Snips

Many of us were raised with the belief that having a problem is something to be ashamed of. This belief can do many damaging things to us. It can stop us from identifying our problems; it can make us feel alienated and inferior when we have, or someone we love has, a problem. Shame can block us from solving a problem and finding the gift from the problem.
Problems are a part of life. So are solutions. People have problems, but we, and our self-esteem, are separate from our problems.
I've yet to meet a person who didn't have problems to solve, but I've met many who felt shamed to talk about the problems they actually had solved!
We are more than our problems. Even if our problem is our own behavior, the
problem is not who we are -- it's what we did.
It's okay to have problems. It's okay to talk about problems at appropriate times, and with safe people. It's okay to solve problems. And we're okay, even when we have, or someone we love has, a problem. We don't have to forfeit our personal power or our self-esteem. We have solved exactly the problems we've needed to solve to become who we are.
Today, I will let go of my shame about problems.
Melody Beattie ©

On awakening in the morning, and at night, going to sleep, or at any moment during the day, pause to pray. Say the particular prayer that you know helps to put you in conscious contact with our Source, the Power that created your Universe. That Presence, that Power, is available in every moment. Make contact again and again today.
Mary Manin Morrissey

AA Thought of the Day / When it comes to ego deflation, few Steps are harder to take than Five. But scarcely any Step is more necessary to longtime sobriety and peace of mind than this one. / 12 & 12, p. 55


You don't need to run away from the past. For it's already quickly receding behind you. If you've had a wonderful and fulfilling past, it is now time to move forward. If you've had a difficult and troubling past, it is now time to move forward. Whatever the past may or may not have been, it is now over. Choose to not let it hold you back for any reason. Are your thoughts filled with regret, resentment, sorrow or anger for what has already been? The sooner you let go and move on, the better your life will be. Cherish the past, take wisdom from the past, but don't let the past become your prison. Free yourself to move forward in a positive, fulfilling way. If there's one thing you have learned from the past, it is that life is precious. Now is when you can fully realize and experience the precious life you are in.
Ralph Marston

If a relationship falls apart in the outer world, but you extract personal growth from it, you are succeeding in a far more meaningful way than one who amasses the symbols of success but fails to recognize his or her own inner worth. The only true measure of success, we eventually discover, is happiness.
Alan Cohen

When you meet anyone, remember it is a holy encounter. As you treat them you will treat yourself. As you think of them you will think of yourself. Never forget this, for in them you will find yourself or lose your Self.
A Course in Miracles

You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Max Ehrmann


"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me'."
Erma Bombeck


We would worry less about what others think of us if we realized how seldom they do.
Ethel Barrett