Friday, January 14, 2011
Today's Gift
Wants and Needs
Part of taking responsibility for us means taking responsibility for what we want and need, and knowing that's okay to do.
Learning to tune in to us, learning to listen to ourselves, is an art. It takes practice. We can use our ability to guess what others want and need and apply that skill to ourselves.
What does it sound like we might want and need? What would we guess would help us feel better? What are our feelings telling us? Our body? Our mind? Our intuition?
If we ask, then listen closely; we'll hear the answer.
We are wiser than we think, and we can be trusted.
What we want and need counts. It's important, and it's valid. It's okay to learn to participate in meeting our own needs.
We can learn to identify what we want and need and be patient with ourselves while we're learning.
Today, I will pay attention to what I want and need. I will not discount myself.
From The Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie ©
*******************************
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
Walk In Dry Places
No Humiliation in Humility____ Self-understanding.
With few exceptions, every alcoholic eventually meets humiliation and defeat. This is especially painful in a world that places high value on winning and on having the approval and admiration of others. We feel diminished by these defeats. Nobody likes to be humbled, to be made to appear less than other people.
Yet these humiliations serve a constructive purpose if they lead us to seek humility. Truly humble people cannot really be humiliated, because they no longer rely on the false supports of worldly praise and approval. We develop humility as we withdraw from a reliance on our own powers and personality and realize that we ourselves can do nothing; it is our Higher Power who does the work.
Still, there is a paradox in humility. The person who admits he or she can do nothing will, in the process, tap
into powers that were never available in the previous state of mind. In truth, humility is never humiliation or weakness, though these may lead to it. Humility is really a road to the power that only God can give us.
Action for the Day: I'll watch myself today for the crazy things that set me up for humiliation. I won't try to impress others or win their admiration today.
***********************
One Day At A Time
Expectations
I can watch my serenity level rise when I discard my expectations.
I have to discard my "rights" as well as my expectations,
by asking myself, How important is it, really? . . .
I must keep my magic magnifying mind on my acceptance
and off my expectations, for my serenity is directly proportional
to my level of acceptance. When I remember this,
I can see I've never had it so good. Thank God for AA!
- Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 420
Thought to Ponder . . .
Expectations are premeditated resentments.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
G R A C E = Gently Releasing All Conscious Expectations.
********************
Daily Motivation
Your very best effort
Don't let your disappointment become an excuse to stop caring. If you seek to avoid all possibilities of disappointment, you'll end up avoiding all opportunities for fulfillment.
It can be painful when your results don't match your expectations. However, if you never make the attempt, the pain of your regret will be far greater than the pain of any disappointment.
It may not be much fun, but you can handle the disappointments. In fact, you can choose to let each disappointment make you even more positively motivated and committed.
Don't run away or hide from life just because it hurts sometimes. Give your time and energy to what you truly care about, instead of wasting your precious moments in worry and fear.
Though many factors are beyond your control, you can always control where your energy is focused. Your best strategy is to focus that energy toward creating the life you most sincerely desire.
Remind yourself that you can successfully deal with whatever results you get. Then step forward, give your very best effort, and bring your dreams to life.
-- Ralph Marston
No comments:
Post a Comment