โ as seen through โ
Posted: Mon, Apr 18, 2016 07:48:35 AM
Jim E,
FIVE (5) years of consecutive days clean.
I'm glad you are part of my recovery family.
today, i can look back on that very thought and smile, as i see that it is far from hyperbole or exaggeration. it is an accurate reflection of who i was and certainly who i can be. all weekend long, i have been doing my thing;: working on a project, going to my regular meetings and maintaining my commitments to the various individuals i have agreed to support in one way or another. by the time i sat down last night to do my 10TH step, i had decided that no more. i was not going to chase all over the countryside for anyone, those days are over and i no longer need to show how great i am, by being servile and a people-pleaser. i went and spoke to someone and i will write him today. i sent a little something in for him, to offset the crappy person i was, when i still had a strong opinion of how awful he was or perhaps is. that little bit was a correction for my bad behavior and i no longer owe an amends to him, i can certainly move along from that piece of nastiness, my behavior, not the owning up to it. looking at who he is and how he behaves, i am not too sure i was not being played yesterday, but that is neither here nor there. his creature comforts are on their way. i still feel guilt over how i behaved, no amount of care packages is going to fix that, it is part of me being less than saintly.if i can forgive myself for behaving badly, then and only then, can i forgive others for acting on their human characteristics. that is where looking at my peers, through STEP SEVEN comes in. finally i can feel what they feel, when they see themselves acting in a manner they would prefer not to. with empathy, i toio, can say, just for today, you can be a better person, through the recovery process, just like me, after all we are on the same path.
∞ DT ∞