Cab Animals be Alcoholics too?
www.eclectech.co.uk/b3ta/typesearch.php?t22=on

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Each month we will share on a step and spiritual principles of the step.
Since it is November the 11th month, PLEASE share on the 11th step
If you haven�t done the 11th step with your sponsor
Please share on Spirituality, Prayer and Meditation...

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

November  1
It feels so good to know that I am truly full
of goodness and love and that I can begin
from this very moment to choose
to express that part of myself.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Rising out of the Ashes

  From the fresh ashes of my alcoholic pain,
I feel a mounting resurrection dawn,
My inner phoenix rising yet again,
Through that time I felt sure life was gone.
The awakening oblivion which I always faced,
The Four Horsemen then I did give my liege,
Terror, Bewilderment, against me braced,
Frustration and Despair led a valiant siege.
Now the sunrise sees her wings long spread,
And she ascends now upward towards the sky,
Undaunted no more by life's lost battles,
No longer ever needing to ask for the why,
Freed from encased bars that force the rattles.
Fed by the endless hope she rises,
Her resurrection promises that mine will follow,
Off with the masks and feeling disguises,
Gone is that emptiness, it was ever so hollow.
I will feel my life renew,
With 12 steps to defeat my silent foe,
Fed by the Spirit I hunger no more,
Twelve Promises within me now aglow,
This battered Woman now lifts her wings to soar.
Rising from dreamfires that burnt in this soul,
Rising from the ashes, I have a release,
Freshly nourished and beginning to be whole,
The Road of happy Destiny awaits me with peace.

pattikelli
pattikelli@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Heaven
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=679

Twenty-Four Hours a Day
www.barefootsworld.net/aa24hoursbook.html

The Awakening
www.geocities.com/alaura1942/TheAwakening.html

Letter from your Addict
www.geocities.com/alaura1942/drmomdad.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
November 1                                           Awakening

"God helps us as we help each other." Basic Text p.51

   Our addiction caused us to think almost exclusively of
ourselves. Even our prayers-if we prayed at all-were
self-centered. We asked God to fix things for us or get
us out of trouble. Why? Because we didn't want to
live with the problems we'd created for ourselves. We
were insecure. We thought life was about getting, and
we always wanted more.

   And in recovery we get more-more than just not using.
The spiritual awakening we experience in working the
Twelve Steps reveals to us a life we never dreamed
possible. We no longer need to worry about whether
there will be "enough;' for we come to rely on a loving
Higher Power who meets all our daily needs. Relieved
of our incessant insecurity, we no longer see the world as
a place in which to compete with others for the fulfillment
of our desires. Instead, we see the world as a place in
which to live out the love our Higher Power has shown
us. Our prayers are not for instant gratification; they are
for help in helping each other.

   Recovery awakens us from the nightmare of self-centeredness,
strife, and insecurity that lies at the core of our disease. We
wake up to a new reality. All that is worth having can be kept
only by giving it away.

Just for today: My God helps me as I help others. Today, I will
seek help in giving away the love my Higher Power has given
me, knowing that is the way to keep it.  pg. 319

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/November.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Facing Ourselves

. . . and Fear says, "You dare not look!"
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 49

How often I avoided a task in my drinking days just because if
appeared so large!  Is it any wonder, even if I have been sober
for some time, that I will act that same way when faced with what
appears to be a monumental job, such as searching and fearless
moral inventory of myself?  What I discover after I have arrived
at the other side -- when my inventory is completed --
is that the illusion was greater than the reality.  The fear of facing
myself kept me at a standstill and, until I became willing to put pencil
to paper, I was arresting my growth based on an intangible.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / November 1st

A.A. Thought for the Day

I have hope.  That magic thing that I had lost or
misplaced.  The future looks dark no more.  I do
not even look at it, except when necessary to make
plans.  I try to let the future take care of itself.
The future will be made up of todays and todays,
stretching out as short as now and as long as eternity.
Hope is justified by many right nows, by the rightness
of the present.  Nothing can happen to me that God
does not will for me.  I can hope for the best, as
long as I have what I have and it is good.  Have I hope?

Meditation for the Day

Faith is the messenger that bears your prayers to God.
Prayer can be like incense, rising ever higher and higher.
The prayer of faith is the prayer of trust that feels the
presence of God which it rises to meet.  It can be sure
of some response from God.  We can say a prayer of
thanks to God every day for His grace, which has kept
us on the right way and allowed us to start living the
good life.  So we should pray to God with faith and trust
and gratitude.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may feel sure of some response to my
prayers.  I pray that I may be content with whatever
form that response takes.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
NOVEMBER 01

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Transformation through Grief

We're striving for acceptance in recovery - acceptance of our past,
other people, our present circumstances, and ourselves.
Acceptance brings peace, healing, and freedom - the freedom to
take care of ourselves.

Acceptance is not a one step process. Before we achieve
acceptance, we go toward it in stages of denial, anger,
negotiating, and sadness. We call these stages the grief
process. Grief can be frustrating. It can be confusing. We may
vacillate between sadness and denial. Our behaviors may
vacillate. Others may not understand us. We may neither
understand our own behavior nor ourselves while we're grieving
our losses. Then one day, things become clear. The fog lifts,
and we see that we have been struggling to face and accept
a particular reality.

Don't worry. If we are taking steps to take care of ourselves, we
will move through this process at exactly the right pace. Be
understanding with yourself and others for the very human way
we go through transition.

Today, I will accept the way I go through change. I will accept
the grief process, and its stages, as the way people accept loss
and change.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Portrait Of   A Healer
www.inlightimes.com/archives/1998/11/healer.htm

What Is The Key To Freedom? By Deepak Chopra, MD
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/07/chopra.htm

Never the Same Trip , Alan Cohen
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2001/November/cohen.htm

Cyber Affairs
www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/cyber_romance/index.shtml

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Children & Prayer
by Sonia Choquette Ph.D.

The most direct way to encourage your children to ask for help
is to teach them to pray. Most kids like to pray once they learn
how and will do it naturally in some form or another anyway.
My sister Cuky once told me a story about my nephew concerning
prayer.

Cuky was pregnant at the time, and she and her son Sean were
walking hand in hand to the park. Halfway there, Sean looked up
at his pregnant mother's belly and said, "Mom, there's just one
thing I've got to know."

   Expecting him to ask about the baby and how it got into her
belly, Cuky braced herself for an explanation. "Yes, Sean? What
do you have to know?"

He paused, thinking about it for another minute. "Well," he said
thoughtfully, "just what the heck is Mrs. God's name, anyway?
I have to ask her for something, and I don't know what to call her!"

Very few people I've encountered pray in a productive way. I've
observed that while people do pray, they do not release their
prayers into the heart of the Universe with any confidence that
the Universe will work on their requests. Instead they continue
to hold on to their worries with a viselike grip.

The key to successful prayer is learning to release the prayers
to God. Once you have prayed, release the problem. Whenever
my mom prayed with us, we always ended our prayers with a
squeeze of her hand and the message to let it go. "It's done.
Now let's relax!" By doing this, we infused our prayers with
faith. That squeeze of the hand seemed to be the indefinable
something that transformed them from wishful thinking and
fearful whining into a powerful and profound sense of conviction.
When the hand was squeezed, the Universe was on the job!

Praying with kids can be done in any way you like. Prayers can
be said in a formal way, in the morning or at night. They can
be said on your knees, at the table, in bed. Or kids can be
taught to be in a state of constant prayer, asking for help as the
need arises, all day long. The best way to teach children to pray
is to have them watch you pray or, better yet, to have them pray
with you. Example is the best teacher.

I have a friend, Wendy, whose grandfather was a faith healer
and prayed all the time, out loud. She remembers many times
when she and her four siblings would be riding in the car with
Grandpa, indulging in their usual squabbles, and Grandpa
would burst out in prayer. "Dear God, we pray to Thee to heal
all the temperamentalness of someone in this car! We won't say
who it is, so as not to embarrass anyone, but he or she knows
who they are. Amen."

Laughing, Wendy recalled, "Every time Grandpa said this prayer
out loud we'd all get very quiet. After all, we didn't know what
temperamentalness' meant, but it didn't sound very good, and
besides, we didn't want to be embarrassed by admitting to being
the guilty one. Corny or not, his prayers always worked. And
because they've worked for him I've prayed it myself to this day,
especially when I'm around someone causing trouble. And it works
as well for me as it did for him. Especially if I pray out loud." She
smiled.

My own mother's prayer style was praying anytime, anywhere,
asking for whatever the situation required, from finding her keys
to sending healing energy to a sick friend. All it required was a
bowed head, closed eyes, and inward reflection. Sometimes she
prayed out loud, sometimes not.

My best friend Suzanne's mother also prayed, but her praying
style was more formal. She preferred to kneel down and say
rosaries in the morning. My friend Lu Ann's mother created a
sacred atmosphere for prayer, enlisting the aid of holy water and
candles. Another friend's mother plays religious music, usually
Gregorian chants, when she wants to pray.

Whatever approach you take, the truth is that you can choose
how you pray. After all, prayer is really having a private chat with
God. Any way is valid if you are sincere. Whether you pray
spontaneously or with a more ritualized approach depends
upon your temperament, the situation, and what feels right
for you at that moment.

This article was excerpted from the book
"The Wise Child" �1999
by Sonia Choquette Ph.D.

SONIA CHOQUETTE Ph.D. is the author of The Psychic Pathway
and Your Heart's Desire, as well as other books. Sonia is a
world-renowned revolutionary psychic, alchemist, healer, and
spirited teacher. She specializes in instantly transforming people�s
vibration from a five-sensory paradigm of limitation and fear to a
six sensory paradigm of creative possibility and personal power,
leading others out of the dark ages and into the 21st Century.
She lives in Chicago with her husband and two children.
She can be reached through her website: www.soniachoquette.com.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Trouble's Gift

    Mark Twain once said: "By trying, we can easily learn to endure
adversity. Another man's, I mean." Actually, enduring other
people's adversity is not always easy...especially when our loved
ones suffer. But a vital ingredient to successful living is found
in creatively handling our OWN problems.

    We all face troubles. Daily. Some are no more than minor
irritants; others will threaten our very lives. We can curse our
problems. We can feel victimized by them. We can give in to them.
We can fight them. We can learn to live with them. And we can
even use them -- use them to help us do and become that which
may have been impossible without them.

    Case in point is Marvella Bayh, former wife of Indiana Senator
Birch Bayh. She lost an eight-year struggle with cancer. It began
with a mastectomy in 1971 and ended in 1979 when Marvella
was 46 years old. But listen to the legacy of hope which she left
millions of people:

    "These years since cancer came to me have been the most
rewarding, the most filling, the happiest in my life." Rewarding?
Filling? Happiest? Is she really describing life with cancer? She
goes on to say this:

    "I have learned to value life, to cherish it, to put my
priorities in order and to begin my long-postponed dream of
being useful in my own right."

    Since her mastectomy, Marcella Bayh devoted countless hours
to American Cancer Society projects, supporting anti-cigarette
crusades and promoting school programs to teach girls to
examine their breasts for signs of cancer. One month before
her death, she was awarded the society's Hubert H. Humphrey
Inspiration Award.

    Marvella Bayh's disease actually helped her to find fulfillment
during the last years of her life. What many people never
discover is that, when given a chance, problems can do that.
Not that we should go out and try to find as much trouble as
possible; as you know, trouble has a way of finding us. But
those troubles, too, can be useful.

    Writer Richard Bach says, "Every problem has a gift for you
in its hands." Will you open that gift and discover just what it
is that your adversity is giving you? For that very gift may turn
out to be both rare and valuable.

Steve Goodier

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

" Social change will now grow along a vertical axis
more than a horizontal one.
A few people joined together and thinking deeply
will do more to affect the conditions of the world
than millions of people joined in superficial thought.
That is because the morphic resonance of loving thought
is a literal forcefield, not just a metaphorical concept.
It is the sahimsa of which Gandhi spoke,
carrying within itself more potential power
than any nuclear bomb or military force.
The question is not whether this power exists,
or even whether enough people believe that it exists;
the question for our time is whether enough of us
are prepared to harness that power
for the purpose of national and planetary healing.  "

Marianne Williamson, from her book:
Healing the Soul of America

Today's Affirmation:
I am a willing container for the power of God.

Today's Prayer:
Dear God,
I am willing!
     I am willing to move deeper into my faith.
     I am willing to be transformed.
     I am willing to stand in the darkness as a light unto the world.
     I am willing to move through my fear.
     I am willing to love.
     I am willing to open my heart.
     I am willing, please use me.
     Thank You.
Amen

by Marianne Williamson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Her Tale

She walks into the silent room, holding her head high in false
pride. Wondering if anyone can see past her mask, into the
pleading eyes of her soul. But no one is there she's all alone.
All her well-wishers and hangers-on have fled, as soon as the
resources dried up, as soon as the party bell rang its final toll.
How could they abandon her? Hadn't she given everything she
had, even to the point of losing herself? How could they run
away at the first hint of trouble? Didn't they care? They said they
did, the whole time they were using with her, using her, using
her up. Where are the sympathetic ears, now that she is ready
to cry, to surrender? Where is the help that was promised by all
of the good time friends? They said they'd stick by her until the
end she didn't realize they meant just until the end of the good
times.

What to do now? She can't crawl back to the rooms heck, she'd
had too much prestige there sponsee�s, positions, time; she
would be laughed at, ridiculed, judged. Besides, she tried, but
life just got too hard. (See how the disease lies, and how we
believe it?) What to do? With a sigh, she turns from the empty
mess of the room, recently deserted, as was she, and walks
resignedly back towards the spoon.

So many have felt the pain of abandonment, felt the pressure
of life, have allowed themselves to be cut off from the
strengthening powers of their Higher Power, the rooms and
the fellowship. They reach that point of desperation where
using seems like a viable option once more. It doesn't matter
how much time they have, for we are all susceptible to fall into
that trap of isolation, of feeling alone. Sometimes those
that have time can fall even easier, because they've reached
a point of comfort in their lives where complacency can take
hold. They forget the horrors of those last days/years. We've
all known at least one of our dear members lost to this trap,
or its brother, cockiness. That is why it says we keep what we
have only with constant vigilance. A daily inventory is
necessary to keep ourselves in check. Letting things go, such
as meeting attendance, daily prayers, step work, contact with
your sponsor and support group are deadly mistakes, for they
cut us off from the spiritual healing and nurturing that we all
need.

I write this, because I've felt it myself, recently. Health issues,
mental and emotional stressors, inability to face life on life's
terms have made me withdraw somewhat into that fetal ball
of isolation that I've known so well in my past. I still go to
meetings, though half-heartedly. I still call my support group
on a daily basis, my sponsor somewhat regularly, and hint at
what's going on in my life, but never really get to the heart of
the problem. I pull out my step work and write a little here and
there, though I don�t incorporate it into my life. My prayers are
empty, for I'm not opening myself up to the answers I'm asking
for. I feel myself losing the gratitude for all of the blessings I've
been given. This is not a good place to be, for I feel as if on the
brink of falling. Just writing this has shed some light for me
though, and I think I can make it through this day clean.
Sometimes that's all we can do, and if we can do that, we have
a chance to change, to open ourselves up even more that's
what the Second Step talks about just opening the door a little,
and letting the healing power or recovery flow into our hearts.
Some days it feels like a river. Others, like this, just a trickling
stream. If you or someone in your life is feeling this sense of
loss, of emptiness, tell on it. Reach out honestly to those
around you, as I am doing today. May God bless you in your
recovery, your life, and your day.

With love, johnh94
johnh94@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Now

For so long My life was numb
Now I can't believe I was so dumb.
I did not care About my life
Or even about my family's Pain and strife.
I gave them anything To leave me alone
I just could not give them A regular home.
Now I live life One day at a time
Sometimes I wish For just one more line.
I have support Anywhere I look
And no matter what I can always turn to the book.
I may not have answers But I do have prayers
That come true After the dragon singes my hair.
It is my choice To make them come true
It is my wish To be here with all of you.

