Each Day a New Beginning

[rusty zipper]

CC

when I look back on anxious moments I usually find

at some point I've made a choice not to trust

yep, me also jojo

i haven't been 100% vunerable to my Powers That Be!

so the results were of my own making!

[citychik]

April 23, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.


When you cease to make a contribution, you begin to die.

-Eleanor Roosevelt


We need to take note, today, of all the opportunities we have to offer a helping hand to another person. We can notice too the many times a friend, or even a stranger, reaches out to us in a helpful way. The opportunities to contribute to life’s flow are unending.

Our own vibrancy comes from involvement with others, from contributing our talents, our hearts, to one another’s daily travels. The program helps us to know that God lives in us, among us. When we close ourselves off from our friends, our fellow travelers, we block God’s path to us and through us.

To live means sharing one another’s space, dreams, sorrows, contributing our ears to hear, our eyes to see, our arms to hold, our hearts to love. When we close ourselves off from each other, we have destroyed the vital contribution we each need to make and to receive in order to nurture life.

We each need only what the other can give. Each person we meet today needs our special contribution.

***************

What a wonderful collection of invitations awaits me today!

[citychik]

April 24, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.


She knows omnipotence has heard her prayer and cries “It shall be done – Sometimes, somewhere.


-Ophelia Guyon Browning

Patience is a quality that frequently eludes us. We want what we want when we want it. Fortunately, we don’t get it till he time is right, but the waiting convinces us our prayers aren’t heard. We must believe that the answer always comes in it’s own special time and place. The frustration is that our timetable is seldom like God’s.

When we look back over the past few weeks, months, or even years, we can recall past prayers. Had they all been answered at the time of request, how differently we our lives would be. We are each on a path unique to us, offering special lessons to be learned. Just as a child must crawl before walking, so must we move slowly, taking the steps in our growth in sequence.

Our prayers will be answered, sometime, somewhere. Of that we can be sure. They will be answered for our greater good. And they will be answered at the right time, the right place, in the right way.

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I am participating in a much bigger picture than the one in my individual prayers.

[citychik]

April 25, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.


Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn, whatever state I may be in, therein to be content.

-Helen Keller

There is wonder in the moment, if we but look for it, let it touch us, believe in it. And with the recognition and celebration of the wonder comes the joy we desire and await.

Being wholly in tune with the present moment is how we’ll come to know the spiritual essence that connects all of life. We search for peace, happiness and contentment outside of ourselves. We need instead to discover it within us, now and always, in whatever we are experiencing.

We can let our experiences wash over us. Longing for a different time, a distant place, a new situation breeds discontent. It prevents us from the thrill, the gifts offered in this present moment. But they are there.

We can practice feeling joyful in the present, be thrilled with the realization that right now, all is well. All is always well. Life is full of mystery and wonder and each moment of our awareness adds to the wonder.

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I am moving forward; we all are. I am on target. I am participating in a glorious, wonderful drama. Let me jump for joy. I have been specially blessed.

[citychik]

April 26, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

……pain is the root of knowledge.

-Simone Weil

We don’t anticipate pain in our lives. We dread the situations we anticipate will be painful. We probably even pray to be spared all painful experiences. But they come anyway, at times in profusion. And we not only survive the pain, we profit from it.

It seems that pain stretches us to our limits, generally forcing us to look for guidance from others, and it pushes us to consider new choices in our present situation. Pain is our common denominator as women, as members of the human family. It softens us to one another. It fosters empathy. It helps us to reach out and realize our need for one another.

New knowledge, new awarenesses, are additional benefits of accepting, rather than denying, the pain that accompanies life. This journey that we’re on is moving us further and further along the path of enlightenment. We can consider that each problem, each crisis, is our necessary preparation for moving another step down the road.

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I learn out of necessity. And when the student is ready, the teacher will appear.

[citychik]

April 27, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

So much to say. And so much not to say! Some things are better left unsaid. But so many unsaid things can become a burden.

Virginia Mae Axline

The occasions are many when we’d like to share a feeling, an observation, perhaps even a criticism with someone else. The risk is great, however. She might be hurt, or he might walk away, leaving us alone.

