The material presented
here is not Al-Anon Conference Approved Literature. It is a method
to exchange
information, ideas, feelings, problems and solutions on a personal
level.
The C2C reading for April 2 speaks about being gentle with ourselves in times of crisis. We may be able to push ourselves hard when things are going well, but we invite trouble if we try to do this when we are struggling to manage the basic activities of life. The reading points out that we often feel that if we do not push ourselves all the time . Nothing would get done.
If we honestly worked a fourth step we will see that the opposite is true. By pushing ourselves and being very hard on ourselves, we make our lives unmanageable. The truth is, we can accomplish more if we take a gentle approach such as the slogans suggest "Easy does it."
The quote is from This is Al-Anon; "improving our own attitudes and our own state of mind, takes time. Haste and impatience. Only defeat our progress."
I found it to be true that when I learned to slow down and wait not react,I was able to live life one day at a time and enjoy the special moments. I did not become a slug or inactive and unable to function.
Thank you Betty for the daily and your ESH! I can attest that impatience is of no value in my life today! I always before program suggested that I was impatient, but rather than looking to change that, I assumed it be gospel and embedded in my being. I used this as an excuse to try and control and drive my will forward, in lieu of God's plan or any other person's plan or feelings.
I love Easy Does It and have gotten so much better at pausing when I feel left of center, with or without a crisis. I love that by working this program and keeping the focus on me, my attitude has changed and improved a ton. I am actually better able to live in and enjoy the moments as they are.
Make it a great Saturday - the sun is shining here in my world - it's a beautiful day! A bit cool still but lovely all the same. (((Hugs)))
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Practice the PAUSE...Pause before judging. Pause before assuming. Pause before accusing. Pause whenever you are about to react harshly and you will avoid doing and saying things you will later regret. ~~~~ Lori Deschene
So true. Funny how I stuck with a broken system for years...push myself harder when things were tough and then hate myself for not performing....and yet exactly as you say, when i take time for self care and encouraging rather than picking on myself, I achieve much and don't fall into a heap and become hopeless.
Thanks for the reminder
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If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see? (Lewis Caroll)
That really spoke to me. Just before things went nuts, I had decided to quit smoking. I was only a day and a half in. Then, I held out for several more hours until I gave in and grabbed a cigarette. A couple of days ago, I bought a pack. I just decided that I would try again to quit when things settled down. And, I haven't been smoking much anyway. So I think I'm still making progress.