Larie Falconburg Twin Falls, Idaho
cybillll_69@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

How different our lives are when we
really know what is deeply important to us,
and keeping that picture in mind,
we manage ourselves each day to
be and to do what really matters most.
Stephen Covey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

In matters of style, swim with the current;
in matters of principle,  stand like a rock.--
Thomas Jefferson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

However long the night, the dawn will break.
African Proverb

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Miracles are when we ask God what we can do for Him.
Miracles shift us from a "get" to a "give" mentality.
Marianne Williamson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It will happen in God's time,
not my time,
but it will happen right on time.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

T.I.M.E. ~ Things I Must Earn

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The best way for me to succeed and grow
in my recovery is to follow the advice
I hear myself giving to others.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We teach best,
what we most need to learn.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I am a student,
I know,
That I don�t know !!!
I know that I am teachable.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

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or
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Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
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or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
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or go to the website and unsubscribe

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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Happy Halloween

A lady recently joined NA and was asked by a coworker
"What it was like to be a Clean Addict?"
She replied, "It's like being a pumpkin.
HP picks you from the patch, washes all of the dirt off
that you may have gotten from the other pumpkins.
Then He cuts the top off and scoops out all the yucky stuff.
He removes the seeds of doubt, hate, greed, etc.
Then He carves you a new smiling face and
puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to see."

Joy isn't the absence of pain -- it's the presence of God.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 31
Today I reach out and touch
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Witches and Goblins

Witches and goblins came to my door,
Wicked and evil, I wondered what for,
And then  the answer just came to my head,
Is it a wonder that they all look like dead?

What an amazement, and said it with glee!
Isn't it lucky for someone like me?
For witches and worlocks, although I lie down,
Are very prevalent all over town.

And then there's the vampire who might do his best,
Although he grows wicked and follows the rest.
His teeth they grow long and he flies in the night,
And will not be frightening  by morning's light.

And if  I grow older, I hope I can see,
That God made Dear Angels to love you and me,
And witches don't frighten, I think they will know,
That all of God's children still shine with a glow!

written by ~ Sharlette
Oct. 23, 2003
Sharlette863@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Higher Power
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1113

The Healer- Bill Wilson
www.barefootsworld.net/aabw3legacies.html

Halloween History Celtic Influence
www.passengerplanet.com/halloween.html

N.A. Way Magaizine
http://www.na.org/naway/naway-toc.htm


My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just for Today
October 31                         Our relationship with a Higher Power

"Ongoing recovery is dependent on our relationship with a loving
God who cares for us and will do for us what we find impossible
to do for ourselves."  Basic Text, p.96

   Working the Twelve Steps of Narcotics Anonymous gives us
a fresh start in life and some guidance for living in the world.
But the steps are more than a fresh start. When we do our best
to work the steps, we develop a relationship with our personal
Higher Power.

   In the Third Step, we decide to allow a loving God to influence
our lives. Much of the courage, trust, and willingness we need
to continue through the succeeding steps comes from this
decision. In the Seventh Step, we go even further by asking
this Higher Power to change our lives. The Eleventh Step is a
way for us to improve the relationship.

   Recovery is a process of growth and change in which our lives
are renewed. The Twelve Steps are the roadmap, the specific
directions we take in order to continue in recovery. But the
support we need to proceed with each step comes from our faith
in a Higher Power, the belief that all will be well. Faith gives us
courage to act. Each step we work is supported by our relationship
with a loving God.

Just for today: I will remember that the source of my courage and
willingness is my relationship with my Higher Power.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous
� 1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Yesterday's Baggage

For the wise have always known that no one can make much
of his life until self-searching becomes a regular habit, until he
is able to admit and accept what he finds, and until he patiently
and persistently tries to correct what is wrong.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 88

I have more than enough to handle today, without dragging
along yesterday's baggage too.  I must balance today's books,
if I am to have a chance tomorrow.  So I ask myself if I have
erred and how I can avoid repeating that particular behavior.
Did I hurt anyone, did I help anyone, and why?  Some of today
is bound to spill over into tomorrow, but most of it need not if I
make an honest daily inventory.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 31st

A.A. Thought for the Day

I have more peace and contentment.  Life has fallen
into place.  The pieces of the jigsaw puzzle have found
their correct position.  Life is whole, all of one piece.
I am not cast hither and yon on every wind of
circumstance or fancy.  I am no longer a dry leaf cast
up and away by the breeze.  I have found my place of
rest, my place where I belong.  I am content.  I do not
vainly wish for things I cannot have.  I have "the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change
the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference."
Have I found contentment in A.A.?

Meditation for the Day

In all of us there is an inner consciousness that tells of
God, an inner voice that speaks to our hearts.  It is a
voice that speaks to us intimately, personally, in a time
of quiet meditation.  It is like a lamp unto our feet and
a light unto our path.  We can reach out into the darkness
and figuratively touch the hand of God.  As the Big Book
puts it: "Deep down in every man, woman, and child is the
fundamental idea of God.  We can find the Great Reality
deep down within us.  And when we find it, it changes our
whole attitude toward life."

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may follow the leading of the inner voice.
I pray that I may not turn a deaf ear to the urging of
my conscience.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 31

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

All Our Needs

      And my God shall supply every need of yours according to
His riches in glory...
--Phil. 4:19

This verse has helped me many times. It has helped me when
I have wondered where my next friend bit of wisdom, insight,
or meal was coming from.

Everything I need today shall be supplied to me.

People, jobs, what we have to our immediate disposal, are not
our source.

We have tapped into a Greater Source, a source of infinite and
immediate supply: God and His Universe.

Our task is to allow ourselves to come into harmony with our
Source. Our task is to believe in, and look to, our true Source.
Our task is to release fear; negative thinking, limitations, and
short supply thinking.

Everything we need shall be provided to us. Let it become a
natural response to all situations, and all situations of need.

Reject fear. Reject short supply and limited thinking notions.
Be open to abundance.

Cherish need because it is part of our relationship to God
and His Universe. God has planned to meet our every need,
has created the need within us, so God can supply.

No need is too small or too great. If we care and value our
need, God will too.

Our part is taking responsibility for owning the need. Our part
is giving the need to the Universe. Our part is letting go, in
faith. Our part is giving God permission to meet our needs by
believing we deserve to have our needs - and wants - met.

Our part is healthy giving, not out of caretaking, guilt, obligation,
and codependency, but out of a healthy relationship with
ourselves, God, and all of God's creations.

Our part is simply to be who we are, and love being that.

Today, I will practice the belief that all my needs today shall be
met. I will step into harmony with God and His Universe,
knowing that I count.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of
this publication may be reproduced in any manner without the
written permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

What Questions Are You Asking Yourself?
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/10/doreen-virtue.htm

Six Stages of the Healing Process
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/07/6stages-healing.htm

Learning Open-Heartedness
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2001/November/feature2.htm

Children�s Behavior
www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/child_behavior/index.shtml

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

DO SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR DEPRESSION

By Lloyd J.  Thomas, Ph.D.

A physician experiences depression.  His wife is very worried
about him.  He is ashamed that he is depressed and refuses
to see any mental health professional.  His rationale for refusing
is that there "is a stigma around being clinically depressed."  I
thought that such a stigma died out long ago.  As a Life Coach,
I rarely work with the stereotypical depressed person.  I usually
don't see the sad, disheveled, mute individual, slumped in a
chair and engaging in obsessive thoughts of suicide.  The
depressed individuals I see are usually bright, capable and
dedicated people who have negative self-images, have a touch
of insomnia, an appetite change, seem less interested in what
is happening in their world, and feel tired all the time.  This
kind of depression can be very difficult to recognize.  It often
feels like fatigue.  Indeed, fatigue and depression are "first
cousins."

If you suspect you are depressed, it might be helpful to
distinguish it from other emotional difficulties by recognizing
the "symptoms" of depression.  These characteristics include:

---a loss of energy to do anything (no motivation);

---sleeping difficulties (e.g. can't sleep, awaken early, and tired
the next day);

---a loss of appetite or an increase of pointless eating;

---boredom or loss of interest in activities you formerly found
pleasurable (e.g.
          diminished sexual interest);

---feelings of guilt, worthlessness and helplessness;

---easily distracted or poor concentration;

---regular thoughts about death or suicide, and thinking "What's
the use..."

If you have four or five of these symptoms and have experienced
them for over a month or so, you are probably depressed.  At least
most mental health professionals would label you as such.

In addition to taking a medically prescribed antidepressant, what
can you do to help drag yourself out of the pits of depression?
Well, for one thing, recognize that depression is not a reason for
shame.  As human beings, depression is as common an
experience as a cold.  Also recognize that treatment for
depression is very good, and most people suffering with it can
expect an excellent recovery.  So if you are depressed, please
see a competent physician or psychologist and approach the
experience with an attitude which reflects you viewing
depression as an opportunity to learn new self-regulatory skills
and grow as the capable person you are.

Other activities which are extremely helpful in overcoming
depression include:

---Confide in others.  When depressed, we often don't feel like
socializing or talking with anyone.  But others can be very
comforting and energizing when you are "feeling blue."  Talk
to someone with whom you feel at ease.  Begin by telling him/her
how difficult it is for you to talk.  Talk with this person at least
once
every day about how you feel.  It is important that you express
your feelings when you are depressed.

---Exercise on a regular basis.  Aerobic exercise has a powerful
antidepressant effect.  Walking, swimming, biking and dancing
are excellent.  Think of these activities as times for relaxation
and reflection...gifts you are giving yourself to help you lift your
spirits and become more energetic.

---Avoid all non-prescribed drugs.  Caffeine, alcohol, nicotine,
over-the-counter drugs, street drugs and even some prescription
drugs (e.g.  tranquilizers) can cause, or worsen your depression.
All drugs have side effects.  Always check with your physician
regarding any and all drugs you use.

---Take charge and control of your life.  This is perhaps the most
difficult, but most important step you can take.  You have a lot more
power and control over how you feel than you think.  Take stock of
your frustrations, workload, conflicts, negative thoughts and
attitudes and determine to make changes.  Do something to
improve your self-esteem.  Do something for yourself.  Take the
actions that support your own vision and dreams of who you want
to become.  Then begin taking the necessary steps to make your
dreams manifest in your life.

Depression can have serious consequences.  But you do not
have to suffer with them forever.  Professional treatment in
combination with self-treatment can be very successful.  After
all, I am in the business of putting myself out of the business
of coaching depressed people.

About The Author:
Lloyd J. Thomas, Ph.D. has 30+ years experience as a Life Coach
and Licensed Psychologist.  He is available for coaching in any
area presented in "Practical Psychology."  As your Coach, his only
agenda is to assist you in creating the lifestyle you genuinely desire.
The initial coaching session is free.  Contact him: (970) 568-0173 or
E-mail: DrLloyd@... or LJTDAT@....

Dr. Thomas also serves on the faculty of the Institute For Life Coach
Training.  In that capacity, he teaches advanced coaching teleclasses:
*Coaching Successful Life*s Lessons,* and *Intentional Creation:
Re-Shaping Your Life.*  To contact the Institute, call 970-224-9830 or
E-mail: doccoach@....  Check out the website:
www.lifecoachtraining.com

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A SPECIAL MISSION

    Little did I dream in April of 1986 how much a "cluster of
microcalcifications" could alter my life. Whether it was God's
will, bad luck, the fates or a strong genetic predisposition
(my mother, two aunts and sister have also coped with breast
cancer), my life was greatly affected by that first diagnosis.

    I am Sister Sue Tracy, O.P. (Order of Preachers), a 55
year-old Polish-American, Grand Rapids Dominican Sister.
Detroit is my original home, but my 36 convent years have
provided me with many "homes" along the way. Ministries
have included junior and senior-high teaching, vocation
directing for my religious congregation, parish ministry
throughout northern Michigan, and now hospital chaplaincy.
Since 1989, I have served as pastoral care director at Mercy
Hospital in Toledo-much more a joy than a job.

    A special focus of my hospital ministry has been contact
with other persons coping with cancer as well as their families.
Interacting with so many resilient people has been one of the
beautiful side effects of cancer. On my 50th birthday in 1990, I
became an American Cancer Society Cansurmount volunteer
and added the Lucas County Unit to my "homes"-truly a place
of comfort and challenge.

    In January 1993 cancer revisited. Three things emerged: (1) I
wanted God to be glorified come what may; (2) I wanted to learn
the life lessons inherent in this breast cancer recurrence; and
(3) I wanted to remain in charge, networking with the doctors
not as a victim but as a partner. I felt very much responsible for
my part in the healing process.

    My American Cancer Society contacts have been a vital part of
the holistic healing experience since May of 1986. Reach to
Recovery was the first contact that enhanced my shaky hope;
I Can Cope served as a powerful means of lessening my dreadful
fear of chemotherapy; Look Good'Feel Better was a two-hour gift
of joyful connecting with other women as we all left toting a gold
mine of free makeup. This year in June, I had the privilege of
sharing My Cancer Herstory at the American Cancer Society
state headquarters in Dublin, Ohio. For the past eight years,
the American Cancer Society has been a valued companion
in my cancer journey.

    No, I would not have freely chosen cancer a first or second
time. However, today I proclaim I would not trade all I have
learned, lived, laughed and loved because of it. I do not consider
myself just a cancer survivor with genuine respect for that
commonly used term. I see myself as a cancer thriver. My
basic attitude it gratitude. I know there is no guarantee this
won't happen again, but I don't live just holding my breath.
I treasure life. With a careful diet, moderate exercise, positive
attitude and daily prayer, I keep trucking along. I believe God
has bestowed a special mission to be present and supportive
of fellow travelers on the cancer journey. So amidst the ups,
downs and inbetweens, I feel richly blessed.

Sister Sue Tracy, O.P. From Chicken Soup for the Surviving Soul
by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Patty Aubery and
Nancy Mitchell, R.N. copyright 1996 Canfield, Hansen, Aubery
and Mitchell

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

May you trust your highest power that you are
exactly where you are meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite possibilities that
are born of faith.

May you use those gifts that you have received, and
pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content knowing you are a child of God.

Let this presence settle into our bones, and allow
your soul the freedom to sing, dance, and to bask in the sun.

It is there for each and every one of you.

Somewhere, somehow, it should be possible  to
touch someone and never let go again.

To hold someone, not for a moment but forever.

Andre Brink

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Surrender

The day that I surrendered
To accept Your loving care,
Your spirit fell upon me
Removing my fears and my dispair.

The loving hand that touched me
Gave me courage faith and more,
The things that you made happen
would have never done before.

I call upon you daily
for help in thought and prayer,
my troubles seem no longer
Knowing in my heart You're there.

When fear returns a calling
like a bolt of light within
I hand my life to You God
Because alone I cannot win.

Written By:
Robert M

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Misrecollection

The party is on,
The lights are flashing,
And the subs are just pounding.

All my favorite DJ's and my Best Friends
Are around me, and we are all
Having a great time.

Going out in style, VIP's everywhere,
Dressed to the nines,
Blue hair and lots of glowsticks,
Not to mention all the goodies
We have at our disposal.

So much energy, so many vibes,
It's now 5am and the party has just started!

Off to the after hours,
Forget about the day,
What time did we get home?
Glad it is Saturday!

I'll just get some sleep,
Eat some food,
Take a shower, and
I will be ready to go again!

The parties Rock!

Miss Recollection

There were music and lights,
That was for sure,
Whenever I wasn't passed out.

DJ's spinning, yes,
Friends?  Oh, you mean the people
I was using with. Me, using them, and them using me.
For one thing. Drugs.

Dressed like clowns,
Trying to mask over who we really were.
In the world of pretend,
That is the nightlife.

We all couldn't sleep,
Too much crap in our bodies to.

Who am I?  Where am I?
Shit, I made it home okay?
Thanks for getting me home.
Someone is watching over me.

