Sobriety Needs an Open Heart and Mind

February 20, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Openness of Heart

Having an open heart and mind are essential for sobriety. It is helpful for us to come at life with an attitude of wonderment, open to everything we see and hear.

Making or having a judgment about everything, thinking we know everything, is detrimental to trying to remain sober. It is contempt prior to investigation. Staying open leads to being delighted with everything that comes our way.

I used to have a pretty closed mind, thinking I knew everything there was to know about so many things. I was resistant to new ideas presented to me, always thought I knew best.

Then, when I got sober, I had to learn to practice humility, and I learned I didn’t know much about a lot of things. It was that return to humility again and again that taught me to have an open mind.

The thing that’s so cool about having an open mind is that we begin to see everything with awe and wonder. It is a place of great discovery and fun. Exposure to new things brings on a whole new dimension of richness to our lives.

Usually, an open heart follows an open mind. Perhaps this is because we protect our heart more. When we use the courage we have found and ask for help from our Source, we can get past the fear of opening our heart to let ourselves out and others in.

Do you have an open heart and mind? Where are you closed? Can you take a look at that and make a different decision about whether to have an open heart and mind? It will ease your life to have an air of openness. It will help you find inner peace.

 

 

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Filed Under: Inspirational Quotes About Life, Inspirational Sayings, Principle of living, Self Improvement, Sober Living Tagged With: , , , , , ,

How Do We Persevere?

August 15, 2010 by 3 Comments

Rolls of Perseverance

The verse which accompanies this image talks about learning not to feel discouraged, or, to feel like a failure, if our first attempts at being the person we want to be does not work out. The word “failure” stands out to me as a difficult belief about oneself, a difficult emotion, one which warrants further discussion.

Of late, there have been several quotes about failure on Twitter and FaceBook. In short, the message is that there are no failures, only results which have not yet been discovered. It’s only a failure if we don’t pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and try again.

But the bottom line is, to try again, to persevere. We continue to make adjustments to who we are as a person – our beliefs about ourselves, others, how we treat each. It is only through trying again that we can get anywhere. Yet, how do we try again? In the same manner? No. We use different tools –  a self-appraisal to locate and to objectively look at ourselves, our attempt. We consider a different perspective,  an open mind, willingness. We persevere. We gather new input,  and we get help if it’s needed…

Perhaps, we allow ourselves to grieve the loss of our desire before we start again. At the same time, we celebrate our efforts of trying at all. Some choose not to change, you know. Do you suppose an individual who goes through life never looking at themselves and making adjustments is happy? I wasn’t.

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Do You Demonstrate Willingness In Your Life?

August 3, 2010 by 5 Comments

Key of Willingness

In the book, the verse that accompanies this image talks about the fact that even a small amount of willingness, the size of a keyhole, is all that is necessary to open the door. In sobriety, it is said that honesty, openness, and willingness are indispensable. They go hand-in-hand.

What does willingness look like, feel like? Because it is a conscious choice one makes to be willing, it requires action. One must constantly remind oneself that they are willing for anything… to consider other’s opinions, to look at the world and oneself with new eyes, to live differently, to change. The list is endless. When one practices the principle of willingness, there is a clarity that one feels, an aliveness that makes everything exciting and new. It’s as if we are children, our face turned eagerly forward, open to everything that may come along.

Do you demonstrate willingness in your life? It requires the practice of humility, as one gives up the need to be right about everything, the need to always have an opinion, or to think one’s beliefs are the only beliefs worthy of consideration. It requires openness, as one makes the decision to live with an open mind, anxious to consider all points of view, anxious to live with an open heart.

These decisions one makes all require action, not only in the decision-making process, but in the execution of the decision to be open, to be willing.

Once one becomes willing, doors open wide to our efforts, to others and all sorts of gates inside open up. It is an awesome experience. Life becomes a kinder and gentler place from which to live. Do you practice willingness? What does it look like for you in your life?

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As the author and photographer of her book of wrought-iron gates and accompanying prose, it is said by others that Carolyn CJ Jones’ book offers inspiration and empowerment to those in transition, to those on a quest of  wellness for the mind/body/spirit. View the video about the book, which is located to the right of this blog. Buy the book from Carolyn’s website and receive free shipping and your personally autographed copy.

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How to Access the Possibilities of Life

May 12, 2010 by 1 Comment

Realm of Possibilities

“If I climb the steps, anything is possible. Anything.”

This gate caught my attention because it was flung open as far as it could go. The stairs welcomed me, beckoned me to climb amidst the intricate and pleasing stone work. I marveled at the retaining ability of the wall. I wondered what was at the top of the stairs, wondered what I would find if I climbed…

Interesting how, for me, this gate and those thoughts relate to life. The Universe welcomes me to join in and participate. There are pleasing sights everywhere I look. There are amazing examples of engineering and artwork, merged in purpose and design.

I wonder what is going to happen in my life… this summer, next week, tomorrow, this afternoon. I cannot see where the path will lead, and still, I am asked to trust. Isn’t that a lot like life?

Once I trust, once I become committed to the journey, committed to really observing what is around me, I see that the possibilities for action are endless. Whether it’s a change in attitude, a belief about myself or another, or taking action to further a goal, I find the day is filled with steps of action. If I climb those steps, I reach the horizon and all that the world has to offer. There is a realm of possibilities. Anything can happen. Anything. We never know. It may not happen today, but it may happen.

All I need to do is take action and leave the results up to the Universe. Sounds easy but at times it’s not. Taking action, for me, involves looking at myself and my actions/behaviors with honesty, choosing to be open-minded, open-hearted, and practicing willingness.  It takes adding humility to the mix, as well as kindness and compassion for others AND for myself.

I must be willing to take these steps if I want to experience all that the Universe has to offer. I have learned how to do that in my healing journey, in my sobriety. I have discovered that when I do, there is a wide world of possibilities that exists. I wish for you to experience that in your life, also.

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An Attitude of Gratitude

May 7, 2010 by 4 Comments

Visions of Gratitude

“When seen with eyes and heart that appreciate, everything around and within me becomes more pleasing, more beautiful.”

gratitude

How can such a thing which is second nature to me today have been something with which I struggled in the past? I resented people who spoke of gratitude, being grateful for this or that in their lives. Then, I felt guilty and ashamed because I could not get to that place myself.

I was still hurting too much from past experiences, their betrayals. I carried great fear to speak up about my feelings. I could barely acknowledge them to myself, they were so painful. I needed to go through a grieving process, to deal with my sorrow, my worthlessness, before I could get to a place of healing.

Over time, this is exactly what I was led through…  a healing process. The creation of the book helped me through my growth and change, and my growth and change led to the creation of the book. The order of the images and their titles reflect my process of healing and my process in sobriety.

Today, I am able to look at events as opportunities to learn and grow and I am grateful for those experiences. I am grateful for the ability and grace to feel gratitude. It is an attitude that, for me, has become pervasive. It floods and colors everything I do. It brings me peace and joy, softens and opens my heart.

Do I sound like Pollyanna? lol Most likely. I used to have a Pollyanna doll. I got it for Christmas one year because I loved the movie with Haley Mills. So what’s so bad about sounding like Pollyanna, as long as I give acknowledgment to my emotions that arise from events and situations?

In other words, as long as I don’t gloss over the difficult parts of a situation, pretend they don’t exist, go on cheerily without dealing with them, I am able to get to gratitude with honesty.

Gratitude finds me now, if I am humble, as well as open and willing to receive it. It has been a process of healing over many years. It is joyfully peaceful when I realize I am feeling grateful about something. How about you? Do you experience gratitude often?

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