For many years I was so flexible I didn't know who I was, and now that I'm discovering who I am, I think, "OK, I know where I stand on that issue. Now on to the next one." But I have to remind myself that all issues are interrelated--no one is separate. —Kathleen Casey Theisen
Today flows from yesterday, the day before, the day before that. Tomorrow repeats the pattern. What we are given on any one day will have its beginning in the past and its finale in the future. No incident is isolated entirely; no issue is self-contained.
Maturity is being able to let go of outgrown attitudes, stifling opinions, no matter how good and right they were at one time. Our egos often get too attached to some of our opinions, and new ideas can't filter in. Some will try to get our attention today. We are ready for new growth. The choice not to hamper it is ours to make.
The opinions we held certain yesterday may not be adequate to the problems of today. They need not be. They served us well. They are not for naught.
Today's issues need today's fresh responses. I will be unafraid. Today flows from yesterday, the day before, and the day before that. Tomorrow follows suit.
From Each Day a New Beginning: Daily Meditations for Women by Karen Casey©
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Twenty-Four Hours a Day
Keep It Simple
One cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach; one can collect only a few, and they are more beautiful if they are few. --Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Being selective in choosing activities, in choosing friends, in choosing material possessions fosters unexpected appreciation. Too much of any one thing negates whatever specialness might have been realized. If we surround ourselves with acquaintances, we never fully share in knowing a few people well. If we surround ourselves with "toys," we never learn how we really want to spend our time.
When we don't take life slowly, piece by piece (one shell at a time), we avoid the greatest discovery of all, the person within. When our attention to persons, places, things is deliberate and steady, the beauty within the object of our focus shines forth, and we, too, are made more beautiful in the process.
Action for the Day: Today, I will take time to smell the flowers.
Merry-Go-Round
I began to feel like a clown juggling too many balls.
Each ball represented a problem I was keeping up in the air.
My arms were weary and I knew I couldn't keep on much longer.
My pride and ego wouldn't let me. . .
I'd known for a long time that I desperately wanted off this merry-go-round,
but I had no idea how to do it.
- Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 506
Thought to Ponder . . .
Swallowing my pride will not get me drunk.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
P R I D E = Personal Recovery Involves Deflating Ego.
Live with excellence
Stop needing permission and stop needing approval. Start acting from your own highest convictions.
Stop worrying so much about what other people might or might not think. Start living without compromise and with positive purpose.
Stop waiting for everything to be perfect. Start making good and meaningful use of all you have.
Let yourself be driven forward by your highest dreams. Feel the fears and learn from them, but don’t let yourself be held back by them.
Let go of your need to control those around you. Experience the power and effectiveness that come from controlling and disciplining yourself.
Live intentionally, on purpose, with the utmost sincerity and authenticity. Live this day and every day with the excellence you know you deserve.
— Ralph Marston
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