Feeling as if a truck
Had just run over me,

Not wanting to do anything:
Not eat,
Not shower,
Not get out of the hell I was in.

written by ~ Paula
I_Qualify@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Halloween, then and now

I remember most of my last Halloween
That was the year before I got clean
Feeling invisible I wanted to be seen
Hard to do when your a dope feind

It was a night of drugs and boozing
That was before I stopped using
Did not know I had no choosing
I just kept on losing and losing and losing

I had no sense of family and friends
Heading for the bitter ends
Getting high I thought my life depends
Not a clue about making amends

Before the next Halloween I hit my bottom
Staying clean from spring til autumn
Knowing how I lived and where I came from
This time I chose to change my custom

I made a choice to change the places
Do Halloween with different faces
Instead of drugs my recovery chases
A life of freedom by doing the basics

Go to a meeting, say some prayers
Stay clean for today that sounds fair
Work the steps with a sponsor who cares
Send the message in your shares


Six years later still living free
Happy and joyous that is me
Sitting on the porch with my family
Passing to all trick or treaters lots of candy

Happy Halloween!  Love Bonnie:-)
steve-bonnie-cope@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Happy Halloween! Today, as children deck themselves out in
costume, think about doing the opposite: removing any mask
that disguises who you really are.  Fear, condemnation,
judgment, hesitation, manipulation can become the faces that
we wear, creating distance between ourselves, others and
God. So take off your mask. When you come to know yourself
as a child of God, no longer will you have a reason to hide.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's peacock could be
tomorrow's feather duster.
heard at an NA meeting in Florida

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We are co-creators with God,
not puppets on a string waiting for something to happen.
Father Leo Booth, Creation Spirituality

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If nothing ever went wrong in your life,
you would never have a chance
to grow stronger

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You can take the elevator going down,
but you gotta take the steps back up.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I can't,
He can,
I think I will let Him.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I came,
I came to,
I came to believe.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Change the thought,
Change the feeling,
Change the action.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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or go to the website and unsubscribe

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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
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Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Drugs & Alcohol gave me wings to fly.
Then took away the sky.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 30
Today my happiness radiates from within me.
Gary Seidler
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It's My Choice

Awesome power is within me
I know quite well it is there.
Yet my mind wanders and I see
Discouragement and pain everywhere

There is a blackness within me
That wants my old nature to play.
It raises doubts that I can be free
Of my desire to be first today.

My mind holds two paths, you see,
One goes to the left, one the right.
My thoughts control the path key
That allow me to drift into the night

Why, then, do I take the wrong way?
I�ve asked myself this question before.
My only answer is that I see today
I have the Power and tools to do more.

When I Let Go and Let God
I'm freed of the desire to control.

My Group is my measuring rod

And surrender to Him is my goal

Progress not Perfection I was told

There was no condemnation in the voice
So to these slogans and truths I'll hold
For to let God be in control is my choice

Carol Thomas 05/30/06
gillygumdrop@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

How To Save Narcotics Anonymous
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=599
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/journal/item/161/How_To_Save_Narcotics_Anonymous

   Bill W's Last Message
Presented at The New York Intergroup Association annual dinner,
Oct 10, 1970 in honor of Bill's upcoming 36th anniversary, Dec. 11, 1970
www.barefootsworld.net/bwlastmess.html

Letter From Addiction
www.geocities.com/alaura1942/LetterFromAddiction.html

Narcotics Anonymous
www.na.org/index.htm

NA Tidbits
www.brsc.shoppingcartsplus.com/page/page/4171560.htm

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 30                                                    Courage

"Our newly found faith serves as a firm foundation for courage
in the future."        Basic Text, p.93

   Narcotics Anonymous is no place for the faint of heart! Facing
life on life's terms without the use of drugs isn't always easy.
Recovery requires more than hard work; it requires a liberal
dose of courage.

   What is courage, anyway? A quick look at a dictionary will tell
us. We have courage when we face and deal with anything that
we think of as difficult, dangerous, or painful, rather than
withdrawing from it. Courage means being brave; having a
purpose; having spirit. So what is courage, really?
Courage is an attitude, one of perseverance.

   That's what an addict in recovery really needs-perseverance.
We make that commitment to stick with our program, to avoid
using, no matter what happens. A courageous addict is one who
doesn't use, one day at a time, no matter what. And what gives
us courage? A relationship with a Higher Power gives us the
strength and the courage to stay clean. We know that, so long
as we are in our God's care, we will have the power we need to
face life on its own terms.

Just for today: I have a Higher Power who cares for me, no
matter what. Knowing that, I will strive to have an attitude of
courage today.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Serenity After the Storm

Someone who knew what he was talking about once remarked
that pain was the touchstone of all spiritual progress.  How
heartily we A.A.'s can agree with him. . .
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS,  p. 93-94

When on the roller coaster of emotional turmoil, I remember
that growth is often painful.  My evolution in the A.A. program
has taught me that I must experience the inner change,
however painful, that eventually guides me from selfishness to
selflessness.  If I am to have serenity, I must STEP my way past
emotional turmoil and its subsequent hangover, and be grateful
for continuing spiritual progress.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.

Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 30th

A.A. Thought for the Day

I have real friends where I had none before.  My
drinking companions could hardly be called my real
friends, though when drunk we seemed to have the
closest kind of friendship.  My idea of friendship
has changed.  Friends are no longer people whom
I can use for my own pleasure or profit.  Friends
are now people who understand me and I them,
whom I can help and who can help me to live a better
life.  I have learned not to hold back and wait for
friends to come to me, but to go halfway and to be
met halfway, openly and freely.  Does friendship
have a new meaning for me?

Meditation for the Day

There is a time for everything.  We should learn to
wait patiently until the right time comes.  Easy does
it.  We waste our energies in trying to get things
before we are ready to have them, before we have
earned the right to receive them.  A great lesson we
have to learn is how to wait with patience.  We can
believe that all our life is a preparation for something
better to come when we have earned the right to it.
We can believe that God has a plan for our lives and
that this plan will work out in the fullness of time.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may learn the lesson of waiting patiently.
I pray that I may not expect things until I have earned
the right to have them.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 30, 2005

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Self Value

We have a real life of our own. Yes, we do.

That empty feeling, that senses that everyone except us has a
life - an important life, a valuable life, a better life - is a remnant
from the past. It is also a self-defeating belief that is inaccurate.

We are real. So is our life. Jump into it, and we'll see.

Today, I will live my life and treasure it as mine.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Ultimate Training Ground
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/10/ultimate-training-ground.htm

Smile
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/07/smile.htm

How to Tell If a Dogma is Friendly
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2001/December/Swami.htm

AGING and AGING PARENTS
www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/aging/index.shtml

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Best When It's Worst
by Alan Cohen

   "In the film STARMAN, an extraterrestrial comes to earth to
study life on this planet.  Like many such visitors, he does not
receive a very kindly welcome and spends most of his time
fleeing from authorities.  In the process, he falls in love with
a woman who befriends him.  Finally he must leave, and he
has a few short moments to say good-bye to his beloved.
"Do you know what I learned about human beings?" he asks.
"I learned that when things are at their worst, you are at your
best."

   Adversity is a gift if we make it work on our behalf.  Challenge
is not a curse or a punishment, but an opportunity to shine.  If
life were easy all the time, we would not deepen in love,
compassion, and wisdom, or learn how to sink a pipeline into the
well of true strength within us. Often we do not know how powerful
we are until we are faced with a challenge that draws forth our
greatness.

   In high school, I took a typing class.  By the end of the course, I
had built up my speed to about 40 words a minute.  The time
came for the final exam, on which a large part of my grade
depended.  I focused intently and scored a smashing 64 words
a minute ~ over 50 percent faster than my regular speed!  Why did
I do so well?  I knew it counted for a lot.

When an act in life counts, there is a source of strength within us
that grows to meet the challenge.  Some people demonstrate
superhuman abilities, such as pushing a wrecked are off an injured
person.  Where do they find the strength?  It was within them all the
time; the worst brought out the best.

I pray to be big enough to handle whatever comes before me.
With Your help, I can and will do anything.

The power of God is within me.
The Grace of God surrounds me."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Channel

"The Love of God is channeled through me...
every time I say a prayer.
I'm a conduit for His Goodness...
my thoughts travel through the air.

This deep connection makes safe passage.
Nothing ever comes between...
The blessings channeled through my Center,
Where God in you meets God in me."

Virginia Santoro - � 2001
MorningMusings@...
www.myspace.com/morningmusings
www.hometown.aol.com/morningmusings

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Green, Green Grass Of Home

When Mike was 2, he wanted a sandbox,
and his father said: "There goes the yard.
We'll have kids over here day and night,
and they'll throw sand into the flower beds,
and cats will make a mess in it,
and it'll kill the grass for sure."

And Mike's mother said, "It'll come back."

When Mike was 5, he wanted a jungle gym set with swings that would
take his breath away and bars to take him to the summit,
and his father said: "Good grief, I've seen those things in back yards,
and do you know what they look like?
Mud holes in a pasture.
Kids digging their gym shoes in the ground.
It'll kill the grass."

And Mike's mother said, "It'll come back."

Between breaths, when Daddy was blowing up the plastic swimming pool,
he warned:
"You know what they're going to do to this place?
They're going to condemn it and use it for a missile site.
I hope you know what you're doing.
They'll track water everywhere and have
a million water fights, and you won't be able to take out the
garbage without stepping in mud up to your neck.
When we take this down, we'll have
the only brown lawn on the block."

"It'll come back," Mike's mother said.

When Mike was 12, he volunteered his yard for a camp out.
As they hoisted the tents and drove in the spikes,
his father stood at the window and observed,
"Why don't I just put the grass seed out in
cereal bowls for the birds and save myself
the trouble of spreading it around?
You know for a fact that those tents and all those big
feet are going to trample down every single blade of grass, don't you.
Don't bother to answer.
I know what you're going to say.

'It'll come back.'"

The basketball hoop on the side of the garage
attracted more crowds than the Olympics.
And a small patch of lawn that started out with
a barren spot the size of a garbage can lid
soon drew to encompass the entire side yard.

Just when it looked as if the new seed might take root,
the winter came and the sled runners beat it into ridges.
Mike's father shook his head and said,
"I never asked for much in this life - only a patch of grass."

And his wife smiled and said, "It'll come back."

The lawn this fall was beautiful.
It was green and alive and rolled
out like a sponge carpet along the drive
where gym shoes had trod ...
along the garage where bicycles used to fall ...
and around the flower beds where little boys
used to dig with iced-tea spoons.

But Mike's father never saw it.
He anxiously looked beyond the yard
and asked with a catch in his voice,
"He will come back, won't he?"

Copyright � Erma Bombeck (Written November 1971)
All Rights Reserved

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Butterfly

She sat by him and took a breath
Wondering what a mother says
When her child is sad, hurting so,
What could she do, what did she know?

She took his hand and led him to
A butterfly leaving its cocoon.
The creature struggled, would the creature live?
It seemed to have given all that it could give.

The child shuttered and pointed to
The place on the window by the cocoon,
"Mother, we just have to try
Without our help it may not survive."
.
"Child", she answered, "it sadly seems
That the creature will never free tightened wings;
But that's really just the way it appears
Through eyes misted by human fears."

"For the struggle helps strengthen the butterfly,
Relieves it of fluid, part of learning to fly.
Any attempt of help that we'd give
Would not help the creature; it wouldn't live.

"And you, too, leave your own cocoon.
Though I wish I could take all your pain from you,
I trust in you and would never try
For you and I both are just learning to fly."

She held her son and led him to bed
But the next day, eyes beaming, took her hand and he led,
His mom to the window:  a miraculous sight
That beautiful butterfly was free and in flight.

Written by Cara
clscls@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Show me the way

All night I pray for
the peace within
by day I pray that
life will begin

Im growing up now
and I'm moving on
this has been coming
for so long

I'm tired of being tired
and I'm tired of being sick
this disease really caught
up with me quick

I've spent many a day
just getting high
whatever it took
I had to get by
I'd lie I'd steal
and I would cheat
I thought I had
everyone beat

But one day I awoke
and I was in a daze
I realized I had to
change my ways

So I took a deep breath
and started to pray
it was then I new
God would show me the way

written by Lisa Alborn from Akron Ohio in a detox center

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Always imitate the behavior of winners when you lose.
Anonymous

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hinduism, Islam and all the world's ancient texts
decree that we honor the elderly.
Yet in our culture, we are ignorant of our elders,
that is, we ignore the wealth that is available.
Learn to find the sage in age, and you will grow wiser too.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When you work in the right consciousness,
when your work becomes organically a part of your whole self,
and when you do your work out of that commitment,
no matter what other people do,
no matter what the compensation may be,
do it for the health of your own soul,
then you open the door by which
the affluence of the Universe flows forth into your life.
Eric Butterworth, Spiritual Economics

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Any job can become a ministry, as long as it is dedicated to love.
Your career can be an empty canvas for God to write on.
Whatever your talents or abilities, He can use them.
Marianne Williamson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you can't practice these principles in all your affairs--
then you need to change your affairs.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We are hardest to love
when we need love most.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When anyone, anywhere, reaches out for help,
I want the hand of our fellowship to always to be there:
and for that, I am responsible.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The elevator is broken;
please use the steps.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There Is No Easier Or Softer Way
Than Going Through It.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
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and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
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To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
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or
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or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

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http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

The difference between God and me,
is that God doesn�t think He�s me.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 29
I am becoming open to loving others
and letting myself FEEL the love other people have for me.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Member Five

My Think, My Feel, My Say, My Do
These are my companions, all the day through
But each likes to play it's own fiddle.
They seldom agree, and lack harmony,
And I get stuck in the middle!

My Think says I should, but I won't,
My Feel says I could, yet I don't,
My Say is left disconnected.
Though by morning I will, at day's end, still
My Do is undone and neglected.

Now here I stand by the side of the road
Refusing to go on like this,
I drop from my back, this burdensome pack
And let if fall to my feet rejected.

That's when I see, mid the struggle and strife, Member Five of my
inner workings.
Mostly or'e looked and sadly mistook, my Will lies sickly and gaunt.
"What of you?" I ask, "How do you fit, in this poor and lowly
conundrum?
What should I do with the likes of you, to make you do what I want?"

"You may think I am yours to do as you please,
But you see you are quite mistaken.
I only work well when under the spell
Of He who is your Maker."

So I pull myself down and there on the ground,
I offer up all my companions,
My four fractured friends and the fifth, with amends,
I will hoard these talents no longer.

"Here, take all these and do as you please,
I've made such a mess on my own.
I'm ready at last, to will Thee my past
And continue my journey home."

Copyright � 2006
Jamon Scott
jamonscott@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Inside the Circled Square
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=942

The First A.A. International Convention , Cleveland, OH, 1950
www.barefootsworld.net/aa1stintl1950.html

Women's Recovery Resources
www.alchemyproject.net/Links/women.htm

I am Not a Duck
www.geocities.com/Athens/Olympus/5818/thoughts6.html

History of Narcotics Anonymous Workshop
http://www.na-history.org/history_of_na_scott.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 29                                          Living in the now

"Living just for today relieves the burden of the past and the
fear of the future."  Basic Text, pp. 90-91

Thoughts of how bad it was-or could be-can consume our hopes
for recovery. Fantasies of how wonderful it was-or could be-can
divert us from taking action in the real world. That's why, in
Narcotics Anonymous, we talk about living and recovering
"just for today."

In N.A., we know that we can change. We've come to believe that
our Higher Power can restore the soundness of our minds and
hearts. The wreckage of our past can be dealt with through the
steps. By maintaining our recovery, just for today, we can avoid
creating problems in the future.

Life in recovery is no fantasy. Daydreams of how great using
was or how we can use successfully in the future, delusions of
how great things could be, overblown expectations that set up
for disappointment and relapse-all are stripped of their power
by the program. We seek God's will, not our own. WE seek to
serve others, not ourselves. Our self-centeredness and the
importance of how great things could or should be for u
disappears. In the light of recovery, we perceive the difference
between fantasy and reality.

