“From that place of peace and centering will emerge an answer, a solution.” The Language of Letting Go 

Good things come into my life when my thoughts, words and actions are being guided by a higher, more loving power. So it makes perfect sense to me that I invest time each morning into reading uplifting, positive literature. By infusing my mind (and heart) with a higher vibration, I launch my thoughts into a place of deep contentment and appreciation for this gift of living, which only reinforces the fact that ILML! 

– JamieQ

“Our real purpose is to fit ourselves to be of maximum service to God and the people about us.” – AA pg. 77

My sponsor once asked me if I knew what my personal purpose in life was. I said, “No I don’t.” He opened up the big book to page 77 and then said, “If, when you lay your head to sleep at night, you’ve stayed sober and done what’s written here, you’re a success. You’ve fulfilled your primary purpose. Even if you didn’t get this, win that, receive approval from someone else, if you’ve done what’s written here you are a winner. Remember that.” I keep that in mind, and having achieved my purpose – one day at a time – ILML! 

“Sure, things happen (but) you have the power to reshape and redefine any experience, no matter how devastating…” — Until Today

I love it when what happens makes me feel happy – it’s all good. But the true opportunity for me to evolve into a more wonderful person comes from experiences that make me feel uncomfortable. When they happen – and they will – if I take one long, deep breath I’ll open up enough space to practice patience, tolerance, understanding, acceptance, detachment and love. This is how I live the program and literally breathe it into every moment, with the result that ILML! 
— JamieQ

“Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.” – Denis Waitley

In this website, you’ll find some great tips on how to get and stay in the attitude of gratitude. But if you go a step further, and search the internet for gratitude tools, you’ll discover even more actions and suggestions on how to live a thankful life, appreciating every moment. I’ve found such tools to be invaluable in my desire to love life. In fact, it’s by practicing actions of gratitude consistently on an everyday basis, that I’ve managed to find, and stay in that magical place where almost every day, ILML! 

– JamieQ

“I am seeking a saner approach to everything I encounter.” – Courage to Change 

The Latin origin of the word sanity is sanus, meaning healthy. So we could say that by turning to our higher power, we can quickly restore our mental health. That’s easy for me to do because my HP is love, kindness, gratitude and compassion. When I’m aware enough to sense that I’m in an emotionally unhealthy place, I can take a deep breath, be loving to myself and others, and detach from unhealthy situations quickly. This always makes me saner (healthier), allowing me to return to that wonderful place where ILML! 

– JamieQ

“Making myself available to help and be helped by a wide range of people is a key to my recovery.” – Hope For Today 
How did the program help me love my life? After getting sober, working the steps with a sponsor and finding my higher power, I then began to use the tools in all areas of my life on a daily basis. Doors of abundance opened and my life became rich with the relationships I’ve developed in and out of the rooms. Learning to play nice with others is one of the greatest gifts I’ve received. ILML!

– JamieQ

“The pain is not in the surrender and acceptance. It’s in the resistance.” – Hope for Today
Here’s how it works for me. First, some person, place, thing or situation doesn’t meet my ‘reasonable’ expectation. Next, I’m upset and would like to get what I want. Finally, I try to change that person, place, thing or situation, while hopefully remaining sane, calm and kind. This is normal, and, in my opinion, even healthy. The problem occurs when my efforts fail. At that point, as long as I don’t keep trying to control it or them, I experience just a little pain. It’s only when I’m unwilling to surrender my efforts at control, until I get my way, that the real suffering begins. Today, I choose to surrender and remember there are no big deals, except that ILML! 

– JamieQ

… and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.” – AA p.59 (and in Daily Reflections p. 290)

One of the wonderful benefits of consistently and diligently applying program solutions to my problems is that the amount of time I stay in suffering as a result of uncomfortable situations is continually getting shorter and shorter. In the past I could suffer for hours, days or even weeks over something. These days it’s usually minutes at most, and more often just seconds. Part of the reason is that I make immediate amends as often as possible, resulting in the dissipation of both my guilt and attachment to the problem. I love using all the gifts of the program, and ILML! 

— JamieQ

“Self-esteem will increase when we increase our sense of being financially responsible for ourselves.” – The Language of Letting Go 
I wasn’t raised in a household where fiscal responsibility was modeled to me. I had some examples of earning money but none that showed me how to conserve or retain it. Rather, what I mostly remember was spending – and lots of it. So it’s not surprising that I generally have bought myself and my family most anything we’ve wanted – I’ve always figured, oh well, I’ll put it on a credit card and just have to make more money. As a result, I’ve always felt under the gun. These days I’m beginning to have some restraint on spending in order that I may build a secure financial future that can last the rest of my life (46 years more). I’m not getting any younger but I can surely get even happier. ILML! 

“Instead of regarding the satisfaction of our material desires as the means by which we could live and function as human beings, we had taken these satisfactions to be the final end and aim of life.” – 12&12 p.71
The idea that the attainment of “more” would make me happy, actually left me always falling short of my own expectations. With my new vision statement, which contains clear objectives with regard to material goals, I finally have clear goals, and I’m taking daily action to achieve my vision, while recognizing that the greatest gift is simply being a conduit of my higher power’s love everyday. ILML! 

— JamieQ