Many times, we need not share our words directly. Weighing and measuring the probable outcome and asking for some inner guidance will help us decide when to speak up and when to leave things unsaid. But if our thoughts are seriously interfering with our relationships, we can’t ignore them for long.

Clearing the air is necessary sometimes, and it freshens all relationships. Deciding when to take the risk creates consternation. But within our quiet spaces, we always know when we must speak up. And the directions will come. The right moment will present itself. And within those quiet spaces the right words can be found.

****************

If I am uncomfortable with certain people, and the feelings don’t leave, I will consider what might need to be said. I will open myself to the way and ask to be shown the steps to take. Then, I will be patient.

[citychik]

April 29, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

Love between two people is such a precious thing. It is not a possession. I no longer need to possess to complete myself. True love becomes my freedom.

-Angela L. Wozniak

Self-doubt fosters possessiveness. When we lack confidence in our own capabilities, when we fear we don’t measure up as women, mothers, lovers, employees, we cling to old behavior, maybe to unhealthy habits, perhaps another person. We can’t find our completion in another person because that person changes and moves away from our center. Then we feel lost once again.

Completion of the self accompanies our spiritual progress. As our awareness of our higher power’s caring role is heightened, we find peace. We trust that we are becoming all that we need to be. We need only have faith in our connection to that higher power. We can let that faith possess us, and we’ll never need to possess someone else.

God’s love is ours, every moment. Recognition is all that is asked of us. Acceptance of this ever-present love will make us whole, and self-doubt will diminish. Clinging to other people traps us as much as them, and all growth is hampered, ours and theirs.

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Freedom to live, to grow, to experience my full capabilities is as close as my faith. I will cling to that and discover the love that’s truly in my heart and the heart’s of my loved ones.

[citychik]

May 1, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.


Insight is Cheap.

-Martha Roth


For years we kept ourselves in a split condition: With one part of our minds we looked at ourselves and said, “I do some self-destructive things because I believe I don’t deserve love.” When we became involves with unsuitable people or abused our bodies, we said, “I am punishing myself-I am expecting too much - I neglect my own needs.”

We may see clearly how and why we get in our own way. But unless we have faith in a power greater than ourselves, we won’t step aside. We won’t let go. We’ll do the same thing and “understand” ourselves in the same ways. We may even use our insight to keep ourselves stuck - to protect ourselves from the risk of change.

Now, having had a spiritual awakening, having come to believe that a higher power can restore us, we possess a gift more powerful than the keenest insight – faith in our ability to grow and change. We are children of God. All the creative power of the universe streams through us, if we don’t block it.

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Today, I will have faith, and all will be well.

[citychik]

May 8, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.


The battle to keep up appearances unnecessarily, the mask-whatever name you give creeping perfectionism-robs us of our energies.

-Robin Worthington

How familiar we are with trying to be women other than ourselves; ones more exciting, we think, or sexier, or smarter. We have probably devoted a great deal of energy to this over the years. It’s likely we are growing more content with ourselves now. However, aren’t there still situations in which we squirm, both because we want to project a different image, and because we resent our desire to do so?

We each have been blessed with unique qualities. There is no other women just like ourselves. We each have special features that are projected in only one way, the way we alone project them.

Knowing that we are perfect as we are is knowledge that accompanies recovery. How much easier life is, how much more can be gained from each moment, when we meet each moment in the comfort of our own selves. The added gift of being ourselves is that we really hear, see, and understand others for the first time in our lives.

*************

I can fully focus on only one thing, one person at a time. I will free my focus from myself today and be filled up by my experiences with others.

[citychik]

May 9, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

Too expect too much is to have a sentimental view of life, and this is a softness that ends in bitterness,

-Flannery O’Connor

Having too high expectations is a setup for disappointment. Expectations that are high lend themselves to a fantasy life, and reality can never match our fantasies. When we get hooked on the fantasies, somehow thinking they are reality, or should be reality, we are vulnerable to the hurt that accompanies the emergence of “the real.” Then we feel cheated-bitter: “Why did this happen to me?”