Just for today: I am grateful for the principles of recovery and the
new reality they've given me.pg. 315

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"The Acid Test"
As we work the first nine Steps, we prepare ourselves for the
adventure of a new life.  But when we approach Step Ten we
commence to put our A.A. way of living to practical use, day by
day, in  fair weather or foul.  Then comes the acid test: can we
stay sober, keep in emotional balance, and live to good purpose
under all conditions?
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 88

I know the Promises are being fulfilled in my life, but I want to
maintain and develop them by the daily application of Step
Ten.  I have learned through this Step that if I am disturbed,
there is something wrong with me.  The other person may be
wrong too, but I can only deal with my feelings.  When I am
hurt or upset, I have to continually look for the cause in me,
and then I have to admit and correct my mistakes.  It isn't easy,
but as long as I know I am progressing spiritually, I know that I
can mark my effort up as a job well done.  I have found that pain
is a friend; it lets me know there is something wrong with my
emotions, just as a physical pain lets me know there is
something wrong with my body.  When I take the appropriate
action through the Twelve Steps, the pain gradually goes away.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 29th

A.A. Thought for the Day

My relationships with my children have greatly improved.
Those children who saw me drunk and were ashamed,
those children who turned away in fear and even loathing
have seen me sober and like me, have turned to me in
confidence and trust and have forgotten the past as
best they could.  They have given me a chance for
companionship that I had completely missed.  I am their
father or their mother now.  Not just "that person that
Mom or Dad married and God knows why."  I am a part of
my home now.  Have I found something that I had lost?

Meditation for the Day

Our true measure of success in life is the measure of
spiritual progress that we have revealed in our lives.
Others should be able to see a demonstration of God's
will in our lives.  The measure of His will that those
around us have seen worked out in our daily living is the
measure of our true success.  We can do our best to be
a demonstration each day of the power of God in human
lives, an example of the working out of the grace of God
in the hearts of men and women.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may so live that others will see in me something
of the working out of the will of God.  I pray that my life may
be a demonstration of what the grace of God can do.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 29

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Acceptance

A magical potion is available to us today. That potion is called
acceptance.

We are asked to accept many things: ourselves, as we are; our
feelings, needs, desires, choices, and current status of being.
Other people, as they are. The status of our relationships with
them. Problems. Blessings. Financial status. Where we live.
Our work, our tasks, our level of performance at these tasks.

Resistance will not move us forward, nor will it eliminate the
undesirable. But even our resistance may need to be accepted.
Even resistance yields to and is changed by acceptance.

Acceptance is the magic that makes change possible. It is not
forever; it is for the present moment.

Acceptance is the magic that makes our present circumstances
good. It brings peace and contentment and opens the door to
growth, change, and moving forward.

It shines the light of positive energy on all that we have and are.
Within the framework of acceptance, we figure out what we need
to do to take care of ourselves.

Acceptance empowers the positive and tells God we have
surrendered to the Plan. We have mastered today's lesson,
and are ready to move on.

Today, I will accept. I will relinquish my need to be in resistance
to my environment and myself. I will surrender. I will cultivate
contentment and gratitude. I will move forward in joy by accepting
where I am today.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

   No Small Meetings , by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/10/alan-cohen.htm

Turning Grit Into Pearls
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/07/grits-pearls.htm

Chronic Illness
www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/chronic/index.shtml

Letters Of Wisdom and Affirmation
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2001/December/hay.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ring Out The Old, by Alan Cohen

      Recently I ordered a spiffy new cell phone with a fabulously
low billing rate. The promotion was so popular, I was told, that
there would be a 30-90 day wait for the phone. Okay, I can wait;
all these years of meditation should have taught me a little
patience, at least.

Eleven days later I tried to make a call from my current cell
phone, and got the message, "Your phone has a verification
problem. Please call the business office." God bless the phone
company, I thought (not the first time).

I called the business office and the representative told me
they had no clue why my phone wouldn't access. My bill was
paid, and their diagnostic showed no problem. I talked to
several reps, still no help. God bless the phone company.

When I arrived home I found a FedEx box sitting at my
doorstep with my new phone. I plugged it in, and voila! it
worked like a charm. The phone company had disconnected
my old phone because it had transferred service to my new one.

In the wake of my euphoria, I recognized a powerful lesson in
this experience: If the old thing isn't working any more, it will not
do you any good to fight to reinstate it or keep it alive. If you
have completed a career phase, level of relationship, or stage
of life, the Big Phone Company in the Sky (really within you)
has hooked your energy up to the next thing, and any effort to
resuscitate the old will only be frustrating and wasted. Instead,
focus your attention on where you are now or where you want
to be going, and the object of your vision will show up without
struggle or strain.

One of the basic principles of manifestation is the Law of
Attraction, which denotes that everything that shows up in
your life (or leaves it) comes or goes in response to the
energy you are vibrating. When you are truly open and
ready to receive your heart's desire, it must appear. And if
you are not ready, no amount of manipulating can make it
happen. So you can quit fighting to get rid of what you don't
want or force what you do want; instead, line up your energy
so you are thinking and feeling in harmony with your vision,
and the universe will deliver it in the most amazing ways.

I know many people who participate in various dating services,
place personal ads, and meet many potential mates. Many of
them find something wrong with just about everyone they date,
and are still looking. I also know a man who lived as a hermit in
the remote Halawa valley on the sleepy Hawaiian island of
Molokai. To get to John's house you had to travel hours over a
long and winding road, park your car on the property of a
backcountry family who for $3 would protect your car (from them),
and then hike into a secluded electricityless area so far off the
grid,  the zip code was 0. All kinds of dropouts lived in that jungle,
some  naked, many stoned, and most yet to emerge from the 60's.

Then one day John was visited by his buddy Hank, and Hank's
traveling companion Cheryl. Long story short: John and Cheryl
fell in love, moved back to civilization, got married, and have a
pretty nice life together. No video dating, no personals, no "I have
a friend I'd like you to meet." Just the Law of Attraction. When you
are ready to receive what you want, it will find you.

Many people in my seminars report that they want to let go of the
old but and don't know what to do until the new arrives. They feel
frightened at dropping their security blanket (even though it is stale,
boring, or painful) without seeing how their new security will come.

The only real security comes from following Spirit. Imagine you are
a trapeze artist who got so tired of swinging back and forth on the
old swing that you said, "I have to get off of this; anything has to be
better than this." So you let go and you suddenly find yourself
flying through the air (usually without the greatest of ease). In the
distance you see another trapeze (your new and better life) maybe
even with someone with outstretched hands coming toward you.
But it may take a little while till you are able to fully grasp those
hands. Just hang in there, remember your vision, trust, and have
fun while you are flying.

We are living in a time when life is moving so rapidly that we can't
afford to cling to old rocks. There is far greater wisdom (and joy) in
opening to the adventure and making a game of flowing with the
stream. It really is quite a beautiful ride.

Sometimes it seems that life is not working, but it is. The universe
is intelligent, and our game is to remember that perfection is always
unfolding, even when we do not see it in a cloudy moment. God
bless the phone company.

Alan Cohen is the author of many popular inspirational books
including the best-selling The Dragon Doesn't Live Here Anymore.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

7 Wonders of the World
   Bob & Juanita Poole

"A group of Geography students studied the Seven Wonders of
the World. At the end of that section, the students were asked to
list what they considered to be the Seven Wonders of the World.
Though there was some disagreement, the following got the
most votes:

1.  Egypt's Great Pyramids
2.  Taj Mahal
3.  Grand Canyon
4.  Panama Canal
5.  Empire State Building
6.  St. Peter's Basilica
7.  China's Great Wall

While gathering the votes,  the teacher noted that one student, a
quiet girl, hadn't turned in her paper yet. So she asked the girl if
she was having trouble with her list.

The quiet girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my
mind because there were so many." The teacher said, "Well, tell
us what you have, and maybe we can help."

The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the Seven Wonders of the
World are:

1.  to touch
2.  to taste
3.  to see
4.  to hear

She hesitated a little, and then...

5.  to run
6.  to laugh
7.  and to love

It is far too easy for us to look at the exploits of man and refer to
them
as "wonders" while we overlook all God has done, regarding them as
merely "ordinary." May you be reminded today of those things which
are truly wondrous."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Fulfilling My Dreams

   I believe that good is manifested from every experience that
comes into our lives. I also believe that there is a purpose for
everything, whether we know what it is or not.

   A little over a year ago I was diagnosed with breast cancer.
At the moment of this disclosure I was devastated. I did my
crying for about 24 hours, and then chose to take as much
control of my new situation as I could.

   This was a disease that happened to other women, but not
to me. I see now how ignorant I was. Since that time I have
become more knowledgeable about breast cancer, and I am
much more aware. I have a new appreciation for life, a common
occurrence when cancer strikes.

   Maybe it was my wake-up call to smell the roses. Maybe it
was what I needed to become more motivated, to go after
goals and to accomplish long-thought dreams.

   Since I was a child I wanted to be a published author. A
desire burned deep inside me to write and to see my words
in print. It was my fantasy, one I suppressed because I lacked
self-confidence.

   As I went through my mastectomy, chemotherapy treatment
and later reconstruction surgery, I wrote almost daily letters
to my best friend of over 30 years. She is on the other side
of the country and writing has been our main means of
communication. We often joke that our letters were our
therapy as life brought us new and sometimes difficult
challenges. My diagnosis was my toughest challenge to date,
and she was there with me every step of the way, giving me
constant love and support.

   Just before I was diagnosed I purchased a home computer.
Naturally I used it to write my letters to her. A couple months
into the breast cancer experience, I realized that my letters to
Rita could be a book. As a self-imposed therapy, while
undergoing chemo, I compiled my letters.

   Seven months from my diagnosis of breast cancer, my
half-completed manuscript was sold. I have since completed it
and I am thrilled to say that my first book, Courage and Cancer,
A Breast Cancer Diary: A Journey from Cancer to Cure will be
published in October 1996.

   Yet, there still remained some self-doubt in me regarding my
ability to write. I had put together a book of prose almost 16
years ago when I was agoraphobic. It was for my eyes only and
I had never dared to let anyone else read it. To prove to myself
whether the breast cancer book was a fluke or not, I sent a copy
of the prose book to my new publisher. I was amazed when the
publisher sent me a contract for that one, too entitled Breast
Cancer Sisters, 1998.

   I was on a roll and I had no intention of stopping. In less
than a year I have sold three books for publication. I have two
or more manuscripts out for review. And, of course, I have
started yet another one.

   My breast cancer diagnosis gave me a new life. I would never
have consciously asked for this disease, but I  am grateful that it
has helped me fulfill my dreams.

Marilyn R. Moody From Chicken Soup for the Surviving Soul
by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Patty Aubery and Nancy
Mitchell, R.N. copyright 1996 Canfield, Hansen,Aubery and Mitchell

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Anniversary Poem

One year ago I was down on my knees
Asking a man on the phone �Can you help me please?�
I know I am dying from the drink I am taking
But I know if I stop then soon I�ll start shaking
It wont be a tremor you must understand
More like an earthquake ripping open the land
Into shock my body surely will spasm
My brain will feel trapped in a terrible chasm
�Please, please help me� I heard myself cry
I�m really not ready right now to die
It�s four in the morning and I�m bending your ear
But please understand I have this great fear
I�ll die if I drink
I�ll die if I don�t.

The voice on the phone was filled with great love
I felt I was hearing a voice from above
Oh truly I know, it just seemed to say
For I too have journeyed along this way
But please believe me that after tonight
If you hold steadfast you will see the light
The advice that I give you is surely no trick
For the next few days you�ll be dreadfully sick
Can you hold on there a few hours more?
Pluck up the courage to push open this door?
Someone will come and will hold your hand
Who really, truly does understand
You�ll die if you drink
You�ll live if you don�t.

I still don�t know where the courage I found
I think I passed out but when I came round
The phone was ringing there right in my ears
The voice on the end tried to calm all my fears
Are you really willing to try she said
Have you finally reached the watershed?
The word willing really stood out
But still the drunk in me had to shout
I really don�t need anyone�s pity
I want to retain just a little dignity
When I am well come tell me your story
The voice that came back was deep and throaty
You�ll die if you drink
You�ll live if you don�t.

She rang every day to check I could make it
I was so terribly ill I just couldn�t fake it
I�m dying I cried.  No you�re not she replied
Accept what you are what cannot be denied
So one week later I invited them in
That�s the day my life did begin
I�d gone 7 days without any booze
The sweat from my pores really did ooze
My insides were quaking; my hands were still shaking
But the solution they said was there for the taking
Just be willing to admit defeat
Soon we will have you back on your feet
You�ll die if you drink
You�ll live if you don�t.

Two days later I went to a meeting
In and out of my head thoughts came a fleeting
They told me their stories of life and near death
After each tale I just caught my breath
For it dawned on me then and forever will stay
It isn�t my fault that I�m made this way
All over the world there are millions of others
All of us linked like sisters and brothers
All we must do is be willing to say
I�m alcoholic and will stay this way
Keep away from a drink from hour to hour
Believe in the strength of a higher power
We�ll die if we drink
We�ll live if we don�t.

Where am I now one year on?
The obsession to drink mostly gone
I really can�t say life is not without pain
I keep hitting obstacles again and again
I�ve lost a brother through alcohol�s power
But even now at this very late hour
When my life is three quarters done
I really do feel it has only begun
So many things I�ve learned in this year
Simple things to face without fear
To accept the words of a man I hold dear
That I�m truly lovable as long as I hear
I�ll die if I drink
I�ll live if I don�t.

The most wonderful thing I have learned in this time
Is that the joys of life can always be mine
My daughters are with me in heart and in mind
They really believe in a day at a time
The pleasure I find in the sound of the trees
Rustling gently in the summer breeze
Or the surf from the ocean inward bound
Showing its strength on the sand as it pounds
These two extremes are within me I know
But more often than not there is a pleasant glow
Of laughter and love and calm in between
Those moments I feel completely serene
Deep in my heart I really do know
If I drink this happiness surely will go.

It�s not the end of my tale by any means
Still in the night I have terrible dreams
Fears and what ifs into my mind do creep
I ask is this joy really mine to keep
Shall I wake up and all will be gone
Have I had my moment when the sun has shone?
Then I hear a voice on the telephone
How are you doing there, all alone?
Then the demons they go, get kicked into touch
So many people love me so much
If you are out there, struggling and fighting
Come into the fold; get out of the lightning
You�ll die if you drink
You�ll live if you don�t.

written by Maggie 2002
strange@...
Cyprus

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

New Man

It's not what I've done
That makes me stay
It's how the folks greet
Me each day in AA
I was a loser for many years
Steps 5 and 9 relieved my fears
Today I move about in Gods grace
By His spirit from place to place
I've shared a good bit of my past
Back in those days I had to move fast
Today I take it easy in serenity
I thank you folks in AA
Oh God You helped me see
Today I've got freedom
Freedom from the many chains
That kept me down in lots of pain
My wayward ways are now in the past
I want sobriety to last and last
Yet I can only get it for a day
What a blessing it came my way
I had to surrender instead of quit
Now once in my life
I've got a place to fit
Now I'm happy, joyous and free
It was the steps of AA
An you folks that had saved me
I'm grateful as most can testify
In the back with the new guy
Now I can only keep it
If I give it away
Today I'm so grateful for AA

Daniel M Corkery
10/10/00
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You can't direct the wind,
but you can adjust your sails.
Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We have an opportunity to live in joy.
Do not postpone happiness until
the debts are settled and relationships rearranged.
Joy doesn't exist out in the world somewhere;
we find it inside.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

True love begins when nothing is looked for in return.
Antoine De Saint-Exupery

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A BIG person is not someone who never falls down.
A big person is someone who, when he or she falls,
does what it takes to get up again.
Marianne Williamson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you only pray when you need something fixed,
you're mistaking God for a repairman.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Step 12: A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Step 12: Carry the message, not the mess.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Step 12: I can only help another to the degree
that I've been helped myself.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You can't give away,
what you don't have.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/access.htm

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Suicide Anonymous
www.geocities.com/samemphis

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
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Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
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Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
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Stay in the Light,
In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ clean date 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

      (\o/\o/)   we are each of us angels  with only one wing  (\o/\o/)
       /_\/_\    and can only fly     by embracing each other   /_\/_\

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

You don�t understand, my case is different.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
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twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
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A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 28
It feels so good to like all of me today.
I feel warm and comforted in knowing that I am just fine...
just the way I am.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

YOUnMEnHP

I don�t understand why is this happening to me?
It was simple, I couldn�t see what God had in store for me.
There was misery and pain written all over my face.
I am very grateful, that I am here by His grace.
My life was filled with guilt, anger and fear.
My ass was kicked and I was now on my rear.
There was no where to run and no where to hide.
It was time to get humble and put my pride to the side.
God brought me into a fellowship of love,
I am thankful for His guidance from above.
You were loving, supportive and showed me that you care.
The principles that you learned were the things that you shared.
You told me to make coffee and showed me the pot.
This would get me to the meeting, if I wanted to or not.
I was plugged in and began to warm up,
This and more happened just from showing up.
Just like the percolating pot you came over to me,
You gave me a hug and welcomed me to recovery.
I made a bad pot of coffee, and got to meet everyone in the room.
You showed me how to make a good one, and I began to blossom and bloom.
16 years later, I continue to put in.
Just like in the beginning, I surrender to win.
My life is filled with blessings and gifts.
Working the steps with your sponsor will give you that lift.
Look for the beauty and try to do right.
Please keep stepping and stay in the light.

