The Work-In: Daily Motivation 2-7-2020

Friday, February 7, 2020

Today's Gift

When I look back on all these worries I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which never happened. —Winston Churchill

A rolled-up ball of yarn does not take up much space - it sits, ready to be used when needed. It gets unrolled a little bit at a time - just as much as is needed and no more. But a ball of yarn that gets unraveled can be strewn across an entire room. It becomes a jumbled mass, entangled and confusing.

When we live our lives a day at a time, we are like that rolled-up ball of yarn. Our thoughts, feelings, and skills are ready to be used as they are needed. But when we worry, our spirit becomes a jumbled mass of yarn. We get ahead of and behind ourselves - our thoughts are scattered and often our feelings are confused. Worry adds clutter and confusion to life.

What is most helpful is to put the worry away--to roll up the ball of yarn and bring ourselves into the present moment. In this way, we stand ready for each new stitch--and we will never be given more than we are able to handle.

Do I have worries that are cluttering my life today?

From Today's Gift: Daily Meditations for Families ©

From: Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation - Thought for the Day http://www.hazeldenbettyford.org/recovery/thought-for-the-day

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Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Keep It Simple

Believing in a Higher Power changes our perspective.

Gone are the long days of feeling adrift, days we had no hope or direction. For too long we agonized over the circumstances of our lives, tormented by the drinking and lying of our loved ones. Our attempts to control didn’t work. They still won’t. Yet some days we try anyway.

Most days, though, we use the principles of the program, relying on the wisdom of the first three Steps to take our focus off the person we’re trying to control. Accepting that we are powerless, coming to believe in a Power that is greater than we are, letting it guide the behavior of the other person and ourselves—these things give us clarity and peace about the actions we need to take. We aren’t adrift today.

Action for the Day: I am so lucky that I have a greater Power that I can call on today. I can be certain that I’ll be taken care of.

From: Bluidkiti's Alcohol and Drug Addictions Recovery Help/Support Forums Daily Recovery Readings - http://www.bluidkiti.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=2

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One Day At A Time

Strangely Insane
However intelligent we may have been in other respects,
where alcohol/drugs has been involved, we have been strangely insane.
It’s strong language—but isn’t it true?
- Alcoholics Anonymous, (More About Alcoholism) p. 38

Thought to Ponder
Insanity: doing the same thing over and over,
and expecting different results.

AA-related 'Alconym'
F E A R = Fighting Ego Against Reality

From: AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AA-Alive.net) http://www.aa-alive.net/index.html

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Daily Motivation

Excerpt of The Daily Motivator

Use this moment

by Ralph Marston

Do you want to make something more difficult? Then put it off until later.

Or would you prefer to have the most options, the greatest leverage, the lowest cost? Then get it done now.

The longer you put it off, the more it will cost you and inconvenience you. The sooner you start, the more value you’ll be able to create.

Are you avoiding an unpleasant task right now? It will be three times worse if you put it off until tomorrow.

Do the difficult things when they are easiest. Use this moment to create value instead of trying in vain to borrow that value from the future.

Do yourself a favor. Go ahead and get it done.

From The Daily Motivator website at http://greatday.com/