Finding Exactly What You’re NOT Looking For
I enjoy the luxury of getting up most mornings and not having to rush out the door to get anywhere. Listening to the birds, watching the butterflies and hearing the water fountain gurgle makes for a leisurely morning on the patio and seems to make my 1 cup of instant coffee taste fantastic! Believe me I am not used to this and I cherish these times. It’s another promise coming true!
Recovery has taught me to stay open-minded and that has led me to some read really good books. The funny thing is that the old me would have rejected the books simply because of the titles. I’ve gotten a lot of good messages from the most unlikely books. Also, having the time to browse through the thrift store book sections has helped. I will pay $1 for a book, instead of $25. If I get one positive thing from my literary selections, then I’m happy.
Here are a few examples of booked I’ve enjoyed:
Men’s Secret Wars by Patrick A. Means – I’m not a man but I do know some men and I had not thought about trying to figure them out. As I put this book back on the shelf, I caught a second glimpse of the cover. The man on the cover had a vacant, longing expression in his eyes. I guess that’s what a “secret war” looks like. The stories in chapter four (titled “You Can’t Heal What You Don’t Feel”) were from men, but the solutions could be applied to both sexes. It helped me to learn that acknowledging your feelings and can help you begin to heal.
Addict in the Family: Stories of Loss, Hope & Recovery by Beverly Conyers. There is not another addict in my family, but I was the addict in the family. This book enabled me to understand my family’s feelings during my addiction and their perception of my recovery now. It has given me an understanding of those still struggling with addiction and ways to support and encourage them without getting tangled up. I particularly liked this quote from the book: “control is the flip side of fear.”
10 Secrets for Success and Inner Peace by Dr. Wayne Dyer. Inner peace may have been the lure for me, since success does not excite me. The second secret (Don’t Die with Your Music Still in You) is about finding your passion in life and taking risks. I liked this quote from the book: “fear knocked at the door, love answered and no one was there.”
Brains on Fire: Igniting Powerful Sustainable Word of Mouth Movements by Robbin Phillips, Greg Cordell, Geno Church and Spike Jones. I’m a part of a word of mouth movement but I’m not in charge. My thought was, “this does not pertain to me, but I will buy this book since I have worked with Geno Church.” Geno is a cool guy doing cool things, and that made it worth $25! It has been lying around for months, but I just cracked the cover the other day. It’s about passion and empowerment. I realized that my part in the Heroes in Recovery movement is more important than I thought. I thought about why I was asked to be a part of HIR. That alone meant that I mean something. One of my favorite quotes from book is, “Tell me & I’ll forget. Show me & I may not remember. Involve me & I’ll understand.”
Living the Promises: Coming to Life on the Road to Recovery by Jennifer M. This book features daily meditations, one short passage per day. I can commit to that! I did have a personal interest in this book. I’m in recovery and I have witnessed the promises coming true in my life, much to my surprise. Living was my next step. I paid $15 for this book, and it’s been worth 1000 times that already. These are not lessons just for those in recovery. These are insights that can improve anyone quality of life.
One of my favorite excerpts is, “Go from ‘I’ll be happy when’ to ‘I’ll be happy then’ then to ‘I’ll be happy’ then to ‘I am happy.’” Clearly, this was specific to my journey, but the message is universal. Another of my favorite quotes from this book is, “Be honest, accept your personal reality for today and enjoy life as it truly is. Today, I will embrace reality.”
Embrace your reality today and be passionate about it. Take a couple of dollars, go to the thrift store book section and take a literary risk. Be open-minded. You might just find exactly what you were not looking for.
I hope you’ll come back to our site and share with us what you found.