Written by Scott H.
YOUnMEnHP@...
10/27/04 on the eve of his 16th anniversary clean
As I was reflecting yesterday on this past year,
I always wanted to write a poem and never thought I could  :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Listen
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1134

AA members old and new bask in Dr. Bob's shadow
www.barefootsworld.net/aafoundersday2002.html

Alchemy project.net presents worldwide links!
www.alchemyproject.net/Links/links.htm

The N.A. Baby Blue Text Story Note 1
www.lakeportna.homestead.com/bluehistory.html

The N.A. Baby Blue Text Story Note 2
www.lakeportna.homestead.com/blueletter2.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just for Today
October 28                                                     Attitudes

"We can also use the steps to improve our attitudes."
Basic Text, p.53

   Ever have a day when everything seems to be working against
you? Do you go through periods when you are so busy taking
people's inventories you can barely stand yourself? What about
when you find yourself snapping at your co-worker or loved one
for no reason? When we find ourselves in this bleak frame of
mind, we need to take action.

   At any point in the day, we can set aside a few moments and
take a "spot inventory:' We examine how we are reacting to
outside situations and other people. When we do, we may find
that we are suffering from a plain old "bad attitude:' A negative
outlook can hurt our relationship with our Higher Power and the
people in our lives. When we are honest with ourselves, we
frequently find that the problem lies with us and our attitude.

   We have no control over the challenges life gives us. What
we can control is how we react to those challenges. At any point
in time, we can change our attitude. The only thing that really
changes in Narcotics Anonymous is us. The Twelve Steps give
use the tools to move out of the problem and into the solution.

Just for today: Throughout the day, I will check my attitude. I will
apply the steps to improve it.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Lest We Become Complacent

It is easy to let up on the spiritual program of action and rest
on our laurels. We are headed for trouble if we do, for alcohol
is a subtle foe.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 85

When I am in pain it is easy to stay close to the friends I have
found in the program.  Relief from that pain is provided in the
solutions contained in A.A.'s Twelve Steps.  But when I am
feeling good and things are going well, I can become complacent.
To put it simply, I become lazy and turn into the problem instead
of the solution.  I need to get into action, to take stock: where am
I and where am I going?  A daily inventory will tell me what I must
change to regain spiritual balance.  Admitting what I find within
myself, to God and to another human being, keeps me honest
and humble.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 28th

A.A. Thought For The Day

What other rewards have come to me as a result of my
new way of living? Each one of us can answer this question
in many ways. My relationship with my husband or my wife
is on an entirely new plane. The total selfishness is gone
and more cooperation has taken its place. My home is a
home again. Understanding has taken the place of
misunderstanding recriminations, bickering, and resentment.
A new companionship has developed which bodes well for the
future. "There are homes where fires burn and there is bread,
lamps are lit and prayers are said. Though people falter through
the dark and nations grope,  with God Himself back of these
little homes, we still can hope."  Have I come home?

Meditation For The Day

We can bow to God's will in anticipation of the thing happening
which will, in the long run, be the best for all concerned.
It may not always seem the best thing at the present time,
but we cannot see as far ahead as God can. We do not know
how His plans are laid, we only need to believe that if we
trust Him and accept whatever happens as His will in a
spirit of faith, everything will work out for the best in
the end.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may not ask to see the distant scene. I pray
that one step may be enough for me.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 28

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Meditation and Prayer

The Eleventh Step asks us to meditate as a route to improving
our conscious contact with God.

Meditation is different than obsessing or worrying. Obsession
and worrying are fear connections. Meditation means opening
our mind and our spiritual energy to the God connection.

To connect with God, we need to relax as best we can and open
our conscious and subconscious mind to a Higher Consciousness -
one that is available to each of us.

In the busyness of our day and life, it may seem like a waste of
time to slow down, to stop what we're doing, and take this kind
of break. It is no more a waste of time than stopping to put gas
in our car when the tank is almost empty. It is necessary, it is
beneficial, and it saves time. In fact, meditation can create more
time and energy than the moments we take to do it.

Meditation and prayer are powerful recovery behaviors that work.
We need to be patient. It is not reasonable to expect immediate
answers, insight, or inspiration.

But solutions are coming. They are already on the way, if we
have done our part - meditate and pray - and then let the rest
go.

Whether we pray and meditate first thing in the morning, during
a coffee break, or in the evening is our choice.

When our conscious contact with God improves, our subconscious
contact will too. We will find ourselves increasingly tuned in to
God's harmony and will for us. We will find and maintain that soul
connection, the God connection.

Today, I will take a moment for meditation and prayer. I will decide
when and how long to do it. I am a child and creation of God - a
Higher Power who loves to listen and talk to me. God, help me let
go of my fears about whether or not You hear and care. Help me
know that You are there and that I am able to tap into the spiritual
consciousness.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Red Marble
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2002/10/red-marbel.htm

Never Too Soon To Love, By Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/07/alan-cohen.htm

Allowing Magic In Our Lives
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2001/December/vissell.htm

Issues And Tissues, by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2004/01/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Cultivating Awe & Wonder

by John Izzo, Ph.D.

As my daughter voraciously read through the Harry Potter books,
it occurred to me that innocence has much to do with two simple
words: awe and wonder. Children seem able to find this wonder
in the simplest of things � an unusual bug on the sidewalk, a
puddle that is particularly deep, a small paper airplane.

As we age, somehow our capacity for awe and wonder is
diminished, just as our skin loses its elasticity. Years of smiling
(or frowning) create lines in the face that at some point defy
erasing or even cosmetic injections. In the same way, it is possible
to create wrinkle lines in the soul that diminish our capacity to
embrace the moments of wonder that animate life so wonderfully.

So how do we recapture the experience of wonder? We begin
by remembering those moments when we have had such
experiences, when the wonder of life touched us, not in our
conscious, linear mind, but in some deeper place. For many of us,
nature is one of the best sources of rekindling this sense of wonder
� yet we have so little of it in our lives, trapped as we are by habit
and necessity in offices and schools. For me, these mystical
moments in touch with nature are the things I remember most about
being alive.

Earlier this year we moved into a new house. Our old home was
like a tree house, nestled in a cedar forest, overlooking the sea and
mountains from the vantage point of the birds. In our new home we
are much closer to the water. We had been there for a few weeks
and it was summer; the nights were very warm, so we were sleeping
with the windows wide open. One night, I woke up and could not
get back to sleep. There was a sound outside my window that was
unfamiliar to me, a sound like people walking over gravel. There are
railroad tracks behind our house, so my mind wondered who might
be walking on the tracks at 3 A.M. and for some time I lay there
listening until I could not help but look.

Going over to the window I sat down and gazed out into the night,
but there was no one on the tracks. Yet the sound continued. It took
me a while, but I figured out that what I was hearing was the sound
of small waves lapping against the shoreline 50 yards from our
house. With the sound of the waves lapping, I saw that it was a
perfectly dear night, hundreds of stars dancing in the crisp air, with
the mountains on the other side of the sound a more solid contrast.
For an hour, I simply sat on the floor looking out my window and
listening to the waves. Now and then, it occurred to me that I would
be tired in the morning, but I did not want this moment to end. Finally,
I went back to bed and slept the sleep of the contented. The next
night I tried again for this feeling of awe but couldn't hear the
waves and went to back to bed. And as I lay quietly, eyes closed,
that moment of awe and wonder returned. It had not left me. I can
recapture the innocence of the moment whenever I wish.

Since so many of my times of wonder and those of others
mentioned to me have been connected to nature, it seems that
spending more time in the natural world, even briefly, can
profoundly animate our days.

But can awe and wonder carry us through the harsher realities
of life? Will these moments carry me forward when death and
suffering surround me? Are moments of wonder enough?

Breaking Through the Hard Stuff

Most of John's life had been spent outdoors, hiking in wilderness
and living adventurously. Now, in his 50s, he had been lying for
six weeks in a hospital bed, dying of brain cancer. Friends and
family were on a 24-hour deathwatch, taking turns at his bedside
so that when the time came � and it would come soon �
someone he loved would be there. His friend Bryan did not like
to see him lying there, staring at the sterile walls of his hospital
room; he knew it must have been withering his soul to have
stopped having the "moments." So one day he asked John if he
wanted to go outside. John's face lit up. Of course he would like
to go outside. It took some doing, but Bryan convinced the
nurses to use a small crane to move him from bed and get him
into a wheelchair. After zipping John inside a sleeping bag, off
went the pair in a taxi equipped for the disabled, heading to the
mountains just north of the city. As they arrived in the mountains,
it began to rain. It was not a gentle rain, but an all-out gully
washer, the kind of downpour for which Vancouver is famous.

Do you remember when rain was not something to shield
yourself from? As a young child I remember coming home
from elementary school one day in a pouring rainstorm. To
this day I can recall the feeling of being drenched by the
warm rain, splashing in every puddle until I was soaking
wet, smiling every step of the way home as claps of thunder
ignited our path. Long before the message about catching
one's "death of cold" or "being practical" had sunk in, rain
was something to be felt and experienced. At some point,
rain became something else: the cancellation of the picnic,
the end of the baseball game, a nuisance. Rain � the very
thing that brings life to the planet � ceased to be an
experience of wonder and became something simply to be
endured.

Standing at the side of the taxi, my friend Bryan held the
umbrella over the wheelchair, looking down at his friend
whose mind was still present, but whose body was quickly
leaving him. Bryan asked: "John, it's not a very good day.
Are you sure you want to do this?"

After a moment's pause, John replied, "Bryan, it would be a
very good day, a very good day indeed, if you would just put
that umbrella down for a few moments and let that rain fall on
my face."

Reluctantly Bryan folded the umbrella and his friend turned
his face up to the sky, the tactile feeling of the great outdoors
once again (and literally) washing over him. His face broke
into a broad smile. It was indeed a good day. Even in the face
of the harshest truth, awe and wonder have a way of breaking
through. In fact, sometimes it takes a cancer, an illness, a
wake-up call, to remind us of what we knew as children: that
rain can be sweet and gentle, that life is there waiting for us at
those moments when we choose to be � as e. e. cummings
wrote � "glad and young" again.

In his book Living Buddha, Living Christ, Thich Nhat Hanh writes:

      "If I am ever in an airplane and the pilot announces that our
plane is about to crash, I will practice mindful breathing and
take refuge in the island of the self. I know it is the best thing
I can do."

I fly a good deal and have thought about that same question:
What would I do? Breathing and mindfulness are very important,
for only when we are awake and present can awe and wonder
break through and remind us of what our hearts already know.

Yet if I am ever in that moment or something like it, when I know
my seconds are few and running out fast, I believe I would try
to remember those moments of awe and wonder � the wind
that will blow forever, the stream that was rushing over my hand,
the night the waves and stars joined together in a symphony
outside my window, the day Steve and I were surrounded by the
gloriously setting sun, the feeling of raindrops hitting my face in
a Puerto Rican rain forest. I will hope that in remembering those
moments, my innocent faith will speak to me of the things my mind
cannot know.

Cultivating Awe and Wonder

How do we cultivate the experience of awe and wonder in our lives?
It begins by keeping our eyes open, by being willing to stop in the
middle of "important" stuff to breathe in the "little things." So
perhaps
awe and wonder are not things to behold but a posture we take,
a choice to see the mystery that is alive in the universe.

One day, when my daughter Sydney was very young she
interrupted me as I worked on a client report in my home office.
She came to tell me "there is a beautiful and amazing bug just
outside on the driveway. She is red and black and spotted.
You must come see this bug."

Busy writing my report, I told her that the bug would have to wait.
"Perhaps it'll be there when I'm done," I added. Sydney frowned
but was undaunted.

"No, daddy," she said, "bugs do not wait for us." Awakened by her
native wisdom, I joined her and we went down the long driveway
to view the brightly colored caterpillar. Sure enough, the bug was
amazing � black, red, spotted all over. For a few minutes, she
and I shared in the absolute delight that God, evolution, or
something greater than us had created such a lovely creature.
Years later, I cannot recall a word from the report, nor even what
report I was working on, but if I close my eyes I can still see that
beautiful bug!

One does not have to live near the sea or in the mountains, have
the perfect job or perfect spouse, to find this awe and wonder. We
simply need to keep our eyes and senses open.

And yes, innocence and joy are almost always waiting just outside
that window.

This article was excerpted from Second Innocence, �2004,
by John B. Izzo.

Dr. Izzo is the author of three other books: Awakening Corporate
Soul: Four Paths to Unleash the Power of People at Work,
Awakening Corporate Soul: The Workbook for Teams, and Values
Shift: The New Work Ethic and What It Means for Business. He has
traveled the world advising, speaking, and doing research on
workforce trends, positive corporate cultures, and connecting
with like-minded thinkers also creating powerful change. He
obtained dual Master's degrees in Theology and Divinity from the
University of Chicago, his Ph.D. from Kent State University, and
has served on the faculties of two major universities. Born and
raised on the east coast of the United States, Dr. Izzo now lives
with his wife and children in the mountains outside Vancouver,
Canada.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Once upon a time two brothers who lived on adjoining
farms fell into conflict. It was the first serious
rift in 40 years of farming side by side, sharing
machinery, and trading labor and goods as needed
without a hitch.

Then the long collaboration fell apart. It began with
a small misunderstanding and it grew into a major
difference, and finally it exploded into an exchange
of bitter words followed by weeks of silence.

One morning there was a knock on John's door. He
opened it to find a man with a carpenter's toolbox.
"I'm looking for a few days work" he said.
"Perhaps you would have a few small jobs here and
there. Could I help you?"

"Yes," said the older brother. "I do have a job for
you. Look across the creek at that farm. That's my
neighbor, in fact, it's my younger brother. Last
week there was a meadow between us and he took his
bulldozer to the river levee and now there is a
creek between us. Well, he may have done this to
spite me, but I'll go him one better.  See that
pile of lumber curing by the barn? I want you to
build me a fence-- an 8-foot fence -- so I won't
need to see his place anymore. Cool him down,
anyhow."

The carpenter said, "I think I understand the
situation. Show me the nails and the post-hole digger
and I'll be able to do a job that pleases you."

The older brother had to go to town for supplies,
so he helped the carpenter get the materials ready
and then he was off for the day.

The carpenter worked hard all that day measuring,
sawing, nailing.  About sunset when the farmer
returned, the carpenter had just finished his job.