Having too high expectations was a familiar feeling before recovery. And it remains familiar to us, even now. Dreams and aspirations aren’t wrong. In fact, they beckon us on to better and greater things. But dreams of what we can become through responsible choices are quite different from idle expectations of what will or should be.

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Every moment of everyday opens the way to my aspirations that enhance reality. I will be open and receptive to reality and gifts.

[citychik]

May 10, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

To wait for someone else, or to expect someone else to make my life richer, or fuller, or more satisfying, puts me in a constant state of suspension; and I miss all those moments that pass. They never come back to be experienced again.

Kathleen Tierney Crilly


The steps we are taking today will never again be taken in exactly the same way. The thoughts we are thinking are fresh, never to be repeated. All that these moments offer will never pass our way again.

We have to grab our own happiness, create our own richness through experiences. We may share what we capture with loved ones, but like us, they too must search their own avenues for the satisfaction that lasts. We can neither give happiness to another, like a gift, nor expect it in return.

The fullness of life we all long for is the natural by-product of living every moment as fully as possible. Our higher power will never direct us into waters that are too deep. When we have willingly turned our wills and our lives over, we’ll find an abundance of the rich, the full, the satisfying. Faith in God answers all questions, solves all problems.

***************

I will cherish every moment today. Each one is special and will not visit me again.

[rusty zipper]

no more wait'n, its ass move'n time!

(_rz_)

[citychik]

[citychik]

May 11, 2008.

Happy Mothers Day!

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.


Bad moments like good ones tend to be grouped together.

-Edna O’Brien

Rough times may be pouring in on us at the moment, and they may seem unending. Difficulties appear to attract more difficulties, problems with loved ones, problems at work, problems with our appearance. A negative attitude, something that we all struggle with at times (some of us more than others), is the culprit.

When the good times come, as they always do, they are accompanied by a positive attitude. We do find what we look for.

Our attitude is crucial. It determines our experiences. A trying situation can be tolerated with relative ease when we have a positive, trusting attitude. We forget, generally, that we have an inner source of strength to meet every situation. We forget the simple truth – all is well, at this moment. When the moments feel good, our presence is light, cheery. When the moments are heavy, so are we.

**************

I can turn my day around. I can change the flavor of today’s experiences. I can lift my spirits and know all is well.

[citychik]

May 12, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

Every human being has, like Socrates, an attendant spirit; and wise are they who attend its signals. If it does not always tell us what to do, it always cautions us what not to do.

-Lydia M.Child


Our Spirit is our inner guide. And our Spirit never, never, gives us wrong directions. Because we’re human, it’s all too easy to deny the voice from within. Some call it conscience. And our behavior, maybe frequently, maybe occasionally, belies what our conscience knows is right. We suffer for it.

We are trying to be healthy – emotionally, spiritually, physically. Each day we can make progress. Each action we take, we have a choice. Our Spirit, our conscience, should be consulted. Right choices make for right actions that will emotionally and spiritually benefit us and the other persons close to us.

It’s comforting to rely on the inner voice. It assures us we’re never alone. No decision has to be made alone. No wrong action need ever be taken. A sense of security accompanies the partnership between each of us and our Spirit.

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I will let the partnership work for me today.

[citychik]

May 13, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

Your sense of what will bring you happiness is so crude and blundering. Try something else as a compass. Maybe the moralists are right and happiness doesn’t come from seeking pleasure and ease.

-Joanna Field


We think we know what will make us happy. Seldom do we readily accept that painful moments are often the price tags for peaceful, happy times. Nor do we appreciate that happiness lives within each one us; never is it intrinsic to the events we experience. Because we look for happiness “out there’ and expect it gift-wrapped in a particular way, we miss the joy of being fully alive each passing moment. How distorted our sense of happiness was before finding our way to this program! How futile our search!

The way still isn’t easy every Step we take, but we will find happiness in those fleeting moments when we can get outside of ourselves long enough to be fully attentive to the people in our lives. We’ll find it because it’s been there all the time. It flows between us when we open our hearts to give and receive compassion. Being truly there for another person is the key which unlocks the gate holding happiness back.

*************

I will let someone in today and fell the rush of happiness

[citychik]

May 15, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

Difficulties, opposition, criticism – these things are meant to be overcome, and there is a special joy in facing them and in coming out on top. It is only when there is nothing but praise that life loses its charm, and I begin to wonder what I should do about it.

-Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit


To be alive means to experience difficulties, conflicts, challenges from many directions. What we do with adverse conditions both determines and is determined by who we are. Resistance, most of us have learned, heightens the adversity. Acceptance of the condition, trusting all the while the lesson it offers us is for our benefit, ensures that we’ll ‘come out on top.’

Difficulties are opportunities for advancement, for increased self-awareness, for self-fulfillment. So often we hear and remind one another that we grow through pain. We can face any situation knowing we have the strength of the program to shore us up. Strangely, we need challenges in order to grow; without growth we wither. Happiness is the bounty for facing the momentarily unhappy conditions.

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Any difficulty I meet today offers me a chance for even greater happiness; it guarantees my growth.

[citychik]

May 16, 2008.

While I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiments expressed here, could the word ‘storm’ be used any more extensively? 13 times! What about squall, tempest…hurricane lol that’s right! We’re alcoholics and we forget.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

It is only the women who’s eyes have been washed clear with tears who get the broad vision that makes them little sisters to all the world.

-Dorothy Dix


The storms of our lives benefit us like the storms that hit our towns and homes and wash clean the air we breathe. Our storms bring to the surface the issues that plague us. Perhaps we still fear a job with responsibilities. Perhaps we struggle with the significant other persons in our lives. Possessiveness is a particular storm that often haunts our progress. Storms force us to acknowledge these liabilities that continue to stand in our way, and acknowledgment is a step necessary to letting go.

Recovery is a whole series of storms; storms that help us sprout new growth, storms that flushed clean our clogged drains. The peace that comes after a storm is worth singing about.

Each storm can be likened to a rung on the ladder to wholeness, the ladder to full membership in the healthy human race. The storms make climbing tough, but we get strength with each step. The next storm will be more easily weathered.

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If today is a stormy day, let me remember it will freshen the air I breathe.

[citychik]

May 18, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

…..in order to feel anything you need strength….

-Anna Maria Ortese


Strength for any task, to withstand any pressure, to find the solution to any problem, is always close as our very breath. We expend all our energy, wearing ourselves down, even getting sick from worry when we fail to turn to the source of strength that is ours for the taking.

We are offered moment by moment, opportunities to experience the rapture of life. We have the chance, with recovery, to trust our senses, to turn ourselves over to the moment, knowing we can survive every experience, knowing we are guaranteed new knowledge, a greater awareness of the meaning of our own lives when we’re fully attuned to the experiences that are uniquely our own, right here, right now.

Our strength increases as we flex it, not unlike muscles. The more we turn to that greater power, the more available that source of strength becomes. With practice, it becomes habitual to let God help us withstand all pressures, solve every problem. In time, the pressures and problems seem to exist no more. We learn to let our higher power circumvent the difficulties in our lives. Free at last, we become free at last to feel the real joys of living.

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All the strength I need to face anything that’s worrying me is at hand. I will let go and let God today.

[citychik]

May 19, 2008.

You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.

….if we are suffering illness, poverty, or misfortune, we think we shall be satisfied on the day it ceases. But there too, we know it is false, so soon as one ahs got used to not suffering, one wants something else.

-Simone Weil

Perhaps it’s the human condition never to be satisfied and yet always to think, “ If only….” However, the more we look within for wholeness, the greater will be our acceptance of all things, at all times.

So frequently we hear that happiness is within. But what does that mean when we may have just lost the job that supported us and our children? Or when the car won’t start and funds are low? Or when we are feeling really scared and don’t know whom to talk to or where to go? “Happiness is within” is such a grand platitude at those times.

Nevertheless, our security in any situation is within, if we know how to tap it. It is within because that is where the strength we are blessed with resides, the strength given us from the power greater than ourselves. “Going within” first takes a decision. Next, it takes stillness, and then patience. But peace will come.

We will quit wanting when we have learned how to turn to our inner strength. We will find serenity rather than suffering.

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I will go within whenever I feel the rumblings of dissatisfaction today. I will look there for my joy and sense of well-being and know that divine order is in charge.