"M" TOPIC DISCUSSION

[majestyjo]

M is for Make. Make someone happy. Reach out and help others, give them a word or a smile. Sometimes all they need is someone to listen to them.



Through giving to others, we will find that we have joy in our own lives. What goes around comes around, what we put out will come back to us.

[majestyjo]

M is for Mistakes. Just because I make them, doesn't mean I am one. I had a problem with accepting my human failings. I always figured that I should do better and was always trying to measure up to a standard that was often not attainable, and therefore I would be disappointed and feel less than. I also has to remember to take my God with me when I went to do something. He makes things so much easier.

[majestyjo]

M is for Most. Get the most out of today. Learn to listen, listen to learn. Be open to new ideas and concepts. Open your mind and get the most out of each experience, live life to the fullest. Make yourself happy! Lower your expectations and raise your acceptance.

[majestyjo]

Quote:
Monday, January 6, 2014

You are reading from the book Today's Gift

We, too, the children of the earth, have our moon phases all through any year; the darkness, the delivery from darkness, the waxing and waning.
—Faith Baldwin

Let us think, for a moment, about the changes of the moon. In the beginning of its cycle, it is just a sliver in the darkness. Each night it grows larger until it reaches its full size. When the moon is full and rising, its orange glow fills the sky. All night its gentle light brightens everything it touches.

But this fullness is only part of the life of the moon. For a while it grows smaller, then turns its dark side toward us before reappearing as a sliver and growing again to fullness. We are children of the earth, and we have our different moods and phases, too. There will be periods of darkness when we try to find our way by the light of the stars. Again and again we will grow to our full size, only to fade and grow again in a new way.

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My ex-husband use to bar tend at the Legion. The guy before him, told him, and he came to realized that when the moon came out, it was a crazy house.

It affected his own moods and I could see it in him, but never in myself.

[majestyjo]

It is a full moon tonight. My friend called me and told me to pull all my decks out of my bag and hold them, wrap myself up in them, do what ever I felt I had to do with them, because I was hurting and she got a message that I was a mess. I chose my angel cards.

I was hurting, didn't watch TV, turned on music and even that seemed too loud and shut it off.

[majestyjo]

Quote:
Monday, February 17, 2014

You are reading from the book Today's Gift

There is glory in a great mistake.
—Nathalia Crane

Once there was a big girl who liked to play with little kids and their toys. One day she rode one of their small bikes and her foot slipped off the little pedal and her leg got caught and dragged along the sidewalk.

She went home, limping and howling. Her mother put ice on the terrible scrape. The next day, the girl's mother told her she was too big for the little kids' toys. The girl looked up defiantly and said, "I can TOO ride that baby bike."

The girl's mother didn't say anything else. She knew people must be free to make mistakes. We cannot protect another person from the experiences of the world. It would be harmful to both of us to try.

What mistakes have I made more than once before I learned my lesson?

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A long list, but on top, I would say comparing instead of identifying.

[majestyjo]

Quote:
Sunday, February 16, 2014

You are reading from the book Today's Gift

Shame-filled people feel that something is wrong at their very core. It is a sense of being bad . . .
—Susan Kwiecien

Nobody is rotten to the core. Whenever we start to believe we are bad all the way through, we can picture good things we have done, days when someone else was happy to be with us, and see for ourselves that we have many good points that outweigh the bad.

If we have done something wrong, we must apologize and make amends. Making a mistake is not the same as being worthless. Mistakes are a natural part of living, not something to be ashamed of. Our freedom to make mistakes is one of our greatest assets, for this is the way we learn humility, persistence, courage to take risks, and better ways of doing things. All of us are valuable and lovable. How could we be otherwise? Since mistakes are natural aspects of growth, we can salute them in others and ourselves as signs of life and celebrate our ability to learn and to forgive.

What mistakes have helped me grow?

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What helped me was my pain. It helped me to look at how I allowed it to run my life. I mistook the concept that I could do something to change it without popping a pill. I found that if I practice self-care, make healthy choices, and do the do things I need to do for my recovery, the pain is less.

I believe they call it a change in attitude, sufficient to aid recovery.

[majestyjo]

M is for meditation it is listening for the answer. As my meditation said, "Give thanks, it is already on it's way." In order to get an answer, we must ask in prayer first.

I got the turkey which they say is the poor man's eagle. Giving to others and getting out of Self.

It was a big day for me when my aunt, who is now deceased and my sister came up to me and asked me for one of my hugs.

I have a lot of trouble with the pomp and ceremony of churches. For me it is a lot of bamboozlement that makes people and the priest feel important. I was raised in a simple church with no pews, just wooden chairs. There was nothing to stand between you and God. I was brought up in religion, it didn't stop me from becoming an alcoholic and an addiction to pain medications, men (couldn't live without one in my life, or so I thought), food, computers (Bejeweled 1, 2, & 3, and my web sites), and busy/work.

All of it was about filling up that void with spiritual things and thoughts.

The Dolphin represents Manna, food, and our breathing. I like this line from Jamie Sams, "Know that we are all whole in the eyes of the Everliving One."

It also reminds us to do deep breathing during times of stress.

[majestyjo]

M is for Might. This reminds me of the old nursery rhyme that said, "Wish I may, wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight." My wish for you is a happy 24 hours of sobriety. I might not achieve my goals if I don't follow the principles of the program and get involved with service in my group and in the community. I need to take my recovery out of the rooms and apply it to all aspects of my life.

[majestyjo]

M is for Motion. If you are not in motion, working your steps and working with others in some form or other doing service, then there is a good chance of you becoming complacent and that is a major sign of slipping back into old ways, hopefully not to where you came from. Our drug of choice was more, we need to change that into doing more work on my recovery.