The farmer's eyes opened wide, his jaw dropped.

There was no fence there at all. It was a bridge --
a bridge stretching from one side of the creek to
the other!  A fine piece of work, handrails and all
-- and the neighbor, his younger brother, was coming
across, his hand outstretched.

"You are quite a fellow to build this bridge after
all I've said and done."

The two brothers stood at each end of the bridge,
and then they met in the middle, taking each other's
hand. They turned to see the carpenter hoist his
toolbox on his shoulder. "No, wait! Stay a few days.
I've a lot of other projects for you," said the older
brother.

"I'd love to stay on," the carpenter said, "but,
I have many more bridges to build."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

What WE Do

sipping coffee that's too sweet.
Nodding, because he too, knows
the sound of surrender complete.
The person sharing lays bare her soul;
how she lost everything.
Hearts reach out, and with love console,
one of the gifts this recovery brings.
Another shares of a burden begun
a task that, though scary, needs doing.
Clearing the wreckage of a life once undone
on a path fraught with heartache and ruin.
Still another hand is raised, and then called,
another voice speaks up in the room.
It speaks of the gratitude held for us all;
shining lights in a life filled with gloom.
That is what we do in here.
We empathize, for our roads have been shared.
We nurture, and guide each other along.
We realize, that through change we learn care.
Being cared for, we all can grow strong.
That is what we do in here.

With love, johnh94.  10-21-03
johnh94@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When do I need a meeting?

When I need some peace of mind..............................
I need a meeting.

When I don't know what to do with my time..................
I need a meeting.

When I feel like splitting for a desert island..................
I need a meeting.

When I think I don't need a meeting............................
I need a meeting.

When I start thinking I can think for myself..................
I need a meeting.

When I'm worried about everyone but myself...............
I need a meeting.

When I start thinking I can cut down because I've made a meeting
every night for a month and I'm feeling fine..................
I need a meeting.

When I start feeling guilty, or sad, or lonely and "need time
for
myself".................................................................
I need a meeting.

When mom says you can afford to miss "just this once" in honor
of your Aunt Tilly's birthday.........................................
I need a meeting.

When the kids have been sick, or my temper's too quick,
when my heads in a fog and I'm kicking the dog, when I can't find
my reason, or time's changing the season, things are good
or they're bad, or I'm happy or sad, when I'm falling in love,
or can't find my glove and it's 20 below,
"that guys driving too slow!", "this one's driving me nuts",
I've got squirrels in my guts, if it's starting to rain,
if I'm feeling no pain, got a zit on my face and a broken shoe lace
and I hear myself saying "Yeah
but".........................................
I need a meeting.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

To be successful one must make change an ongoing process.
Quality is a race with no finish line.
David T. Kearns

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"The only thing that matters,
at the end of a stay on earth,
is how well did we love,
what was the quality of our love?"
Richard Bach, The Bridge Across Forever

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The quickest way to receive love is to give;
the fastest way to lose love is to hold it too tightly;
and the best way to keep love is to give it wings.
Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Develop a powerful and deep relationship with God
so that energy to operate the tools you use comes from God.
Spiritual maturity is willingness to align with God in everything you
do.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

What I can't do alone,
we can do together.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We may not have it all together,
but together we can have it all.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A  "charecter defect" is like having a flat tire.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A "shortcoming" is like driving on it anyway.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Looking for God is like a fish looking for water

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you have a problem believing in God,
go to a meeting and you'll see miracle,
after miracle, after miracle.
Seeing is believing.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/access.htm

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Suicide Anonymous
www.geocities.com/samemphis

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

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me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

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Stay in the Light,
In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ clean date 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

      (\o/\o/)   we are each of us angels  with only one wing  (\o/\o/)
       /_\/_\    and can only fly     by embracing each other   /_\/_\

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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

By the Grace of God and through the love of the people
that He put in my life, I am clean 20 years today, one day at a time.
I am so grateful to be clean and that YOU have shown me a new way to
live...
My gratitude speaks when I care and when I share with others.
This gift called recovery, gets better and better.....
Recovery is more progressive than the disease of addiction!!!!
The blessings are plentiful and abundant.
In one breath it seems like just yesterday when I was at my bottom,
and in another, it seems like another lifetime ago.
The little things are the BIG things.
I love you ALL
Thanks for your love and support,
In loving service,
Scott
YOUnMEnHP@...

keep in mind, the little things are the BIG things
www.miniature-earth.com

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 27
Today I practice restraint of tongue and pen
and I do not hurt anyone intentionally.
Today I give myself time to express myself appropriately.
Today I go beyond negative feelings.
I act as if I am coming from a place of love.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

God's Work

God's work includes a lot of stuff,
It involves people who could really be rough,
Society's misfits, the homeless, the poor,
Those who need and deserve so much more,
For these brothers and sisters life has taken it's toll,
They're hurt and lost, many forgotten a lost soul.
But as sad as the story gets sometimes,
There is always a happy ending,
Just like in nursery rhymes, Gods work is being done by people who care,
Who know spiritual principles and are learning to share.
What we share with others has nothing to do with money,
It's about kindness, love and even being funny,
It's time to pull together and make the world a better place,
Where men and women are all one race,
This process is individual and starts with each one of us,
We come together and start to trust,
We can't hide behind corners of darkness and lurk,
We have to step into the light and do God's work.

written by Mark Kostew October 27, 1992
for Scott H.'s  4th anniversary
Mark was my BEST friend, may he rest in peace.
He left imprints upon my heart.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Magic Microwave
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=885

Dr. Bob's Play
www.barefootsworld.net/aadrbobsplay.html

Serenity Quest
www.serenityquest.org

As We Walk
www.members.tripod.com/~Cherdoo/walk.html

History of NA, Letter by Jody R.  This is a long letter written
by a member who was working on the original text. It has a
lot of excellent information but beware, it is extremely scathing
of certain people and service bodies of NA. This is one person's
perspective. It is always a good idea to obtain several opinions
before making a judgement. I suggest you read Bob Stone's
book( another perspective), "My Years With Narcotics
Anonymous", before going to war
www.lakeportna.homestead.com/JodyR.html

Original N.A. Literature
www.lakeportna.homestead.com/literature.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just for Today
October 27                                   Living in the present

"We want to look our past in the face, see it for what it really
was, and release it so we can live today."       Basic Text, p.28

For many of us, the past is like a bad dream. Our lives aren't
the same any more, but we still have fleeting, highly charged
emotional memories of a really uncomfortable past. The guilt,
fear, and anger that once dominated us may spill into our
new life, complicating our efforts to change and grow.

The Twelve Steps are the formula that helps us learn to put
the past in its place. Through the Fourth and Fifth Steps,
we become aware that our old behavior didn't work. We ask
a Higher Power to relieve us of our shortcomings in the Sixth
and Seventh Steps, and we begin to be relieved of the guilt and
fear that plagued us for so many years. In the Eighth and Ninth
Steps, by making amends, we demonstrate to others that our
lives are changing. We are no longer controlled by the past.
Once the past loses its control over us, we are free to find new
ways to live, ways that reflect who we truly are.

Just for today: I don't have to be controlled by my past. I will live
this new day as the new person I am becoming.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Circle and the Triangle

The circle stands for the whole world of A.A., and the triangle
stands for A.A.'s Three Legacies of Recovery, Unity, and Service.
Within our wonderful new world, we have found freedom from
our fatal obsession.
A.A. COMES OF AGE, p. 139

Early in my A.A. life, I became employed in its services and I
found the explanation of our society's logo to be very appropriate.
First, a circle of love and service with a well-balanced triangle
inside, the base of which represents our Recovery through the
Twelve Steps.  Then the other two sides, representing Unity
and Service, respectively.  The three sides of the triangle are
equal.  As I grew in A.A. I soon identified myself with this symbol.
I am the circle, and the sides of the triangle represent three aspects
of my personality: physical, emotional sanity, spirituality, the latter
forming the symbol's base.  Taken together, all three aspects of
my personality translate into a sober and happy life.
Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 27th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Seventh, I can help other alcoholics. I am of some use in
the world. I have a purpose in life. I am worth something at
last. My life has a direction and a meaning. All that feeling
of futility is gone. I can do something worthwhile. God has
given me a new lease on life so that I can help other alcoholics.
He has let me live through all the hazards of my alcoholic life
to bring me at last to a place of real usefulness in the world.
He has let me live for this. This is my opportunity and my
destiny. I am worth something! Will I give as much of my life
as I can to A.A.?

Meditation for the Day

All of us have our own battle to win, the battle between the
material view of life and the spiritual view., Something must
guide our lives. Will it be wealth, pride, selfishness, and greed
or will it be faith, honesty, purity, unselfishness, love, and
service? Each one has a choice. We can choose good or evil.
We cannot choose both. Are we going to keep striving until we
win the battle? If we win the victory, we can believe that even
God in His heaven will rejoice.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may choose the good and resist the evil. I pray
that I will not be a loser in the battle for righteousness.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 27

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Step Eleven

      Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our
conscious contact with God, as we understood Him, praying
only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry
that out.
      --Step Eleven of Al Anon

"... praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power
to carry that out" means that we ask on a daily basis to be
shown the plan for that day. We also ask our Source for the
power we need to carry that through. We will get a yes to both
requests.

We do not ask other people to show their will for us. We ask
God. Then we trust that we'll be empowered to carry God's
will through.

God never, never asks us to do anything that He would not
equip us to do. He never asks us to do anything we can't do.
If we are to do it, we will be empowered. That's the easy part
of this program. We never have to do more than we can, or
anything we can't. If we want to worry and fuss we can, but
we don't need to. That is our choice.

I have learned, through difficult and good times that this Step
will carry me through. When I don't know what to do next, God
does. Working this Step, one day at a time, will take us to places
we could never have traveled on our own. Simple acts, done
daily in accordance to God's will for us, lead to a Grand Plan
for our life.

Today, I will focus on asking God to show me what He wants
me to do. I will ask God for the power to do that; then I will go
ahead and get the job done. God, help me let go of my fears
about living life one day at a time. Help me trust that when
life is lived simply and in trust, a beautiful mosaic called "my life"
will be woven. I am being divinely led, guided, and cared for.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Holding The Space For Transformation
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2002/10/holding-space.htm

Nursing Home vs. Cruise Ship
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/08/nursing-home.htm

How Long It Took
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2001/December/cohen.htm

�The Quality Of Mercy� by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/12/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Broken Parents
Make Broken Children
by Francesca Cappucci Fordyce

Francesca Cappucci FordyceTo admit that you are a broken
parent requires guts. Nobody wants to look at themselves and
ask what is really going on. That would demand that the parent
closely considers his or her own childhood, and possibly
uncover pain that she/he would really rather keep concealed.

When parents have a baby, they unwittingly have to deal with
   their own brittle past. It is unavoidable. The baby makes it
happen. At every new stage, memories sneak up. A parent
recalls what happened when they were that age.

Just as we cope with unfulfilled expectations, the most effective
way to avoid recalling childhood memories is to keep moving.
There is a syndrome of "running parents", always on the go. The
neurosis of running becomes a family affliction, parents insist
that their children remain busy as well.

Like the passing on of genetic codes, children generally become
impaired by the needs, impulses and frailties of their parents.
A compulsive or obsessive parent transfers the same traits to
his or her children. If mom or dad frantically pursues work and
hobbies, so will the child. The entire household will be on the
move. From play dates, soccer practices and games, art
classes... whatever it takes to keep the family busy and in
motion.

Busy-ness is a perfect avoidance mechanism. Confronting
issues is not possible if you are constantly on the go. Parents
are propelled to keep moving so they don't have to deal with
the unappeasable emptiness they feel. In this form of escaping,
the parent creates an environment prohibitive to real
communication. There is only time to talk about getting ready
for the next activity.

In most families, parents compare notes with other parents to
regulate what their children should be doing. All the kids are
on the same very active schedule. Ironically, personal progress
is measured according to peer standards. Every activity in which
a child engages is measured.

With everyone sizing up everyone else, there is very little room
for imaginative play and spontaneous fun. The child is, instead,
bound by the pressure to do it all, and fear of failure is immense.
If it is pointed out that a child is not doing as much as or as well
as another, then that child feels like he is letting everyone down,
including himself.

Life becomes a series of unfulfilled expectations. When a child
continually tries to prove his or her worthiness, there is little
opportunity to cultivate self-awareness. The child measures
his or her worth and identity not by his/her individuality but
rather in terms of a job well done.

Many parents say they keep their children active so they won't
get into trouble or to keep them stimulated. But, keeping
children overly busy prohibits them from discovering who
they are. They don't sit still long enough to get a sense of
themselves. There is never time for quiet self-reflection. If
there ever is any downtime, the child doesn't know what to
do with himself. He gets restless, bored, and feels generally
uncomfortable.

Over-structured environments further stifle distinctiveness and
character, which spawn the creative impetus and expression in
children. Tragically, if children don't tap into finding their bliss
early on, they forge a life of living by rote and consequently are
unable to cultivate a sense of inner happiness and satisfaction.
The key is to strike a balance. Monitor if the hobby or sport is
really in fact a babysitter, or if the activity truly brings your child
genuine joy and stimulates his/her mind, body, and spirit.

You can help your child cultivate self-awareness and inner
peace by initiating intimate and meaningful conversation.
During the day, take a moment from time to time to talk to your
child and ask meaningful questions. They can be simple or
probing. The idea is to initiate self-exploration and discovery.
You may not get an answer, but don't take it personally. The
main thing is to get your child thinking. If you are a working
parent who is apart from your child during the day, make a point
of having breakfast and dinner together. By instigating
meaningful conversation, parents can get to know their child.

This article is excerpted from the book "Broken Wings Can Learn
to Fly: Why Children are Broken and How They Can Be Healed"
by Francesca Cappucci Fordyce. To order the book, contact
Francesca at: getmusicheard@...

Francesca Cappucci FordyceFrancesca Cappucci Fordyce is
a journalist who has worked in television, radio, and print
mediums. She worked as an on-air reporter for 10 years with
ABC News in Los Angeles. She is now a stay-at-home mom.
Being a "broken child" who grew into a "broken person", she
made it a priority to heal her pain because she did not want her
child to inherit her negative traits. She can be contacted at:
getmusicheard@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Speak to us of Freedom

And an orator said, "Speak to us of Freedom."
And he answered:
At the city gate and by your fireside I have seen you prostrate
yourself and worship your own freedom,
Even as slaves humble themselves before a tyrant and praise
him though he slays them.
Ay, in the grove of the temple and in the shadow of the citadel I
have seen the freest among you wear their freedom as a yoke
and a handcuff.
And my heart bled within me; for you can only be free when even
the desire of seeking freedom becomes a harness to you, and
when you cease to speak of freedom as a goal and a fulfillment.
You shall be free indeed when your days are not without a care
nor your nights without a want and a grief,
But rather when these things girdle your life and yet you rise above
them naked and unbound.
And how shall you rise beyond your days and nights unless you
break the chains which you at the dawn of your understanding
have fastened around your noon hour?
In truth that which you call freedom is the strongest of these chains,
though its links glitter in the sun and dazzle the eyes.
And what is it but fragments of your own self you would discard that
you may become free?
If it is an unjust law you would abolish, that law was written with your
own hand upon your own forehead.
You cannot erase it by burning your law books nor by washing the
foreheads of your judges, though you pour the sea upon them.
And if it is a despot you would dethrone, see first that his throne
erected within you is destroyed.
For how can a tyrant rule the free and the proud, but for a tyranny
in their own freedom and a shame in their won pride?
And if it is a care you would cast off, that care has been chosen by
you rather than imposed upon you.
And if it is a fear you would dispel, the seat of that fear is in your
heart
and not in the hand of the feared.
Verily all things move within your being in constant half embrace, the
desired and the dreaded, the repugnant and the cherished, the
pursued and that which you would escape.
These things move within you as lights and shadows in pairs that
cling.
And when the shadow fades and is no more, the light that lingers
becomes a shadow to another light.
And thus your freedom when it loses its fetters becomes itself the
fetter of a greater freedom.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

    "I am fear. I am the menace that lurks in the path of life, never
visible to the eye but sharply felt in the heart. I am the father of
despair, the brother of procrastination, the enemy of progress,
the tool of tyranny. Born of ignorance and nursed on misguided
thought, I have darkened more hopes, stifled more ambitions,
shattered more ideals and prevented more accomplishments
than history could ever record.

