Category: Spirituality
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Until recently, when I looked back on my life, I did so with regret. A lot of regret. Regret for things I said and did in my younger years, especially during active alcoholism and addiction. It felt like my life was a fast, loud car with my foot pressed all the way down on the…
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Something I have found since getting clean and something I now practice every single day is gratitude. Please don’t think I say that lightly either. Gratitude has really changed my life in ways I never could have expected or imagined. In my younger years, especially during active alcoholism and addiction, I didn’t feel grateful for…
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There was a discussion going on today that I couldn’t help getting involved in. It was about the “Higher Power” part of programs like AA and NA. I already knew that some people struggle with that part of the steps. But until today I didn’t realize just how many. For some people, hearing a lot…
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Like many people in recovery, there are things I have said and done that I regret. Words I wish I had never spoken. Choices I wish I had made differently. Years I wish I could re-do with the clarity I have now. But I can’t. And neither can you. What we can do is refuse…
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Some mornings, the path isn’t a windy mountain trail. It’s the distance between your bed and the bathroom. It’s the weight of your tired arms and legs, the fog in your brain, and the familiar ache of a tired body. Today is one of those days for me. I’m writing this on very little sleep,…
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Here’s another thing I’ve noticed since getting clean… disagreements don’t have to be disasters. That probably sounds obvious to a lot of people. But for those of us who have trauma or lived through addiction, disagreements can feel very different. They don’t just feel like differences of opinion, they feel like personal rejection. Like being…
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It was cold and windy yesterday as I took my daily walk. Very cold. But unless the weather is utterly unbearable, I walk. I even walk in the rain here. For me, there’s just something about being in and surrounded by the mountains that heals me and clears my mind. After I complete my rounds…
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A few nights ago I had one of the roughest nights and days I’ve had since acute withdrawal. I’ve had waves before, the sudden returns of withdrawal symptoms, but none as intense as this one. Thankfully they’re fewer and farther apart now, but this one hit really hard. I think it started with a nightmare…
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Do you believe in miracles? If you do, what qualifies as a miracle in your view? A lot of people think of miracles as something enormous, events so extraordinary they seem to defy all known laws of nature. That’s certainly one way to understand the word, and for a long time, that’s how I understood…
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“Out of the mouth of babes…” That phrase has been on my mind the last couple of days. During a video call with my oldest son, my daughter-in-law, and my little granddaughter, she suddenly asked, “Why do you have those, Pops?” while pointing at my face. I thought she meant my reading glasses, so I…
Whispering Wyrd 