"Ask yourself if what you're doing today is getting you closer to where you want to be tomorrow."
- Paulo Coelho
Day 158 AF. ☺️
In recent posts I have written about using the practice of mindfulness to have an awareness of my thoughts and feelings, allowing me to make better choices about my responses to problematic events or “triggers”, rather than the desire to escape or numb any discomfort.
I call these “pause points” and they are becoming habitual in my recovery, a very good thing!
Mindful awareness of my state of being is very powerful and supports me in my continuous progress in recovery. But I’m realizing that I want to move beyond the “one-day-at-a-time” mantra that is often emphasized across the recovery communities. The immediate focus in early recovery has to be primary, but can’t be sufficient for fully living life in the long term.
The opening quote by Paul Coelho struck me in that I don’t have a clear vision of the second part of the question. If I don’t know where I want to be tomorrow, then how do I know if the behaviors, habits, attentions, and intentions that I practice now are leading me in the right direction? Recovery work requires attention each day, but I must return to the question of my purpose, my meaning, my why - what is my overarching, long-term vision for the journey ahead? I have my sobriety in the immediate and near-term nailed (fingers crossed and thumbs pressed). I have this photography project as a year-long effort that keeps me motivated on a weekly basis. Beyond these ongoing successes, I still have not put the effort into the “plan” for my life.
At this stage of contemplation yesterday, I began to create a new document, a worksheet, an “inventory” of my current state of being. Of my good and poor choices, my good and poor habits and behaviors, and my awareness and efforts, or lack thereof, toward possibilities and opportunities. Knowing my current state in these areas was a valuable exercise and I decided that taking “inventory” of myself on a routine basis is a good idea, and with practice will become a new healthy habit that will help provide guidance as I move forward in recovery and in life.
I intend to return to this "inventory" process in more detail next time, and also to the progress toward my "future" plan.
Staying strong.
Thanks for reading!
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