Today's Readings

Oh boy, wow. Today's For Today:
"Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist, but in the ability to start over." F. Scott Fitzgerald
"What injustice to think myself a failure because I have to begin again! So I slipped, or relapsed; so what?" - or screwed up life and marriage
"Starting over is what all creation is about;" Oh, that is nice.
"Starting over is what all creation is about; it is part of the fabric of success in enterprises ranging from spinning a web to splitting the atom.
"Willingness to make a new beginning us a sign of growth." Wow, do I need to hear this now.
"It means I am returning to the program with a deeper understanding of myself and my illness. Far from wanting to hide in the back of the room, I feel I have something of value to contribute." This is true for me at ww a bit too.
"The Big Book tells me that to get started on the road to recovery, nothing works better than getting out and working with others. One way to do that is to share my discovery that relapse, which for me is the only alternative to teh OA program, has renewed my faith in that program.
"For today: I think of the term, 'retread,' as proof of how wonderfully accepting and free we OAs can be about the nature of our disease. If there were no Overeaters Anonymous I might have to give in to the gloom and doom; but OA is alive and well and going strong - and so am I!"

Today's Voices of Recovery:
"The powerful force that brought me to OA is ready to lead me to teh promises of the program." For Today p. 335
Oh, may that be true. And I think it is, now.
"No human power can relieve me when I feel empty." HUGE!
"God can and will give me peace! All I need to do is read, write, pray, stay close to my Higher Power and OA, and work the Steps. The solution is so much more kind to me than the disease ever was." True. True.

Today's In This Moment:
"In This Moment, I see the humor in my recovery.
There was a time in my life, when I felt so deeply depressed, and in such pain, that I thought the hurt would never end. I have learned that, 'This too, shall pass.' Laughing helps to open my heart. I feel lighter in the world, instead of feeling so burdened with responsibility. I use humor appropriately, instead of deflecting or avoiding my real feelings.
My Higher Power has a fantastic sense of humor. When I allow myself to experience it fully, I see the joy in situations. My laughter is full and genuine."

Today's Language of Letting Go:
"Just as when we were children and grew out of favorite toys and clothes, we sometimes grow out of things as adults - people, jobs, homes. This can be confusing. We may wonder why someone or something that was so special and important to us last year doesn't fit he same way in our life today. We may wonder why our feelings have changed.
"When we were children, we may have tried o fit into an outgrown article of clothing on to our bod. now, as adults, we may go through a time of trying to force-fit attitudes that we have outgrown. We may nee to do this to give ourselves time to realize the truth. What worked last year, what was so important and special to us in times past, doesn't work anymore because we've changed. We've grown.
"We an accept this as a valid and important part of recovery. We can let ourselves go through experimentation and grief as we struggle to make something fit, trying to figure out if indeed it no longer fits, and why. We can explore our feelings and thoughts around what has happened.
"Then, we can put last year's toys away and make room for the new.
"Today, I will let last year's toys be what they were: last year's toys. I will remember them with fondness for the part they played in my life. Then, I will put them away and make room for the new."

Phew.