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Post Info TOPIC: Gratitude thread


MIP Old Timer

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Gratitude thread
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Yeah - everyone around here got pretty sick of hearing how wonderful my life is.

 

Guess what.  It's still wonderful - and I'm not sick of hearing myself say it yet winkawwyawn

 

I'm grateful for you guys especially- reading this!

My kitty - that he doesn't care that I keep calling him by my old cats name by mistake - and comes purring anyway.

My husband for just.... well... being the match that allows the most interesting and sometimes beautifully delicate and loving dance.

My children - for giving me a reason to try when I didn't feel I was good enough reason.  

For HP - for giving them to me - the gifts that would open my eyes.

and for everything else my life has been.

 

For my job - and the balance it brings to my life so far - offering me the opportunity to see that quality IS actually better than quantity.

For my parents - they did a crappy job at being parents - and yet they never gave up trying all together.  They allow me to use my creativity to see the roots of love between their side ways expression of it.

And I am loving discovering my inner child and creative side - so thanks be to the powers that be.

Grateful for my choir master - for showing me her less than perfect side last night, and allowing me to see her feel safe for a moment to be herself.

Grateful for my warm home, the sun shining today, the leaves so beautiful and wonderful smelling as they crunch under foot ---- the kids running home soon for a long talk and snack and hug, and I will have a card game of crazy 8 to play soon.  So grateful.

Today I'm feeling really really happy and on the drive home I was in AWE at how much I love life - it just never stops amazing me that it could be true!

 

 

How about you?

 



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Thanks for everything.  Peace and Love on your journey.  



Veteran Member

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What a beautiful peaceful time you are having. I can feel it in the words. It's hard to explain. But it's a happy congratulations.

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MIP Old Timer

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I am grateful for:

Violet reaching one year sober ... hers was a challenge far greater than most of us have been through ... a miracle if ever there was one ...

John F, for starting and maintaining this web site ...

The beauty of this day ... the smell of the rain and the cool breeze and the colors of the sunset ...

My loving brothers and sisters in AA and on this site ... especially for the prayers going out on my behalf while fighting another disease ...

And for Tasha for pulling me off my 'pity pot' more than once ... (sometimes she didn't even know it) ...

My wife of 41 years for not giving up on me ...

My two sons 39 & 33 y/o for letting me back into their lives ...

Two scoops of raisins in my cereal box ...

Ice Cream, pies, cookies, and cake ... well, food in general ... 

My God whom supplies everything I need ... and yet another chance to be sober to enjoy life and to learn of 'love' ...

Etc, etc, etc. ... ... ... ... ... too many to list ...



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'Those who leave everything in God's hand will eventually see God's hand in everything.'



MIP Old Timer

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So, what am I grateful for? Good question. In my opinion, the list is endless. However, I can't begin to describe how I feel, today, without first telling you my story. In a nutshell, I drank too much, way too much, but you already know that. After numerous attempts at sobriety; I soon realized my mistakes. I never put enough effort into getting sober to realize my full potential. In order to sustain any quality of life I had to give recovery an honest try. When I did, nothing was off limits.

The truth is, I've never been at a loss for words and today is no different. I've been able to achieve more accolades in life, today, then I had in 25 years of active drinking. For the first time in 25 years; I finally had a reason to live. I felt free as a bird and the skies were blue with envy. The truth is, nothing could compare to the joy I had found. Well, maybe not at first. There were a couple of hiccups along the way, but in the end I would not change a thing. Maybe a couple of things, but who's counting.

As far as a list goes, well, it's pretty extensive. Career wise; I have nothing to complain about. There have been many opportunities along the way, some more lucrative than others. I had been an independent writer for many years before the paper industry went belly up. After that I fought tooth and nail just to survive. Now that I am sober, more doors started to open for me. I do some consulting work for a couple of online forums, and I also supplement my income through various revenue streams, including; proofreading medical journals, doing computer repair work, day trading stocks and options, and even buying and selling on eBay. There's a whole list of ideas floating around my head, but you need to know your limitations. The truth is, I have enormous potential, but staying sober will always be my first priority. Without that, where would we be? 

Speaking of which; I also have a list of accomplishments related to sobriety. For some people; they may seem less than stellar compared to my career accomplishments, but to me they mean a great deal. For example, I was able to make amends to my 2 ex-wives over the span of 10 years. That admission has now blossomed into a wonderful friendship that has stood the test of time. I was able to make amends to my daughter as well, even after she disowned 10 years ago. You could only imagine the look on my face when she showed up at my 50th birthday party family in toe. The tears flowed for hours. 

There's another aspect of sobriety than some of us choose to ignore and it has to do with our higher power. From a faith perspective, life is extremely good. I made a real commitment to stay sober over 13 years ago and that same commitment extends to my church family as well. It's something we have to experience for ourselves before we can understand the word 'faith' in its entirely. Other blessings include; family time, leisure time and hobbies, and of course helping others. That's what drives this alcoholic today, and I hope it inspires others as well.



-- Edited by Mr_David on Friday 10th of October 2014 11:06:14 PM

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Mr.David


MIP Old Timer

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I am grateful for my husband, for MIP, for my job, for new opportunities, for friends, my pets, and to AA :)

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Keep coming back. It works if you work it. So work it. You're worth it!
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