“It's been over 50 years; what a long, strange trip it’s been!”

“We often wish we had been born into better circumstances or blame our parents for our problems. Thoughts such as "If only I had had a better life as a kid; "If only I didn't have my particular hardships" come to surface. By accepting the facts of our own lives, we mature into feelings of joy and pleasure alongside our griefs. Every person has to struggle with their own unique set of circumstances, even if they are not fair. Fairness is not an issue. Reality is what we have to deal with. God, I thank You for my recovery. Help me accept life on its own terms, and rejoice in the fact You are present in it.”

“When grief flows, the past heals. We are asking to change the bath water. We inherit new transmissions of wisdom from sources already surrounding us. By honoring grief and healing, we deepen our faith. Embracing God’s love, we can make decisions about how to move forward from our core selves rather than our guarded hurts. In the process, the shape of us and our world is being reimagined to a place that has a little bit more wholeness. When the past is offered healing, compassion, and forgiveness, the future will have good water to re-immerse ourselves.”

“At some point, everyone passes through a dark night of the soul. This is a difficult time in which we are moving from an old life to a new one, with no apparent security or help in sight. Although the dark night is painful and harrowing, it is an important and productive time. We are being called upon to search deep within ourselves for faith; to clear away the old to make way for the new and better. Nothing is taken away that is not replaced with something more valuable. Today, I surrender to Your love. Hold my hand, God, during my time of shadows. Though I see You not, I trust that You are present, that all is good.”

“I will try to grow in this new life. I will think of spiritual things often and unconsciously I will grow. The nearer I get to the new life, the more I will see my unfitness. My sense of failure is a sure sign that I am growing in the new life. It is only struggle that hurts. In sloth - physical, mental, or spiritual - there is no sense of failure or discomfort. With struggle and effort, I am conscious not of strength but of weakness until I am really living the new life. But in the struggle, I can always rely on the power of God to help me. Prayer for the Day I pray that I may see signs of my growth in the new life. I pray that I may always keep trying to grow.”