Today's thought is:
"A depressing and difficult passage has prefaced
every new page I have turned in life."
--Charlotte Bronte

What would it be like to shed our old skin, like a
snake, when it grew too small? Perhaps the
discomfort we feel at each new stage of growth is
something like that feeling. Truly, each new page or
stage of life has a difficult introduction--but if we
can only remember that, it may help us through the
bad times.

Too often, in the grip of change, we lose sight of
what we are becoming. Did you ever wonder how it
would feel to be a grub and then turn into a winged
creature? It helps us to endure the depressing
passage if we can remember that we're being
prepared for a new stage of our lives, one in which,
perhaps, we will leave our old selves as far behind
as the dragonfly leaves the larva.

With time and wisdom comes the knowledge that
some pain always accompanies growth. We can
accept the pain more gracefully if we remind
ourselves that we are preparing to turn a new page.

My spirit, like my body, holds the secrets of growth
and change.
  ¶ 12/29/2001 11:59:00 AM

  Through the Eyes of a Child.

Do you remember holiday season's of year's long gone? There was likely a time
when you really believed a jolly man in a red suit would visit you in the
middle of the night. This jovial elf would enter your home once a year by way of
a chimney even if you didn't have a fireplace.

You probably had some kind of decorations adorning areas of your house and even
today, the memories of that special time, will certainly kindle fond memories.
Just about every home, modest or affluent, tried to offer the spirit of giving
and goodwill. It was a magical time in your life and you saw it through the eyes
of a child.

The eyes of a child shine with joy of living for the moment.

The eyes of a child reflect amazement of the beauty they see around them.

The eyes of a child mirror the innocence only a child can know.

The eyes of a child marvel at the wonderment of new situations and experiences.

The eyes of a child see and understand more than we give them credit for.

We can learn a lot from children.

When we were young we did not concern ourselves with the trials and tribulations
of living. We just lived. Resentments were quickly forgotten. Heartaches and
scrapped knees could be mended with a tender kiss or an ice cream cone.
Happiness and laughter came without effort or self-conscious perception. It was
a wonderful world.

As we got older it was our wish to be less like children. The world became
different. Many times it was not to our liking. We become unhappy with our
situations. We looked for external ways to change how we felt on the inside.
Nothing quite filled the emptiness. Finally we got to the point of helplessness
and despair. By losing the child within we had lost the ability to see through
the eyes of a child.

Thankfully there was an escape from our dilemma. We discovered others had
recovered from the same perils that haunted us. Their experience and strength
became the bridge that put us on the road to recovery. As time passed and we
continued in our journey of self-discovery we began see the world in a different
light. The world had not really changed all that much, what had changed was the
way we looked at it.

Do you ever feel that part of your recovery is to again see the world as it is
seen ...

Through the Eyes of a Child

  ¶ 12/23/2001 08:27:00 PM

  Today's thought is:
Our silence can keep us isolated

"Still waters run deep" may be true for lakes and
rivers, but in intimate relationships it is not
necessarily true. Our silence can keep us isolated
from ourselves and from those we love. In order to
grow together, we must let each other know how we
think and feel. Sometimes just saying a thought or
feeling helps us see beyond it.

If we keep our thoughts to ourselves, we may get so
immersed in those still waters that we nearly drown
in them. A problem kept to ourselves usually grows
bigger and more consuming. When we talk about it
we can work through it and move on to something
else.
  ¶ 12/20/2001 07:33:00 AM

  Today's thought is:
Being lucky

Some people think "luck" is the reason for success
in their lives. But does luck really mean the
suffering and pain that we've not hesitated to
endure? The opportunities for growth that we've
embraced? The kindness and humor that we've
shown others? The thanks we've expressed to
others for their kindness to us?

If success is "lucky," then we make our own luck.
Then luck means being open and available; luck
means willingness plus grace.

Do I realize what a lucky person I am?

Higher Power, help me to be open and willing to
receive your grace.

Today I will thank God for my "luck"   ¶ 12/19/2001 07:00:00 AM

  I have found myself in several situations lately where I had to make amends. I have always hated to admit when I am wrong, but I found these experiences "freeing". I am ready to work my 9th step now!

