October 27 Living in the present
"We want to look our past in the face, see it for what it really was, and
release it so we can live today."
Basic Text, p.28
For many of us, the past is like a bad dream. Our lives aren't the same any
more, but we still have fleeting, highly charged emotional memories of a really
uncomfortable past. The guilt, fear, and anger that once dominated us may spill
into our new life, complicating our efforts to change and grow.
The Twelve Steps are the formula that helps us learn to put the past in its
place. Through the Fourth and Fifth Steps, we become aware that our old behavior
didn't work. We ask a Higher Power to relieve us of our shortcomings in the
Sixth and Seventh Steps, and we begin to be relieved of the guilt and fear that
plagued us for so many years. In the Eighth and Ninth Steps, by making amends,
we demonstrate to others that our lives are changing. We are no longer
controlled by the past. Once the past loses its control over us, we are free to
find new ways to live, ways that reflect who we truly are.
Just for today: I don't have to be controlled by my past. I will live this new
day as the new person I am becoming.
pg. 313
I just wanted to thank you KerrBear for doing this every morning. Now I don't have to find my book, I just look for you...
Cowgirl
Cowgirl
