“Being comfortable in my own skin has been the toughest part of living sober.”

Three readings. A song that says the rest. And inspiration for whatever this day is here to teach.

A lone surfer riding inside a great curling wave

Read — the readings that opened the day

More About Alcoholism, page 42

But the program of action, though entirely sensible, was pretty drastic. It meant I would have to throw several lifelong conceptions out of the window. That was not easy.But the moment I made up my mind to go through with the process, I had the curious feeling that my alcoholic condition was relieved, as in fact it proved to be.

Adapted from Alcoholics Anonymous

Daily Reader for Contemplative Living

Thomas Keating

It is in bearing our weakness with compassion, patience, and without expecting all our ills to go away that we function best in a Kingdom where the insignificant, the outcasts, and everyday life are the basic coordinates. The Kingdom is in our midst.

Adapted from Daily Reader for Contemplative Living

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

Meditation for the Day Not until you have failed can you learn true humility. Humility arises from a deep sense of gratitude to God for giving you the strength to rise above past failures. Humility is not inconsistent with self-respect. The true person has self-respect and the respect of others and yet is humble. The humble person is tolerant of others' failings and does not have a critical attitude toward the foibles of others. Humble people are hard on themselves and easy on others. Prayer for the Day I pray that I may be truly humble and yet have self-respect. I pray that I may see the good in myself as well as the bad.

Reflect — Steve L.'s own words

Being comfortable in my own skin has been the toughest part of living sober. For me, as I discovered that, like you explained, alcohol was just a symptom, the readings today focus on getting rid of old ideas & beliefs, At one meeting I heard someone say, “It’s not an old idea if you just practiced it!” So just how do I get rid of all of these learned behaviors, firmly planted as defenses to protect my ego? Well, you pointed to the line that states, “The delusion that we are like other people, or presently may be, has to be smashed.” All of the heroes I wanted to be, the role models I wanted to impress, the shame I had for not being enough, these must be replaced. You then pointed out “This is the how and why of it. First of all, we had to quit playing God. It didn’t work.” I have to quit judging everything, especially myself.

Yesterday afternoon, while, working in the yard, the phone rang. “Hello, this is the yard boy” I answered. The laughter, sarcasm and love was great! Neighbors drove by & honked. I gave them thumbs up rather than the other hand signal!!

Later at Red Devil for dinner with our friend Linda, we talked about our 40-yr friendship. Her husband was out hunting; we shared many stories together & laughed about efforts in the ski business to be cool. Gail was the biggest contributor when she said, “Steve, you were never a player; just a player wannabe!” Sometimes, I still try, but so what? Charles Chrirch told me, "Steve, make friends with your character defects; Stan Grant said, “Don’t try to get perfect by Thursday!” Like Popeye, “I am what I am and that’s all that I am!”

As acceptance grows about ourselves, more acceptance and Love surfaces to share with for others. Thanks for showing me a little bit of sun, and where the love is; and, especially, for a skin that fits, at least, most of the time.

Ride the Waves with Steve L.