Blog entry for:

Mon, Dec 12, 2005 06:22:44 AM


∞ fearing the change or changing the fear ∞
posted: Mon, Dec 12, 2005 06:22:44 AM

 

after an exhausting, whirlwind trip through the service structure, i sit here this morning thinking about the changes that are going on internally and externally. i am grateful to be back in the comfortable safety of home and have had some time to reflect on what is really going on.
i received a wonderful gift this morning when i logged on to my blog page. a friend who has watched my progress since i first dragged my selfish, self-centered self into the room of recovery wrote about the progress she has observed since that fateful day. while she is over a thousand miles away, she still gets to see what is happening inside me through this blog. the gift part of this whole thing is that at one time i felt that this blog was just a paean ‘song or hymn of praise, joy, or triumph’ to my vanity and was considering ending my practice of writing every day. i am grateful that i decided to continue this exercise and add it to my daily routine.
thinking about the reading and fear of change and how that applies to me today....
yes the unknown is spooky beyond belief, at least to this addict, and one thing for certain is that change forces me to adapt and reorder my life to accommodate the new reality. honestly, since starting this walk through recovery i have been pleased with all the changes that have manifested inside of me. i look at where i am today emotionally, spiritually and mentally today and marvel about how i could be so different than i was when i walked in here. case in point, i was summoned for jury duty this morning and was dreading the experience. being a honest citizen though, i accepted my obligation and made the call last night to see what was required of me. when i made the call i found out that i did not need to report, my assigned juror number was outside of the the number the county needed today. BUT, since i had told my employer that i was summoned, i had a fleeting thought of taking the day off, as if i really had jury duty and sleeping in. no one would really know and i would not have to really tell any lies, all i had to do is not show up for work and enjoy a day off without any cost to me. i work an honest program and the act of lying by omission is not part of that program. so here i sit at work getting prepared to put in eight hours and do whatever it is that they pay me for. quite a change -- i practiced honesty when it would have been more convenient and enjoyable to act by default. i have to be as true as i can to my values today and even a little ‘white’ lie was more than i was willing to do today.
so in the face of that kind of evidence, my fears about change are rather silly. my HIGHER POWER has yet to present me with any change that was detrimental to me in the long run and truthfully when i consider the changes that i have been manifested in my life, the short run results have been acceptable to me. that begs the question why am i so afraid of allowing the process of change to progress without resistance? because resisting everything is a learned behavior that i have yet to let go of. does my resistance arise from fear or does fear create my resistance? an interesting question and one that i will probably never answer. entropy, the inevitable and steady deterioration of a system or society, applies here. since change is inevitable, the only control i can exercise is to apply a program of recovery to reverse the deterioration and accept that the results of those efforts will be not only to my liking, but within a design beyond my comprehension. life by its very nature is about change, addiction robs me of life, fear feeds my addiction so if i want to live today i must practice recovery, find the courage to allow the process to happen and move on to fears that really matter you know like nuclear annihilation, greenhouse warming and creeping totalitarianism. really spooky stuff, and not the silly spooky stuff of the changes that recovery is bring to me and my life.
∞ DT ∞

 

djtConsulting Brand
The views expressed on this page are solely the opinion of the author.
While the author is a member of a 12 Step recovery fellowship, these writings are not intended to endorse or express the published wisdom of any fellowship.
These writings are not meant to be socially or politically correct, and if you take issue with any opinions expressed, please seek the guidance of someone wiser than me.

Another Look!

↔ with all sorts of changes taking place, it is only natural to grab hold of  ↔ 628 words ➥ Tuesday, December 12, 2006 by: donnot
α solace can be found in a Power greater than myself. the more i allow changes to happen … 555 words ➥ Wednesday, December 12, 2007 by: donnot
Δ life is a series of changes, both large and small. Δ 477 words ➥ Friday, December 12, 2008 by: donnot
∝ for some reason, i assume that each and every change is going to hurt ∝ 461 words ➥ Saturday, December 12, 2009 by: donnot
Δ by working the steps, i am coming to accept the will of a HIGHER POWER … 755 words ➥ Sunday, December 12, 2010 by: donnot
§ when i am afraid of a change in my life, i will take comfort from the fact § 616 words ➥ Monday, December 12, 2011 by: donnot
∂ for some reason, i assume that each and every change ∂ 676 words ➥ Wednesday, December 12, 2012 by: donnot
« my initial emotional reaction to change is fear » 553 words ➥ Thursday, December 12, 2013 by: donnot
∀ the more i allow changes to happen in accordance with ∀ 558 words ➥ Friday, December 12, 2014 by: donnot
< fear > 367 words ➥ Saturday, December 12, 2015 by: donnot
↱ each and every ↲ 487 words ➥ Monday, December 12, 2016 by: donnot
😱 as i outgrow 😵 447 words ➥ Tuesday, December 12, 2017 by: donnot
😈 trying to grab 😇 458 words ➥ Wednesday, December 12, 2018 by: donnot
😮 the series 😵 569 words ➥ Thursday, December 12, 2019 by: donnot
🌋 all will be well 🌞 609 words ➥ Saturday, December 12, 2020 by: donnot
😨 fear of change 😨 291 words ➥ Sunday, December 12, 2021 by: donnot
😱 losing my 😎 589 words ➥ Monday, December 12, 2022 by: donnot
🌫 principles and 🌫 414 words ➥ Tuesday, December 12, 2023 by: donnot
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☯ The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao ☯

THE TAO TEH KING, OR THE TAO AND ITS CHARACTERISTICS
by Lao-Tse
Translated by James Legge

Book 2

3) He who acts (with an ulterior purpose) does harm; he who takes
hold of a thing (in the same way) loses his hold. The sage does not
act (so), and therefore does no harm; he does not lay hold (so), and
therefore does not lose his bold. (But) people in their conduct of
affairs are constantly ruining them when they are on the eve of success.
If they were careful at the end, as (they should be) at the beginning,
they would not so ruin them.