" Like the changing chameleon, I assume many disguises. I
masquerade as caution. I am sometimes known as doubt or
worry. But whatever I'm called, I am still fear, the obstacle of
achievement.

" I know no master but one. It's name is understanding. I have
no power but what the human mind gives me, and I vanish
completely when the light of understanding reveals the facts as
they really are, for I am really nothing.

" You see, if you have the courage to acknowledge your fears,
you will be taking the first step toward controlling them instead
of them controlling you. And if you take the next step toward
understanding, you will be able to move past them to
compassion,... perhaps even to love."

Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A bird does not sing because he has an answer. He sings
because he has a song. -- Joan Walsh Anglund

Each of us has a song to sing, just as birds do. Part of knowing
who we are is appreciating our own songs. Are our songs
gentle like the robins, or are we brilliant leaders like the
bluejay? Are we easy to be around like the sparrow, or do
we radiate joy and laughter like the loon?

Each of these birds has something special to offer. So do we,
with our own unique personalities and talents. What a waste
it would be if the loon never dashed across the lake because
he wanted to be a robin instead. It is important to learn who
we are and to believe we are special in our own way. We give
joy to the world around us when we sing our own songs.

Author Unknown


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Don�t Need Drama

This world's 'entertainment' is laced with adrenaline
Telling me: to enjoy myself, I need
a story to make me cry, make me angry or afraid
Since when is negative stress en'joy'able?
A story told from the heart need not have
high stakes for sale to capture my interest
Nor a climactic d�nouement to falsely satisfy

Who determined that 'a good story' should be so?
Whose stubborn rules are we following?
Why can't the real-ness of a life be special by itself
Why can't the ordinary positive be a gift
to soothe the day's thoughts
serving to deepen the spirit instead?

A tree stands tall ~ how majestic, how awesome is a tree!
Does it have to scare you, make you angry
or terrorise your dreams for you to enjoy it?
As it stands there, ordinary and beautiful
Let yourself be touched by the pure, the true
the simple, and the real

We don't need drama to further stress
our lives or raise our collective blood pressure
I need an inspiring sunset to teach me
the colours that souls are made of
I need the trunk of a huge Oak Tree to lean upon
I need its kindred host-connection
from earth to heaven
I need my spirit awake to nuances
and undertones to what's kindly left unsaid
and the hidden dimension between the lines

� 2002 Stella Raymonde Savoie-Johnson


With Love & Blessings
Stella
stellaraymonde@... �

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Child Cries

A child cries as her daddy fights
Always happens during the night
Daddy is hooked on crack cocaine
A child cries and feels the pain
Who is right and who is wrong
Does it really matter it just goes on
Daddy got his check today
Why did he have to give it all away
The child needs shoes and some new clothes
But the money is all gone and only God knows
Mom and dad fight all week long
When Friday comes he is always gone
Same old story Mom would shout
Get your clothes and get out
Daddy would leave and slam the door
Child would cry once more
I remember that faithful day
Mom says to dad get out the way
Dad made a call one rainy night
Mom said he was finally doing what's right
A man came to pick dad up one afternoon
They left the house just that soon
They were gone until late that night
When he came home there was no fight
Daddy kept on with his NA meetings
The yelling stopped and so did the beatings
Now my dad is a happy man
He helps Mom the best he can
Soon the months turned to years
Daddy now doesn't drink no beer
He worked the steps and I see a changed man
I thank God for the folks at NA
They helped my dad along the way

Daniel M Corkery
10/9/00
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When we long for life without difficulties,
remind us that oaks grow strong in contrary winds
and diamonds are made under pressure.
Peter Marshal

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Although we have been made to believe
that if we let go we will end up with nothing,
life itself reveals again and again the opposite;
that letting go is the path to real freedom.
Sogyai Rinpoche, THE TIBETAN BOOK OF LIVING AND DYING

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Whether you are an extrovert who thrives in social settings,
or an introvert who finds joy in quiet moments,
you are a unique individual with gifts that can enrich the lives of
others.
You are part of the vast One-ness that is God.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be
appreciated.
William James (1842-1910)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You can't treat anyone
any better than you treat yourself.
You can't give away what you don't have.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

My first sponsor was an idiot,
I sponsored myself, out of the rooms for 3 years.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If a candidate for recovery is ready,
you can't say anything wrong;
if he's not ready, you can't say anything right.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you only quit one day at a time,
every day that you don't use will be an accomplishment.
If you quit forever,
you won't have accomplished anything until you're dead.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/access.htm

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Suicide Anonymous
www.geocities.com/samemphis

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
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Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
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Stay in the Light,
In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ clean date 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

      (\o/\o/)   we are each of us angels  with only one wing  (\o/\o/)
       /_\/_\    and can only fly     by embracing each other   /_\/_\

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Others can stop you temporarily,
but only you can do it permanently.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 26
I am learning to trust
the positive and loving people in my life today.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Child

You came to me a year ago
You were alone on the beach
So carefree and innocent
You wanted to play
You took my finger and pulled me up
And we walked
You were so small
You held my finger and we walked in the sand
You held your arms up for me to pick you up
I did
And your little arms wrapped around my neck
So tight
Then�you were gone

You came back to me the other day
We took a magic carpet ride
You were leading the way and
Knew where to go
We went back
To the house in Brighton
You were so serious
The carefree and innocence gone
I felt some urgency but
I couldn�t seem to talk
You couldn�t either
You took my finger and together we looked out the window
I didn�t understand what we were looking at
I saw nothing

Then the dream�
I was cutting through the hallway
I couldn�t understand why I was there
I hadn�t been there in many years
Then as I turned the corner you ran right into me
Then jumped into my arms
Again your arms wrapped around my neck
So tight
I saw why you were running
He was there
Chasing you�trying to catch you
But don�t you worry little one
I am here


Now I see what we were looking at
We were looking at the window
Where he lives
The window of the living room
Where the birthday party was
I remember now
God I remember�
And after
He put his finger to his lips
Shhhh�.don�t tell
His eyes were real black
Don�t ever tell�
And
We never did

Many years later in a room
A white room with white sheets and a white blanket
A memory surfaced
It was so real and
Mom came to visit
There was so much to talk about
So much to say and
Before I knew it
I told
It just poured out of me and
She couldn�t handle it
She couldn�t deal
So
She left

There I sat
Alone
Hurt
And feeling it
Until
I decided to not
It was too hard
It hurt too much
So I left it back there
In the white room with white sheets and a white blanket
I told no other
And vowed not to
Ever

A few years ago
I joined a program
One that is based on vigorous honesty
I told in one sentence what happened
I told my sponsor and God
Relief did follow and
I felt that for my whole life
I was holding my breath and
For the first time
I was able to exhale�.
Now it was all behind me
That and much more
So I thought

Silly me to think of such
It came back to visit again
Obviously I haven�t finished dealing
Never really began I guess
But now
I�m feeling�
So many emotions
I am not comfortable
Right now I am angry
I just don�t understand
I ask why and
Know there is no acceptable answer
So I keep saying to myself
They will pass
These feelings will pass
And they do
Thank God
They come and
They go

So now my little one
I have some things to tell you�.
I promise to protect you
I promise to love you
I promise to comfort you
I promise to be gentle with you
But I ask you�
To please be patient with me
Because I am new at this
And Im really not quite sure how to do it
But I will learn
I am learning

I want you to know
I was told
It takes time�
Time to heal
And no longer
Do you have to be afraid
Everything is ok now
It was not your fault
None of it was your fault
You did nothing wrong
Please believe me
And then maybe
Someday soon
At the beach
We can play

� 2006 Kelly Warren
viequessoon@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Meeting Makers- Make It
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=364

Last eyewitness of A.A.'s origins dies in Memphis
www.barefootsworld.net/aasmitty.html

N.Y.C. Alcoholism/Addiction and Gay-Related Links
www.royy.com

Life's Pathway
www.link4u.com/pathway.htm

History Of N.A. Through  1985-1992
www.lakeportna.homestead.com/files/longhistory2.html
www.lakeportna.homestead.com/files/longhistory3.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 26                         The path to self-acceptance

"The most effective means of achieving self-acceptance
is through applying the Twelve Steps of recovery."
IP No.19, "Self-Acceptance"

   Our addiction has been a source of shame to many of us. We
have hidden ourselves from others, sure that if anyone got to
know who we really were they would reject us. NA helps us
learn self-acceptance.

   Many of us find a great deal of relief just from attending
meetings, hearing fellow addicts share their stories, and
discovering that others have felt the same way we feel about
ourselves. When others share honestly with us who they are,
we feel free to do the same. As we learn to tell others the truth
about ourselves, we learn to accept ourselves.

   Self-disclosure, however, is only the beginning. Once we've
shared the things that make us uncomfortable with our lives,
we need to find a different way to live-and that's where the
steps come in. We develop a concept of a Higher Power. We
inventory our lives, in detail, and discuss our inventory with our
sponsor. We ask the God of our understanding to remove our
character defects, the shortcomings that are the source of
our troubles. We take responsibility for the things we've done
and make amends for them. And we incorporate all these
disciplines into our daily lives, "practicing these principles in all
our affairs."

   By working the steps, we can become people we are proud to
be. We can freely tell the truth about ourselves, for we have
nothing to hide.

Just for today: I will walk the path to self-acceptance. I will show
up, tell the truth, and work the steps.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Exactly Alike

Frequent contact with newcomers and with each other is the bright
spot of our lives.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 89

A man came to the meeting drunk, interrupted the speakers, stood
up and took his shirt off, staggered loudly back and forth for coffee,
demanded to talk, and eventually called the group's secretary an
unquotable name and walked out.  I was glad he was there - once
again I saw what I had been like.  But I also saw what I still am, and
what I still could be.  I don't have to be drunk to want to be the
exception and the center of attention.  I have often felt abused and
responded abusively when I was simply being treated as a garden
variety human being.  The more the man tried to insist he was
different, the more I realized that he and I were exactly alike.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 26th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Sixth, I have A.A. meetings to go to, thank God. Where
would I go without them? Where would I be without them?
Where would I find the sympathy, the understanding, the
fellowship, the companionship? Nowhere else in the world.
I have come home. I have found the place where I belong.
I no longer wander alone over the face of the earth. I am at
peace and at rest. What a great gift has been given me by
A.A.! I do not deserve it. But it is nevertheless mine. I have
a home at last. I am content.  Do I thank God every day for
the A.A. fellowship?

Meditation for the Day

Walk all the way with another person and with God. Do not go
part of the way and then stop. Do not push God so far into the
background that lie has no effect on your life. Walk all the way
with Him. Make a good companion of God, by praying to Him
often during the day. Do not let your contact with Him be
broken for too long a period. Work all the way with God and
with other people, along the path of life, wherever it may lead
you.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may walk in companionship with God along the
way. I pray that I may keep my feet upon the path that leads
upward.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 26

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Clarity

I know better than to not trust God., But sometimes, I forget that.

When we are in the midst of an experience, it is easy to forget
that there is a Plan. Sometimes, all we can see is today.

If we were to watch only two minutes of the middle of a
television program, it would make little sense. It would be
a disconnected event.

If we were to watch a weaver sewing a tapestry for only a few
moments, and focused on only a small piece of the work, it would
not look beautiful. It would look like a few peculiar threads
randomly placed.

How often we use that same, limited perspective to look at our
life - especially when we are going through a difficult time.

We can learn to have perspective when we are going through
those confusing, difficult learning times. When we are being
pelted by events that make us feel, think, and question, we
are in the midst of learning something important.

We can trust that something valuable is being worked out in us -
even when things are difficult, even when we cannot get our
bearings. Insight and clarity do not come until we have
mastered our lesson.

Faith is like a muscle. It must be exercised to grow strong.
Repeated experiences of having to trust what we can't see
and repeated experiences of learning to trust that things will
work out are what makes our faith muscles grow strong.

Today, I will trust that the events in my life are not random. My
experiences are not a mistake. The Universe, my Higher Power,
and life are not picking on me. I am going through what I need to
go through to learn something valuable, something that will
prepare me for the joy and love I am seeking.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Our Journey With Deceased Loved Ones
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2002/10/journey.htm

Saying Grace
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/08/saying-grace.htm

Relationship for a Lifetime:
Everything You Need To Know To Create A Love That Lasts
by Kelly E. Johnson, M.D.
You Are the Creator of Your Relationships
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2001/December/feature3.htm

�Two Sides Of A Prison Wall� by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/11/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Changing...Instantly
by Ariel and Shya Kane

Mechanical behaviors are old ways of doing things that once
worked, or appeared to have worked, in situations that were
stressful or in situations that were actual or perceived as
potentially endangering your survival.

It works something like this. As a child your parents told you
that you could not have the cherry Lifesavers? that you so
desperately wanted one day in the supermarket. To your
immature mind, this was totally unfair. In fact, this situation
seemed like the end of the world to you. So you pouted, cried
and had a temper tantrum. You bothered your parents enough
that they recanted and bought you the candy. Now, as an adult,
if the person with whom you are in a relationship says no to
something you want, it is entirely possible that your response
to the situation will be very similar to the response you had in
that supermarket all those years ago.

How does noticing of mechanical behaviors dissolve them?
Anything that you allow to be exactly the way it is or that you
observe, nonjudgmentally, will complete itself in that moment
and disappear. In other words, the nonjudgmental observation
of any behavior will allow that behavior to disappear and you
no longer have to mechanically, habitually be run by the childish
version of you.

This is such a simple concept that it is very difficult to understand.
The basic principle is that you can be the way you are in any
given moment only in that moment. So if you happen to be sitting
now, then in this moment you cannot possibly be also standing.

Most people have the misguided idea that things could be different
than they are in their life in any given moment. People think, "No,
I am sitting but I could be standing right now." But in truth, when
you are sitting you can only be sitting. You can think it could be
different but it can only be the way it is at that moment. There is a
law in physics that states: no two things can occupy the same
space at the same time. In truth you can only be doing what you
are doing and your life can only show up exactly as it is in any
given moment.

Again, anything that you allow to be exactly the way it is or that
you observe, nonjudgmentally, will complete itself in that moment
and disappear.

Work on bad habits to change them?

Most people try to change or fix their bad habits. People are not just
being the way they are, but instead, resisting the way they are and
trying to achieve an idea of how they think they should be. The first
principle that Instantaneous Transformation? is based on is that
anything that you resist persists and grows stronger. So if you are
in disagreement with any aspect of your life, those things that you
are in resistance to or disagreement with persist and grow stronger.

Working on your bad habits to change or fix them or working on
yourself to be better is a form of resisting what is. And if the first
principle of transformation is true, then the more you try to change
or fix these habits, the more entrenched they become.

Dissolving unwanted behaviors

To dissolve unwanted behaviors, you need to interact with your
own life as though you are an anthropologist studying a tribe or
culture. What an anthropologist does is to suspend judgment,
to look at the culture as not right or wrong or good or bad, but
simply observe how they operate and function.

Within our own lives, most of us do not simply observe how we
function. Rather we judge ourselves, comparing how we are to
how we think we ought to be based on cultural standards (or
the resistance to those standards).

We are all addicted to fixing what we perceive as our weaknesses
and faults rather than observing ourselves neutrally.
Transformation is not about fixing yourself to be a better you.
It is about being the way you are.

If you simply see how you are without judging, manipulating or
trying to fix what is seen, this will facilitate the completion of
these unwanted behaviors. How? Well, neutrally observing
something doesn't add energy to it -- for or against -- and
everything in this universe needs energy to survive. If you don't
energize your habits, they will naturally dwindle and shrivel up,
all on their own.

