I am slowly accepting the changing season, albeit with a certain amount of denial thrown in. I just love sunshine, green leaves and sparkling water. The burnishing of the green leaves, the shorter days and the cloudy skies are a reminder that bundling up and scurrying from place to place will soon be the name of the game. Being outside in colder temperatures is not pleasant for me. I get cold, and it is difficult for me to get warm again. So staying active in my recovery and healthy habits becomes even more important, lest I fall into a deep seasonal depression.

In talking to some of my recovery circle this weekend, we discussed our personal responsibility as a part of the whole picture. It really doesn’t matter that I am recovering from codependency, that someone else is recovering from substance abuse, anger, whatever. If I am working my program, I am responsible for it, but I must add to my prior statement that in working my recovery in fellowship with others, it also belongs to them. My participation is part of the group’s recovery, as their participation is part of mine.

None of us recover in a closet. You certainly can sit in a closet and read the best material ever written on recovery, psychology and the like, and become very learned on the subject. But I’ve found that in addition to good literature, true and lasting recovery is derived from working it out in and amongst others that have the same goal. The old cliché is you must give it away to keep it. This is decoded as: I learn more about myself and what it takes to keep me healthy by talking to someone new that wants to learn more about the process of the 12 steps. It has amazed me over and over that when I am talking to someone that, what I am saying is exactly what I needed to hear. 

So yeah, this recovery stuff is real, it works and I can point to a nearly endless list of things that are better in my life because of the stuff I’ve read, the lessons I listened to and the sharing that I have been a part of. I love it!

Hope your evening is a wonderful one, and that you are staying warm…and I’m STILL not drinking a pumpkin spice latte.

G’night y’all.