Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Today's Gift
Life is not always what one wants it to be, but to make the best of it as it is, is the only way of being happy. —Jennie Jerome Churchill
We are generally so certain that we know what's best for ourselves. And we are just as often certain that what we think is best will guarantee happiness. Perhaps we should reflect on all the times in the past when our wishes didn't come true - fortunately.
Did any one of us expect to be doing today, what we each are doing? We may have expected children, a particular kind of home, a certain career, but did we really anticipate all that life has wrought? Addiction, and then recovery from it, was probably not in our pictures. But it does fit into the big picture. The happiness we experience today probably doesn't visit us in the way we anticipated a few years back. But it is measured out according to our needs. The choice to be happy with what is, is ours to make, every moment.
I can take life as it is, and trust that it is just right, just what it needs to be. The big picture guarantees me lasting happiness. Today's experiences will move me a step closer.
We are generally so certain that we know what's best for ourselves. And we are just as often certain that what we think is best will guarantee happiness. Perhaps we should reflect on all the times in the past when our wishes didn't come true - fortunately.
Did any one of us expect to be doing today, what we each are doing? We may have expected children, a particular kind of home, a certain career, but did we really anticipate all that life has wrought? Addiction, and then recovery from it, was probably not in our pictures. But it does fit into the big picture. The happiness we experience today probably doesn't visit us in the way we anticipated a few years back. But it is measured out according to our needs. The choice to be happy with what is, is ours to make, every moment.
I can take life as it is, and trust that it is just right, just what it needs to be. The big picture guarantees me lasting happiness. Today's experiences will move me a step closer.
From Each Day a New Beginning: Daily Meditations for Women by Karen Casey
********************************
Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Walk In Dry Places
Respecting others.
Respecting others.
Whom Should we Respect? While having dinner in a nice restaurant, my friends and I realized that we were treating the young man
bussing the table with cold indifference. He appeared to be unsure of
himself, doing his work with apprehension and a lack of
confidence.
bussing the table with cold indifference. He appeared to be unsure of
himself, doing his work with apprehension and a lack of
confidence.
Here was an example of a person who needed silent encouragement. He
needed to be assured that his performance of honest, useful work was
respected and appreciated. He also needed to be reminded that he
had opportunities to continue developing and using his talents.
Perhaps we, as patrons of the restaurant, could provide that.
needed to be assured that his performance of honest, useful work was
respected and appreciated. He also needed to be reminded that he
had opportunities to continue developing and using his talents.
Perhaps we, as patrons of the restaurant, could provide that.
Sometimes this encouragement can simply be expressed in the way we act
and feel toward people. If it is genuine and based on good spiritual
principles, it will be understood. It's actually a form of
practicing the principles of the Twelve Steps in all our affairs.
At the same time, we practice identifying with every person we
meet.
and feel toward people. If it is genuine and based on good spiritual
principles, it will be understood. It's actually a form of
practicing the principles of the Twelve Steps in all our affairs.
At the same time, we practice identifying with every person we
meet.
Action for the day: I'll try to take note of every person I come in contact with today, knowing that everyone needs support and encouragement. I can do my part to provide that.
**********************
One Day At A Time
The Language of the Heart
From the beginning, communication in AA has been no ordinary transmission
of helpful ideas and attitudes. It has been unusual and sometimes unique.
Because of our kinship in suffering,
and because our common means of deliverance are effective for ourselves
only when constantly carried to others, our channels of contact
have always been charged with the language of the heart.
- The Language of the Heart, p. 242
Thought to Ponder . . .
Let it begin with me.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
A A = Answer Available.
From the beginning, communication in AA has been no ordinary transmission
of helpful ideas and attitudes. It has been unusual and sometimes unique.
Because of our kinship in suffering,
and because our common means of deliverance are effective for ourselves
only when constantly carried to others, our channels of contact
have always been charged with the language of the heart.
- The Language of the Heart, p. 242
Thought to Ponder . . .
Let it begin with me.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
A A = Answer Available.
*********************
Daily Motivation
Daily Motivation
Anything you wish
Life is all in how you look at it. Through the way you choose to look at it, you can make your life into anything you wish.
What if you could transform your resentment for having to do something into enthusiasm for getting it done? The powerful and amazing thing is, you can.
Instead of being angry about something that's happened, you can be determined to make it right. Instead of being disappointed by the setbacks, you can be motivated by the new possibilities they've created.
What are you looking at, that looks difficult or painful or annoying or just plain impossible? What if you looked at it differently?
You can choose your perspective, you can choose your feelings, you can choose your thoughts, your words and your actions. No matter what life sends your way, you can choose how to look at it and what to do with it.
Get in the habit of looking at life with love and gratitude, and with enthusiasm for the positive possibilities. When you look, see the life you wish to live, for you have what it takes to make it be.
-- Ralph Marston
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