Hi ya all. My spounsor is working with me hard to learn to stay in the today. I ran a few businesses and am use to projecting. He is having me make a list at night of what I am going to get done the next day and the next evening cross off all you got done. It comes down to this we AA are for the most part an all or nothing crowd. If we fall short of our projeced goals then we are angered at ourselves and don't enjoy the miniute we are living in. Any other ideas on how to slow my mind down and enjoy were I am at at the moment. If I have one foot in the past and the other in the future then I'm not standing in today. Hugs all of you and I pray you all enjoy today.
Don\'t walk in front of me, I may not follow. Don\'t walk behind me, I may not lead. Walk beside me and be my friend. - Albert Camus
The word 'realign' helps me refocus when i have drifted into the past, the future, a bad place in my head, or if i find myself annoyed at people places or things. any of those places listed above are out of alignment with my God's will for my today. if i am not in the moment i am missing out on my opportunity to help others. it takes a bit do it and i actually look silly... sometimes i raise my arm straight up and say out loud, "Realign" and start laughing. if i am in a public place i just say it to myself, and it brings me right back to the moment i am living. maybe this is what you are talking about, doing something physical to ground me in the moment, whatever you find that helps you, it does take time, so be patient with yourself. i know i have a lot of unlearning to do to stay living my new life. take care and hugs, jj
Hey buckeyebear! Yes the God of our understanding can definitely find some spots for us. Funny......Learning to live in the day.....,I have been a Production Manager at a facility for"people with Disabilities going on 32 years now(by the grace of God)Staying in the day ,while working on shipping and QMRP situations is at the minimum ,adventurous....The tools of the program have been the difference in me keeping my life God centered and humble.(not always easy huh!!)Anyway I have written on my job board" I will plan for tomorrow but not at the expense of wasting today!!"My nature is to plan ahead, but with awareness, gratitude and focus I try and make the most of each day, all I am given..Thanks for sharing....
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Selfishness-self-centeredness! That, we think, is the root of our troubles.
I make plans for the future, I just dont plan the outcome, or live in those plans. And I had to throw away my crystal ball, cuz it was always lying to me.
I havent had a drink in almost 6 yrs and Im just now learning how to stay in today. Its tuff. I try to remember to ask God every morning to help me. And when I find my mind wandering into the next day or off somewhere in space I do the best I can to snap out of it and keep the focus on right where Im at , at that time.
Your doing a great job, keep up the good work and follow the suggestions of your sponsor.
I try to balance the yin and the yang by stayin' in the day. Thank you for the reminder that it's not easy but worth the effort. And I have help and support when I remember to ask or try to connect with hp. I don't have do it all myself!
Good question David. I have a wife, 2 kids, and a great network of friends that help me stay grounded. I also pray and ask God to "keep me present". I keep it simple. As simple as I can. I'll repeat what my sponsor tells me often..."if you have to ask how to keep it simple your not keeping it simple". I see so many people "work" the program of AA so hard that it get's lost. Today I don't work it. Step 12 only says practice. Today I do so little to maintain my sobriety I have to ask if I'm doing anything at all. I don't have to work anything, because God does all the hard stuff for me. I've learned through Faith and working the steps that for me, sobriety is easy because I still want it more than anything else. It's no longer a "chore" to do, it's a gift I gladly receive each day. In fact, for this alcoholic, it's as easy as not picking up that first drink. That's what I do every day, is not pick up that first drink. The rest just comes to me because I remain open minded and willing enough (and have enough sanity back) to receive it. I get accused of laziness and complacency often, then heard the same people turn around and tell others they want what I have. You know what? They have it. All I have is today, just like them. All I have are choices to make. They have those too. I struggled to find balance in my life early on, and prayed for help, and my prayers were answered. I don't work for it, IT works for me!!!
It's important to separate spiritual reality from physical reality. Physical reality calls for mechanical preparation, spiritual reality refers to emotional preparation. If I have a flat tire today and won't need the car until its time to go to work tomorrow, it still wouldn't make sense to say, "since I won't need to use the car till tomorrow, there's no need to change the tire today, since I'm supposed to be living in the now.
Obviously, the tire is asking to be changed, and I won't be free from the concern over its "flatness" until I get it changed.
Conversely, if I tend to be a lazy dude, and I know I've got a big job coming up next week that I can't do anything about today, if I'm sitting around worrying about not being able to do that big job when the time comes to do it, I'm worrying about the need for a certain degree of energy required to do the job, the necessary desire to perform, the results of not getting the job properly done, etc. with the energy level and interest level I have today, instead of what I will be feeling like on the morning I will need to start the job. Get it? If I put my emotions into the future (particularly fear) then I'm very much not living in today spiritually.
Living in today doesn't mean I'm not allowed to make plans and preparations which will make the future easier to handle, it simply means I use the steps to clean up the wreckage of my past so that I'm not sitting around full of guilt, shame, and fear of the past catching up with me, and it further means learning how to trust that whatever happens in the future, no matter what it is, will simply be one more learning experience designed to move me from the loneliness and incapacity to love my fellow human beings which is egoism towards the communal spirit and honest desire to help others feel better about being alive which is humility.
the simplest way to see it is to become convinced that life is a learning experience for the growth of my soul rather than a win/lose situation which I have to constantly be afraid might not allow me to win. Love and blessings - Chuck
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You wouldn't be nearly as concerned with what people thought of you if you knew how seldom they did.
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