From Stacey's morning email
Today's thought from Hazelden is:
Stop building cases
You don't have to build a big drama around your life. We may need to end a relationship or explore a new career. Instead of simply saying, This is what I'm going to do, we build a case.
Like a lawyer getting ready to go to court, we prepare our arguments. We take one feeling and build a hundred page document around it, prepared to battle our case.
You can build cases if you want to. But usually, there's a hidden feeling underneath all that case building that's asking to be cleared. It could be a tinge of guilt or fear. Or it could just be the belief that it's not okay to clearly express ourselves, say how it feels to us, and so what we need to do to take care of ourselves.
Let go of the drama. Just say what you need and how it feels to you.
Be as simple and clear as you can in expressing yourself. If you find yourself building a case or creating a big dramatic scene, take a moment. Why are you making such a fuss?
God, help me keep it simple, especially when it comes to expressing myself.
LOL. when I read this I had to chuckle...I build cases often, possibly due to my father being an attorney but more likely because I have a hard time feeling safe in expressing myself.
Today I will put away the deposition papers, lol, and just simply state my truth.
Today I will put away the deposition papers, lol, and just simply state my truth.
Thanks 12 stepper I know I needed to hear that too as I am sure do others. We all build cases from time to time I think. Here where I live we call it making mountains out of mole hills. lol Take care and thanks for the inspiration.
When I was a few months sober my son was paying my electric bills because I was on SSI. They turned my electric off one day and OMG you would have thought the world was going to end. I ran to my then sponsor's house and told her that I wanted to use. She was sitting there with a bottle of pills in front of her. Nope, not the place for me to be. I promptly told her I didn't need her to be my sponsor any longer and ran to the 12 Step House where it was safe practically hysterical. I don't remember getting that dramatic over anything since. I've learned to pretty much go with the flow. I find that if I joke about the problem, it seems much smaller than what I COULD make it out to be. And NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING is bad enough for me to drink over.
great thread
12 Step that story you told about the electric bill and your reaction really made me laugh - I don't mean that it was a funny thing at the time - obviously not. Just the way you told the story and because I can SO relate.
Yep - for me any little thing that went wrong was the end of the world.Yet when I look back over my life I have been so incredibly blessed and virtually ALL the drama in my life has been of my own creating.
Today I walked in to work from where I park the car and the sea was the colour of silver and the sand the colour of gold, and as I came over the top of the little cliff by the carpark it was the most beautiful sight and I was glad just to be alive. When I was drinking I wouldn't have got any joy out of such a simple thing and instead of makingme glad to be alive it would have made me feel more resentful and hateful of myself.
have a great day all.
12 Step that story you told about the electric bill and your reaction really made me laugh - I don't mean that it was a funny thing at the time - obviously not. Just the way you told the story and because I can SO relate.
Yep - for me any little thing that went wrong was the end of the world.Yet when I look back over my life I have been so incredibly blessed and virtually ALL the drama in my life has been of my own creating.
Today I walked in to work from where I park the car and the sea was the colour of silver and the sand the colour of gold, and as I came over the top of the little cliff by the carpark it was the most beautiful sight and I was glad just to be alive. When I was drinking I wouldn't have got any joy out of such a simple thing and instead of makingme glad to be alive it would have made me feel more resentful and hateful of myself.
have a great day all.
Hi Idgie, I loved your description of your sea and sand... it sounds really beautiful. if I had that on my doorstep I'd be so thankful for it. It's made me feel a bit despondant actually. When I look out of my window I see a council estate, drug dealers, neighbours who try to make your life a misery by vandalising your property... thiefs... Police...it all seems grey to me, my life seems grey. I do get some joy though when I look out the window at night and sometimes by chance you catch a fox having a good look round. They're really beautiful, but it's not often you see something like that.
Izzy look at the sky at night its alive and wonderful and beautiful. No matter where we live we all have the wide open sky. "quote "Always reach for the moon because even if you fail you will still be among the stars.
