarence Budinton Kelland

We learn much of what we need to know about being men from models we have in other men. Some of us have fond memories of being next to our fathers and imitating their ways. Many of us also have the feeling of a gap in our models. Perhaps our fathers weren't around enough, or we may have rejected some of their habits and values, creating an uncertainty about masculine roles. We may feel unsure of ourselves, or we may berate ourselves for what we don't know.

It is well to remember how much we have already learned in our adult years. It is never too late. No man ever reaches adulthood having learned everything from his father that he will need to know about masculinity. We can look around us for more models in the men we know. For a man to be our model, we first choose someone we admire and then get to know him well. In this way, we carry on the human tradition of one man learning from another.

I am continuing to grow, and I can learn from the men I know now.

From Touchstones: A Book of Daily Meditations for Men ©

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Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Keep It Simple

The confession of evil works is the first beginning of good works.---St. Augustine.
We started recovering the minute we admitted we were powerless over our illness. We crossed over from dishonesty to honesty. Often, we don't see what power honestly has. Maybe we still aren't sure that being honest is best for us. It is! This is why the authors of the Big Book ask us to be totally honest from the start.

Just as denial is what makes addiction work, honesty is what makes recovery work. Honesty means self-respect. Honesty heals. Honesty let us look people in the eyes. What comfort we'll feel as we deeper into our program.

Prayer for the Day: I pray that I'll let go totally. I pray that I'll keep no secrets that could put my sobriety at risk.

Action for the Day: Today, I'll read the first three pages of "How It Works" in the Big Book.

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One Day At A Time

Unity

We know that AA must continue to live,
or else many of our fellow alcoholics throughout the world
will surely resume the hopeless journey into oblivion. That must never be.
. . . we have thus far avoided serious controversies.
Save minor and healthy growing pains, we are at peace among ourselves.
And because we have thus far adhered to our sole aim,
the whole world regards us favorably.
May God grant us the wisdom and fortitude ever to sustain
an unbreakable unity. - Bill W., September 1948
- The Language of the Heart, p. 90

Thought to Ponder . . .
There is no strength without unity.

AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
U S = United Spirits.

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Daily Motivation

Transform regrets
Do you feel sadness and disappointment for what you have failed to do? Then you have some powerful energy for moving yourself forward.

Do you feel regret for the missed opportunities? That painful regret has a positive purpose.

For although those past opportunities are gone, even more powerful ones have arisen to take their place.

What's even better is that you now have more reason than ever to make the most of them.

You can easily and naturally transform sadness into motivation. You can transform the regrets into powerful and unstoppable determination.

Feel the intensity of your own energy. Realize you can point that energy in any direction you choose.

Choose to point it forward, in alignment with your highest purpose and most treasured dreams. Now is the time that matters, and now you can make life great.

-- Ralph Marston