[majestyjo]

M is for Making each day the best it can be. We have to put the effort into our recovery. It is a daily thing. Do you include recovery 'things' into your life daily. The meditations and readings for the day are good. It is also about getting out of Self, the great I am, and helping others that count. People were there for us when we got to the doors, we need to make room for those who come behind us. What a sad day it would be if someone came to a door, and no one was home.

[majestyjo]

Day By Day

Making a decision

We made a decision, a decision to try this program because all else had failed. (We still doubted it would work, but we were desperate.) This decision was made mostly on hope and a belief. At first, it did not reflect belief in a Higher Power but belief in other people.

When we make a decision to do whatever is necessary, our belief can grow. It can grow to a point where no power on earth can shake our foundation. And from this foundation we can, in turn, offer hope to others in need. We can plant in them the same seeds of belief that made it possible for us to be clean and sober.

Is my belief growing?

Higher Power, help me stay strong in the program and help others who need to establish roots.

Today I will renew my commitment to the program and its members by....

All Step 3 asks of us is to make a decision. No further action is required.  I need to commit to my program, and go to meetings and share my journey with others.

[majestyjo]

One More Day

You may talk on all subjects save one, namely, your maladies.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Casual conversations have an unspoken rule: never, never tell about our pain, our misery, our difficulties. Ironically, the stars of social gatherings are often the ones who have just suffered an accident or injury. We show interest and concern for new and obvious problems; we often ignore ongoing ones. A leg cast has glamor; a wheelchair has none.

We can understand this. Human nature finds adventure in broken bones or neck braces. It also finds reassurance because these injuries are temporary and the victim will be as good as new in a matter of weeks. Many people can’t identify with the permanence of chronic illness, but we can educate them about our social concerns without provoking pity.

My life becomes more balanced when I enjoy social activities as social — not medical — events.

This reminds me of a saying my mom had.  "I am sick in bed with my feet hanging out the window."  It certainly doesn't make sense, but does bring a smile.  In today, I am sure that she had Fibromyalgia the same as I have, although it was diagnosed back then, over 60 years ago.  It doesn't always get recognition in today.

[majestyjo]

November 4
A Day At A Time

Reflection For The Day

Were taught in The Program that debate has no place in meditation. In a quiet place and time of our own choosing, we simply dwell on spiritual matters to the best of our capability, seeking only to experience and learning. We strive for a state of being which, hopefully, deepens our conscious contact with God. We pray not for things, but essentially for knowledge and power. If you knew what God wanted you to do, you would be happy. you are doing what God wants you to do, so be happy.

Today I Pray

May I find my own best way to God, my own best technique of meditation – whether I use the oriental mantra, substitute the name of Jesus Christ, or just allow the spirit of God, as I understand Him, to settle into me and give me peace. By whatever means I discover my God, may I learn to know Him well and feel His presence — not only at these quiet times, but in everything I do.

Today I Will Remember

Meditation is opening myself to the spirit of God.

For me, meditation is my program.  Without it, I can't build a relationship with my God.  I can't, He can, each day for the last 26 years, I have made the decision to put my life in His Care.

[majestyjo]

M is for Memories. We need to remember that was then, this is now. The person who came into recovery is no more. We need to stay in today and work through our issues and memories and not let them over power us. They don't have the power unless we give it to them.

[majestyjo]

M is for Music. Find the kind of music you like. My sponsor told me in early recovery that she felt like I connected to my God through music. I love the music and can do without the words. Meditate and light a candle and play some music.

[majestyjo]

Journey To The Heart

Discover the Power of Meditation

I saw Spirit Rock Center, a meditation center, as I drove along the highway in Northern California. I turned into the parking lot and watched as people moved about the grounds very slowly. They were practicing a walking meditation.

Meditation teaches us to relax, to connect with our body, to let spirit and body become one. Many of us spent years abandoning ourselves, our emotions, and our bodies. We’ve been present for others, and now is the time for us to stay present for ourselves, fully and completely.

Meditation helps us leave our routine for a bit and slow down. We deliberately exhale stress, tension, and fear. Then we inhale light, beauty, peace, and love. We slow our minds and slow our bodies until we reach that quiet place. Meditation can renew us and help us return to our lives refreshed.

Meditate. Take time to inhale peace and exhale fear. Then take your meditation back to your life. Walk slowly. Stay present for yourself, more fully and completely than ever before. You too can turn your life into a walking, waking, deliberate meditation.

[majestyjo]

M is for Mistakes. Don't like them. Do them often, especially when it comes to typing and spelling mistakes. I do tend to make them personal, and beat myself up, but I am better than I use to be. i had to learn keep saying to myself, "Just because you make a mistake, doesn't mean that you are a mistake.

[caressa222]

More Language Of Letting Go

Meditate

A mind too active is no mind at all.
–Theodore Roethke

It’s possible to learn to relax into the ordinary aspects in your life. Be aware of those normal moments; relax; allow your mind to be quiet. Allow your spirit to speak to you in those moments.

Look at the family sitting at breakfast, the birds gathered around the feeder, the dew on the grass when you step outside to pick up the morning paper, the pattern of the shadows on the walk in the moonlight.Be aware of the beauty of the ordinary. Be aware of these soothing moments and make the most of them. When you learn to be aware and relax into the ordinary, it will be easier to relax in the stressful moments when you need clarity and focus.

The practice of meditation is a practice of mindfulness. It is a practice of becoming aware of and in tune with our bodies, our spirit, and the spirit of God. One of the goals of meditation is to reach a point when we can carry this mindfulness with us throughout the day. When we can still the noise of our chattering minds, we can see the path with heart that we are to follow.

God, help me quiet my noisy, worrisome mind in my ordinary world. Help me to relax in the familiar and to be aware of and appreciate it.

It takes practice, practice, practice.that is what my Irish sponsor said to me.