Recovery. Sobriety. Living Wise.
Friends, This is Thanksgiving Day weekend in the United States. As I stopped to consider what I’m grateful for, my thoughts quickly went to the natural beauty that surrounds us everywhere, if we remember to stop and notice. These images of flowers, in their exquisite detail, caught my attention. I invite you take a few minutes to look around, whatever the season where you live, … Continue reading Unspeakable Beauty
I read a quote (uncredited) the other day that caught my attention: “Never blame anyone in your life. The good people give you happiness, the bad people give you experience, the worst people give you a lesson, the best people give you memories.” It struck me that when I look into the mirror in the morning all four characters stare back: the good, the bad, … Continue reading The Power of Thoughts
What are you supposed to do when you live in frightening times? Like many of you, I’ve been trying to makes sense of this upside down, inside out world of ours. My impression is the world has lost connection to a shared fate and purpose. Times past may have been equally crazy, but knowing that does not make it any easier to live in times … Continue reading Our Finest Hour
I have on occasion caught myself staring into the mirror and seeing a bold-faced pessimist staring back. I see a guy with more doubt than faith, and a damn sight more preoccupation in the past than hope in the future. I ask myself, “Paddy Boy, what’s happened to your faith?” The thing is, when I attempt to answer my question, all I come up with is … Continue reading A Simple Faith
What happens when relationships are irreparably broken and beyond the reach of reconciliation or grace? Sometimes, they may be over. But sometimes, I have discovered, they can be unaccountably restored. A foundation of the 12 steps: “God did for me what I could not do for myself.” I deeply appreciate the term “higher power” embraced by 12-step programs of all stripes. It allows everyone, from the atheist … Continue reading Reconciliation