The Doc has given me pain pills and sleeping pills. They worked well at first, but now the pain pills only last abou 5 hours and then I feel bad again, and it pisses me off that I have to feel bad. Before the pills, I knew I was gonna feel bad all the time, but now the pills have gotten me to where I want to stay feelin' at least that much normal. I hate being obligated to pills, or not being able to feel good with out them. My sleep is not good even with the pills. I'm up a lot. I wrap up in blankets and sweat, muscles and joints and head aches. In the morning, I can barely (and I mean barely) function. I guess this is just life on Hepatitis C Treatment. Sometimes I feel like I can't go on with it. Like I just can't continue to function. My sponsor says to just ask God for 15 minutes at a time. You breath in, you breath out. As long as I'm doing that and not drinking.............I'll be okay!  ¶ 12/13/2001 11:37:00 AM

  Today's thought is:..we live several lives in one lifetime.

Waking up from a terrifying dream, we first sigh
with deep relief. "Thank God it was just a dream."
After we have made a big mistake in real life we
long for the chance to undo it. We do not get to
undo those moments, but life is still full of second
chances...and third and fourth chances. The big
question is, Do we learn from our experiences?

In some ways, we live several lives in one lifetime
and we have several phases in one relationship.
Today is a new day, and it presents all the
possibilities of a new beginning. We have learned
from the past. As painful and difficult as our
experiences were, we can feel stronger today
because we have learned from them. Injustice and
fateful accidents can befall anyone. Yet many
difficult times never need to be repeated. Today we
can be grateful for another day with all the new
opportunities it brings.

Name one way you are different today because of
what you have learned from your experience.

  ¶ 12/13/2001 11:31:00 AM

  Symptoms of Inner Peace

With the holiday season approaching comes the reminder of "Peace on Earth, Good
Will Towards Men". While there is evidence we may, as a species, still be
evolving towards that objective, another year is drawing to a close which finds
a considerable proportion of the earths population still living in the
entanglements of conflict. There is no peace for them.

There is another peace we in recovery should also be striving for. This peace we
have considerable more chance of obtaining than global peace. It's known as
"Inner Peace". The feeling we experience when we are doing the "do" things. When
our program of recovery becomes second nature to us as a way of life, when we
stop living in the problem and begin to live in the solution, we will achieve
some degree of Inner Peace. It is a goal worthy of attainment for the addict and
non-addict alike. Whether you’re rich or poor, comfortable or struggling, new in
the program of recovery or been around for a while, there is no greater reward
for yourself than Inner Peace.

This week’s submission comes to us from Jack H. This is his second contribution
used in T.G.I.S.
  ¶ 12/09/2001 05:22:00 PM

  TWO THOUSAND ONE, NINE ELEVEN

Two thousand one, nine eleven
Five thousand plus arrive in heaven
As they pass through the gate,
Thousands more appear in wait
A bearded man with stovepipe hat
Steps forward saying, "Lets sit, lets chat"

They settle down in seats of clouds
A man named Martin shouts out proud
"I have a dream!" and once he did
The Newcomer said, "Your dream still lives."

Groups of soldiers in blue and gray
Others in khaki, and green then say
"We're from Bull Run, Yorktown, the Maine"
The Newcomer said, "You died not in vain."

From a man on sticks one could hear
"The only thing we have to fear.
The Newcomer said, "We know the rest,
trust us sir, we've passed that test."

"Courage doesn't hide in caves
You can't bury freedom, in a grave,"
The Newcomers had heard this voice before
A distinct Yankees twang from Hyannisport shores

A silence fell within the mist
Somehow the Newcomer knew that this
Meant time had come for her to say
What was in the hearts of the five thousand plus that day

"Back on Earth, we wrote reports,
Watched our children play in sports
Worked our gardens, sang our songs
Went to church and clipped coupons
We smiled, we laughed, we cried, we fought
Unlike you, great we're not"

The tall man in the stovepipe hat
Stood and said, "don't talk like that!
Look at your country, look and see
You died for freedom, just like me"

Then, before them all appeared a scene
Of rubbled streets and twisted beams
Death, destruction, smoke and dust
And people working just 'cause they must

Hauling ash, lifting stones,
Knee deep in hell, but not alone
"Look! Blackman, Whiteman, Brownman, Yellowman
Side by side helping their fellow man!"

So said Martin, as he watched the scene
"Even from nightmares, can be born a dream."

Down below three firemen raised
The colors high into ashen haze
The soldiers above had seen it before
On Iwo Jima back in '44

The man on sticks studied everything closely
Then shared his perceptions on what he saw mostly
"I see pain, I see tears,
I see sorrow - but I don't see fear."

