New Year, New Project. Crocheting a scrappy yarn basket to use up some of my stash. Use it Up!!!
New Year’s Day. A clean slate. An unwritten book with 365 pages. It’s exciting and filled with hope for great things. What we need to remember is…it’s not infallible. We will not do it perfectly. We’ll make mistakes and we’ll be so tempted to give up and say, “See? Nothing works out!” Or “I knew it was too good to be true!” Spending our lives waiting for the other shoe to drop then giving up and going back to what clearly didn’t work last year isn’t the answer. Flexibility is the name of the game. Flexibility and determination. That’s how you’ll keep coming back and trying again.
I took a four day break from Noom to enjoy the end of the year…guilt free. I’m sure when I get back on the scale this morning, the number will be higher than it was before…but that little number doesn’t define who I am or quantify my worth. All I have to do is get up, recommit to my program, and follow through with the steps I need to meet my goals. That applies to everything in life. When I was abusing alcohol and prescription medications, I had to face my addictions every day as if it were the first.
I chose sobriety on January 6, 2000. Or rather…it chose me. I overdosed with a lethal cocktail and through the grace of God, I survived it. It’s not enough to survive, though. You need to learn to thrive or else you can stay in the victim seat…and that’s no way to live either.
I’ve been blessed to have the people and the resources to get my life back on track. Sobriety is not just a young person’s game. It’s never too late to make changes in your life. Make a decision. Look for the resources to support you. Look for even the smallest of achievements and praise yourself when you make them. And forgive yourself when you slip. Then get back up and start again, no matter how many times you need to.
Through a lot of prayer, study, therapy, and deep introspection, I learned that my addictions stemmed from my inability to love and forgive…myself and others… for things that happened as far back as I can remember. It took me far too long to let go and let God run my life instead of me trying to hold the reins. It took learning to trust that He had plans for me…that He loved me…and that, since I was made in His image…I needed to love myself.
Yes…it’s a new year of new beginnings. I pray your very first choice this year is to love God…and love yourself. You are so worthy of love, dear one.
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”You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you.“
Song of Solomon 4:7 ESV