Fitting in the Puzzle

To say I feel deeply humble this morning is an understatement. I'm flummoxed. A good place to be. There is only one way to go at this point. Hand it all over to my Higher Power. I know what to do...now I just got to get off my "Easy Does It" ass and do it.

Discovering Choices, p.118, "In alcoholic families there are rigid rules to follow: don't notice, don't talk, don't feel, and don't trust---other people or my own perceptions. Those rules required that I keep secret from myself and everyone else, the truth of how this disease affected and disabled me. I am now disobeying those rules...I have learned to trust. I can be vulnerable, emotionally safe, and available...I now have acceptance and love for myself as I am. I can accept and love others by listening, being compassionate, and welcoming them...Only through sharing my story as it changes and evolves, and listening to others' stories, am I able to leave isolation and actually be one among mmy fellows."


Hope for Today, p.277, "I never felt like I "fit" in...Instead of forcing myself to fit, I forced those around me. I tried to manipulate and control everybody in my life to change the shape of their personalities to suit mine...The program taught me there's nothing wrong with the way I'm shaped mentally, emotionally, physically, or spiritually. There's nothing wrong with other people's shapes either. Then I learned that the only piece I can change is my own. I have choices now. Instead of spending time with people and situations where I don't fit, I can look for the ones where I do. Regarding the puzzle of my family, I can't change the fact that I'm a member who doesn't always fit...Al-Anon gives me tools, such as detachment and the Serenity Prayer...and remember that this family gathering, too, shall pass. Soon I can move on to gatherings where I feel more comfortable...My goal is not to change others to fit me. I aim to change myself to fit my Higher Power's Will."


Dear Sweet Lord GOD Almighty Spirit, thank YOU for it all. YOU are The One, The Source, The Center of the Universes. Thank YOU for the multiple blessings YOU shower on us all, the so-called "good" and the "bad", and the "oogly". Thank YOU for the gifts of Life, of Loving, and of being Loved. Lord, please please help us all make choices to follow YOUR guidance, YOUR Light. As YOU Will. Love, Carol xoxox