"You left behind husbands and wives
Daughters and sons and so many lives
are suffering now because of this wrong
But look very closely. You're not really gone.

All of those people, even those who've never met you
All of their lives, they'll never forget you
Don't you see what has happened?
Don't you see what you've done?
You've brought them together, together as one.

With that the man in the stovepipe hat said
"Take my hand," and from there he led
five thousand plus heroes, Newcomers to heaven
On this day, two thousand one, nine eleven  ¶ 12/09/2001 05:20:00 PM

  My Leadership Training!!!  ¶ 12/09/2001 05:13:00 PM

  Just For Today! Daily Reading  ¶ 12/02/2001 04:06:00 PM

 
THE DAFFODIL PRINCIPLE..........

Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, "Mother, you must come see
the daffodils before they are over." I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour
drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead. "I will come next Tuesday, " I
promised, a little reluctantly, on her third call.

Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and so I drove
there. When I finally walked into Carolyn's house and hugged and greeted my
grandchildren, I said, "Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is
invisible in the clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except
you and these children that I want to see bad enough to drive another inch!"
My daughter smiled calmly and said, "We drive in this all the time, Mother."

"Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears, and then I'm
heading for home!" I assured her. "I was hoping you'd take me over to the
garage to pick up my car." "How far will we have to drive?" "Just a few
blocks," Carolyn said. "I'll drive. I'm used to this."

After several minutes, I had to ask, "Where are we going? This isn't the way
to the garage!" "We're going to my garage the long way," Carolyn smiled, "by
way of the daffodils." "Carolyn," I said sternly, "please turn around."
"It's all right, Mother, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you
miss this experience."

After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I saw a
small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand lettered sign that
read, "Daffodil Garden."

We got out of the car and each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn
down the path. Then, we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and
gasped. Before me lay the most glorious sight. It looked as though someone
had taken a great vat of gold and poured it down over the mountain peak and
slopes. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns great
ribbons and swaths of deep orange, white, lemon yellow, salmon pink,
saffron, and butter yellow. Each different colored variety was planted as a
group so that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique
hue.

There were five acres of flowers. "But who has done this?" I asked Carolyn.
"It's just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She lives on the property. That's
her home." Carolyn pointed to a well kept A frame house that looked small
and modest in the midst of all
that glory. We walked up to the house. On the patio, we saw a poster.
"Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking" was the headline.

The first answer was a simple one. "50,000 bulbs," it read. The second
answer was, "One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and very
little brain." The third answer was, "Began in 1958."

There it was, The Daffodil Principle. For me, that moment was a life
changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who,more
than forty years before, had begun one bulb at a time-to bring her vision of
beauty and joy to an obscure mountain top. Still, just planting one bulb at
a time, year after year, had changed the world.

This unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. She had
created something of ineffable (indescribable) magnificence, beauty, and
inspiration. The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the
greatest principles of celebration. That is, learning to move toward our
goals and desires one step at a time often just one baby step at a time-and
learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time. When
we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we
too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the
world.

"It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn. "What might I have
accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five or forty years
ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a time' through all those years.
Just think what I might have been able
to achieve!" My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual
direct way. "Start tomorrow," she said.

It's so pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays. The way to make
learning a lesson of celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only
ask, "How can I put this to use today?" . . . .
Author Unknown

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a
baby, then another. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren't old enough
and we'll be more content when they are. After that, we're frustrated that
we have teenagers to deal with. We will certainly be happy when they are out
of that stage.

We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or
her act together, when we get a nicer car, when we are able to go on a nice
vacation, or when we retire. The truth is there's no better time to be happy
than right now. If not now, when? Your life will always be filled with
challenges. It's best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy
anyway.

Happiness is the way. So, treasure every moment that you have and treasure
it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend
your time with... and remember that time waits for none.

So, stop waiting...
Until your car or home is paid off
Until you get a new car or home
Until your kids leave the house
Until you go back to school
Until you finish school
Until you lose 10 lbs.
Until you gain 10 lbs.
Until you get married
Until you get a divorce
Until you have kids
Until you retire
Until summer
Until spring
Until winter
Until fall
Until you die

There is no better time than right now to be happy. Happiness is a journey,
not a destination. So work like you don't need money. Love like you've
never been hurt.
And, dance like no one's watching.
  ¶ 12/02/2001 09:05:00 AM