Holiday Survival

Holiday Survival

Since I got sober in September, it wasn’t long before I started worrying about getting through the holidays without drinking. And instead of feeling more confident as each day went by, I began feeling that much closer to my next drink! My friends in recovery assured...
Sneaky

Sneaky

It had been about a year since it was cold enough to move all my back porch plants indoors, and I’d been thinking about it, but putting it off. (Yes, I still must get some twisted pleasure out of  procrastination—which is really sloth in five syllables—especially...
Another Trip Around the Sun

Another Trip Around the Sun

I recently celebrated another year of sobriety, and as always, I got a chance to take a good look at what has happened—as well as what hasn’t happened—during the past year. I remember my first sobriety anniversary. I was a nervous wreck, to put it mildly. I couldn’t...
What a Ride

What a Ride

I’ve always struggled to explain how I felt in the early days of my sobriety, but it seems that the longer I stay sober, the harder it becomes. I’ve been told that it was because of all the chemical changes happening in my body, or maybe it was because I was so...
Solitude

Solitude

I love learning new things, and I still remember how good it felt to finally identify the causes and conditions that set me up for a drink. I discovered that I mostly drank over the resentments I hung on to, the fear I had grown accustomed to, and the guilt and shame...
Secret to a Peaceful Life

Secret to a Peaceful Life

“I wish I was as peaceful as you are,” he said as he shook his head. “You don’t seem to get upset about much of anything. How do you do it?” I smiled as I considered what my friend had just said. Surely, you have got to be kidding, I thought. But I knew he wasn’t. Of...