July 20

PATIENCE MONTH: DAY 20: “There is something good in all seeming failures. You are not to see that now. Time will reveal it. Be patient.” ― Sivananda Saraswati

We are given free will and the ability to make our own choices. Sometimes, life presents us with options for learning that are short-lived or seemingly fail.

This can be in marriage, career, choice of lifestyles, a home, a car, a relationship, so many things. The nature of life is constant, ongoing, continual change. The two mean that whatever choice we make when we are 12 is going to need to be rethought at 16 or 27 or 42.

We don’t get to know how life is going to unfold. If we make decisions, based on self; they may look like mistakes at any point along the way. Why? Because we don’t live in a vacuum. And because those choices that are based on self are going to look pretty shallow when we connect with others or when we grow past that level of selfishness.

We are not here to get our demands met. Most addicts are like spoiled children who cry and whine when we don’t get what we think we want.

A really fun thing to do is try to remember what your biggest disappointment is a week after it is gone. I cannot do it very often. Of course, there are some big ones I can recall with crystal-clear hindsight and memory.

However, I work very hard to focus on what is miraculous about my days, rather than what is disappointing about my days. This focus is the crux of my recovery.

And, to be honest, when I look at those things that I deemed “failures” in the course of my life have been my greatest sources of strength and wisdom today. See? We do not know how to view life at all! That is the “disease of perception” talking again!

What we think is tragic or horrible is often the thing that we came here to learn to navigate. If we are sitting with some recovery today, our plate is filled by GRACE.

That means that we are given ALL THAT WE NEED to do life on its own perfect terms. These steps are the key to that path. When we are working them, all the time, over and over, we have ALL THAT WE NEED to face whatever comes next. It is awesome!

The miracle is that we can face life with fear and dread and resentment; OR we can face it with joy and hope and love. If I believe everything is a miracle, I am richly blessed each day. If I believe nothing is a miracle, I am disappointed and resentful and afraid. I am also running around like a crazy person, trying to control and manage my life.

Yeah, that works! So, I must agree with my Swami that, over time, when I see with the eyes of a miracle, I can understand and love the life I have lived, every single minute of it! And today, that is really all I need to let go of whatever stands in the way of another miracle, and another, and another…letting go and living with whatever IS!