How we should be...

Most of our ideas about how we ought to be or what a better
version of ourselves would look like come from our childhood.
When we were children, we decided what it was to be a man
or woman from the people around us. Not only did we learn
from our families and parents but also from children who were
older than us. At the very best, our ideas of who and how we
should be and what is right and wrong with us were formulated
by earlier versions of ourselves who were less expansive than
who we are today.

Since our minds are mechanical and automatically have
thoughts that follow other thoughts and so on, any
conversation you have about yourself and how you should be
better or different than you are is coming from your past. There
is an opportunity now to look and see what is really true for you,
in this moment, not what is based in what you have been
taught and in your resistance to what you have been taught
either. It is possible to look and see what it is that you want in
your life.

Discovering what you truly want

What is needed is an active engagement with what is going
on in your life right now. For most of us, however, there is inertia,
almost as if certain aspects of our lives are covered in molasses.
There are years of disappointment that make it appear that it is
not worth it to try, that it is not worth it to go for it. What it
takes to
get through the inertia is to get engaged with totality. If you are
going at 100 percent, if you are engaged in your life totally, your
truth becomes apparent, but not as an intellectual exercise. It is
more as an "of course".

A lot of the resistance we experience in initiating anything new
is based on an idea of our own inadequacies put together by an
earlier version of ourselves, a much earlier version. Again, since
the mind is a recording machine of previous conversations
regarding events of our lives, it holds onto old concepts as if
they are still fresh and new. When we were very young, our
motor skills and coordination were nowhere near what they
are as adults, yet a lot of our beliefs and conversations about
what we are capable of and what we can or cannot do come
from decisions that were formed long before puberty. Ideas that
we have of our own desirability, attractiveness, and worth were
put in place long before the current version of us came to be.

This being the case, apparently there is nothing you can do
except continue to have the same conversations you have
had in your life in the past. Ahh, but there is something called
transformation. Transformation is discovering how to access
and live in the moment. If you get into this current moment and
notice old mechanical behaviors as they show up, the noticing
of the behavior, the noticing of your own considerations about
who you are and what you are capable of will dissolve them
and will allow you the freedom to discover and be yourself.

Enthusiasm = Life

What you need, to generate the energy to pull yourself into
your life and into the moment, is enthusiasm. Many of us
don't have that enthusiasm to start with. We are swayed by
our thoughts that repeat our inadequacies so that we don't
even bother trying. It is said that the longest journeys starts
with a single step. You have got to begin. How does one
become enthusiastic? Well, most people are looking for
something that is worthy of pouring their heart, soul, and
passion into. Fear not. You don't have to look far. Glance
around. Where are you in this moment? It doesn't matter.
You can start to generate the enthusiasm you naturally
have for living now, in this moment. In fact, that is the only
time there is. You don't have to wait for the circumstance to
line up to a more favorable position. You have the perfect
circumstances for transformation, right now.

Look around your house, your apartment, where you are.
There are things that you have been avoiding completing
forever. See what they are and do them. Too tall an order?
OK, start with one. Any one. Completion of projects, in fact
completion of any kind, returns energy to you. Wash the
dishes, make your bed, make that call, run that errand. Start.
Starting anything gives you power. Notice when your thoughts
say I can't do it, I am not good enough, I will never be able to
get this done -- and do it anyway. That is the beginning. That
is the beginning of reclaiming your life. Feel your energy rush
back into you. Feel yourself come alive. It doesn't have to be
a monumental project. Start with a burned out light bulb or
dusty area you have been skirting around for weeks.

Life is an exciting adventure. If it doesn't appear that way to
you, then there is something that you are occupied with,
other than your life. Probably your thoughts about your life.
See if you can notice that your thoughts are just thoughts and
are not reality.

The two of us are firm believers in the "fake-it until you make-it
school of life". If you can't find enthusiasm for your circumstances
in your life right now, fake it! Faking it will lend you the ability
to go with totality and before you know it, you won't be faking it
anymore.

This article is written by the authors of: Working on Yourself
Doesn't Work: A Book About Instantaneous Transformation, ?
1999, by Ariel & Shya Kane. Published by ASK Productions
Inc., New York, NY, USA.

ARIEL & SHYA KANE, internationally acclaimed consultants,
have been providing coaching and seminars for a range of
clients from individuals to Fortune 500 Corporations since 1984.
The Kanes are the pioneers of Instantaneous Transformation?,
which has helped thousands to dramatically increase productivity
and satisfaction. Shya has a degree in Anthropology from NYU.
Prior to teaming up with Shya, Ariel acted professionally in
television, films, and on stage for 8 years. They can be reached at
kanes@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Two for the Price of One

     "Where's Jamie?" screamed my cousin Lee Ann. "Oh my
God, where is Jamie?" I thought, as we were standing in the
pool at my parents' house. The question about my five-year-
old son's momentary disappearance sent shock waves through
my body.

     The entire pool has a safety ledge around the inside of
it and gently slopes to a deep end of only four feet. It was
very common for us to let the younger children splash their
afternoons away in Grandma's pool while we stood beside them
and got totally soaked with their enthusiasm and the water.

     On that scary afternoon when Lee Ann yelled, it seems
that Jamie had been walking near the safety ledge and slid
down into the deeper part. We had taken our eyes off him for
only a split second, and then he was gone! I quickly spotted
him and reached down to pull him up.

     As I yanked him up, he came out kicking and screaming,
crying and fearful, and yelling that he wanted to get out.
My guilt wanted to take him out and grant him his wish, but
my fatherly instincts told me to stay in the pool with him.
Both of us were shaking as I talked to him and reassured him
that water can be scary and we must respect it. I held him
close as we gently walked around the pool. After a couple of
minutes he said he wasn't afraid anymore and he started to
splash around again.

     I was feeling guilty and sorry for myself for being
such a bad father. "Good fathers don't let their sons almost
drown," I was telling myself. Just at the height of my
personal pity party, Lee Ann walked by and said, "You are a
terrific dad and I really admire the way you handled that.
He will never be afraid of the water again!"

     Lee Ann saved two lives that day. She saved my son's
life when she yelled "Where's Jamie!" and she saved my life,
as a father! She took me from pity to pride with her
nurturing comment. It's amazing what can happen when you
look at yourself through someone else's eyes.

By Barry Spilchuk  from A Cup of Chicken Soup for the Soul
Copyright 1996 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen & Barry Spilchuk

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Recovery Mantra

I am one
with the truth
of the love
of the light.

12 words, 12 syllables, 4 lines, 3 words a line.

What does it mean?  It is up to you.

Michael T., Chandler Lodge, North Hollywood, CA
wordmann22@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Tired Of Running

I am a spirit that is well fed
I built a prison inside my head
I was chained to hunger and lust
My life was shot I had no one to trust
Was tired of running with nowhere to go
Went inside out I thought it was so
Life moves before my eyes
Took a life time to realize
My life was full of
Desperation
Restless irritable
I fought creation
I had to get my
Point across
What a lost
My dragon
Had to be fed
  From day to day
I would retreat into my head
Lower and lower I went down
Seemed to spin around and round
My heart grew so cold
I could not feel
So much in life
Was not real
I cried out to God
Please help me help me
He sent an angel to set me free
My angel led me to the doors of AA
I worked the steps
And I would pray
God I give
To you
Today
Slowly I got better
Day by day
Recovery
Came my way
Tired of running
With places to go
Tired of running
I take it slow

Daniel M Corkery
7/16/2001
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dawning of Reality

I woke up one morning and for some reason
I looked in the mirror for the first time in years.
My skin color was a sickly gray,
after changing from a greenish, yellow color.
My eyes still glowed a golden yellow.
I was skin and bones.
I was so sick and dazed from the itching
that kept me awake at night and the numerous trips
to the bathroom, when I made it that far.
I was alone, but I never felt so degraded, so low, so tired.
My stomach burned, like the inside was raw meat,
and I ached all over.
Tears were streaming down the face of the person
I didn't even recognize.
I pleaded " Help me", and at that moment I knew
that I could never live this way again.
I looked around at the filth and squalor of the little trailer
I lived in, all the empty liquor bottles crowded around
in that small camper, got sick,
and stumbled back to my filthy bed
and I prayed like I'd never prayed before
cause I knew my life was over and
I just realized for the first time that I wanted to live.
I was one of the lucky ones who was given yet another chance.
Sharlett Hunt
sharlette863@...

   Part 2

    I forgot to mention that during this time of desperation I had
been avoiding the law for about 12 years.  I was placed on
probation for a felony DUI (fourth or more) and would refuse
to appear for probation. Of course it caught up with me.  What
started out as 2 years probation ended up with me spending
365 days in the county jail, followed by four years house arrest.

    You would think that I quit drinking after my near death
experience, but I did not.  I just kept on and would get sick
and go to the hospital, come home and do it again, untill I
was incarcerated and had to stay sober.  When I got out of jail,
I didn't report again and stayed drunk till my next brush with the
law, which wound up with me doing one year of house arrest
and one year probation.  I even managed to violate probation
by drinking.  I had become involved with AA at the time and
managed to get through my lawbreaking career in a year and
a half, instead of two.  I thank God and my friends from AA that
it is over now and I am law abiding once again.  I know there is
a God.  Nobody can convince me that He is not real.  I should
by all rights be dead or in prison for life.  I have a violent temper
when I drink.  I also black out. I have cirrhosis and COPD.  I still
have managed to try to drink over the years.

    My children don't want to talk to me.  I have three beautiful
grandsons, one I've never seen.  I am growing older and things
that weren't at all important are like gold to me today.  I have been
sober off and on for a few years now.  My last drink was a couple
months ago.  I don't want a date of when I quit.  I just know that I
am happy and sober today.  That's all I have.

    I have a problem with my older sister since my last drunk.
Though she brings up my past all the time and seems to want
me to get angry, she gets mad when I bring up hers.  She won't
let me forget.  Of course, she has her own set of problems and my
angry words don't help the situation.  Problem is, I love her and
want a relationship with her but it always ends with a fight.  I am
mouthy sober but when I drink, I am blunt as well as mouthy
and can be nasty.

    My health seems to be getting better as I try to do things for
myself and take care of me.  God loves me so I try to love me,
too.  My life is so blessed!  God has given me a kitty and bird to
care for.  They help keep me focused.  I don't have to look over
my shoulder and worry about jail anymore.  I am free to be the
kind of person I always wanted to be.

Sharlett H.
Sharlette863@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Last night as I sang to the stars,
I realized they may be the souls
of former friends or of future children.
So, I sang louder and louder
and I thanked them for listening.
I heard their applause
and they thanked me for coming.
At the same time we both said
Our "Your Welcomes,"
And as I watched them twinkle,
They watched me Shine..."

Laura Duksta

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Lust never is fulfilling.  It's a primary
distraction from the Spirit that you are.

In the Spirit that you are, you fulfill yourself.

In lust, you go to somebody else or something else
to attempt to fulfill yourself through them.

John-Roger

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Love alone is capable of uniting living beings
in such a way as to complete and fulfill them,
for it alone takes them and joins them
by what is deepest in themselves.
Teilhard de Chardin

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Your present circumstances don't determine where you can go;
they merely determine where you start.
Nido Qubein

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If people were not meant to have late-night snacks,
why did God put a light in the refrigerator?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A friend is a person with whom I may be sincere,
Before him, I may think aloud.
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Friendship

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I have everything I need to get everything I want.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Maintenance of your spiritual condition is key.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Recovery is God's gift to me;
what I do with it is my gift to God.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spirituality: The more you have on the inside,
the less you need on the outside.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

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or
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Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
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or go to the website and unsubscribe

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http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

The children were lined up in the cafeteria of
a Religious School for lunch. At the head of the
table was a large pile of apples. The
nun had made a note,

"Take only one, God is watching,"

Moving through the line, to the other end of the
table, was a large pile of chocolate chip
cookies. One of the boys had written a note,

"Take all you want,
God is watching the apples."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 25
No matter how busy I think I am,
I will share a part of me with someone else today.
I am discovering the joy of giving and
I will take the time to stop and share a part of me.
I am learning to trust the positive and loving people.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

God Bless You Alison

Ali, I love you. I miss you today.
You touched us and changed us,
But you couldn't stay.

Your Pain took you places where we couldn't go.
Your Pain left you breathless. Your Pain never let go.

A tortured Angel you were, such a bumpy rough ride.
So loving you were. Now you�re gone and I find
That I miss you much more than my heart can abide
You�re an Angel in Heaven. You've left us all behind.

You�re a star in the night sky,
A ray of light in the sun.
You�re the laughter of children.
A sweet song being sung.

Ali, I love you. I miss you today.
You touched me and changed me.
But you just couldn't stay.

God has rescued you, Ali,
And your Pain's taken away.

By Iris F   10/20/03
ifox@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Morning Prayer
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=703

Sue Smith Windows
www.barefootsworld.net/aasuepasses.html

Serenity Quest
www.serenityquest.org

Recovery Times
www.recoverytimes.com/index.html

History Of N.A. through 1985
www.lakeportna.homestead.com/files/longhistory1.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 25                             Principles before personalities

"Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions, ever
reminding us to place principles before personalities."
Twelfth Tradition

      "Principles before personalities." Many of us chant these words
along with the reader whenever the Twelve Traditions are read.
The fact that these words have become a cliche of sorts doesn't
make them any less important, either in service or in our lives.
These words are an affirmation: "We listen to our conscience and
do what's right, no matter who's involved:' And that principle serves
as one of the cornerstones of recovery as well as our traditions.

What does "principles before personalities" really mean? It means
we practice honesty, humility, compassion, tolerance, and patience
with everyone, whether we like them or not. Putting principles
before personalities teaches us to treat everyone equally. The
Twelfth Step asks us to apply principles in all our affairs; the
Twelfth Tradition suggests we apply them to our relations with
everyone.

Practicing principles doesn't stop with our friends or when we leave
a meeting. It's for every day, for everyone... in all areas of our
lives.

Just for today: I will listen to my conscience and do what's right. My
focus will be on principles, not on people's personalities.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Love Without Strings

Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure
immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 89

Sponsorship held two surprises for me.  First, that my sponsees
cared about me. What I had thought was gratitude was more like
love.  They wanted me to be happy, to grow and remain sober.
Knowing how they felt kept me from drinking more than once.
Second, I  discovered that I was able to love someone else
responsibly, with respectful and genuine concern for that person's
growth.  Before that time, I had thought that my ability to care
sincerely about another's well-being had atrophied from lack of
use.  To learn that I can love, without greed or anxiety, has been
one of the deepest gifts the program has given me. Gratitude for
that gift has kept me sober many times.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 25th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Fifth, I have learned to live one day at a time. I have finally
realized the great fact that all I have is now. This sweeps
away all vain regret and it makes my thoughts of the future
free of fear. Now is mine. I can do what I want with it. I own
it, for better or worse. What I do now, in this present moment,
is what makes up my life. My whole life is only a succession of
nows. I will take this moment, which has been given to me by
the grace of God, and I will do something with it. What I do
with each now will make me or break me. Am I living in the now?

Meditation for the Day

We should work at overcoming ourselves, our selfish desires
and our self-centeredness. This can never be fully accomplished.
We can never become entirely unselfish. But we can come to
realize that we are not at the center of the universe and that
everything does not revolve around us at the center. I am only
one cell in a vast network of human cells. I can at least make
the effort to conquer the self-life and seek daily to obtain more
and more of this self-conquest. "He that overcomes himself is
greater than he who conquers a city."

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may strive to overcome my selfishness. I pray that
I may achieve the right perspective of my position in the world.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 25

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Letting Go of the Past

      ... in thy book were written, every one of them, the days that
were formed for me when as yet there was none of them.
      --Ps. 139:16

Some people believe that each of our days were planned,
Divinely Ordered, before we were born. God knew, they say, and
planned exactly what was to transpire.

Others suggest we chose, we participated in planning our life - the
events, the people, the circumstances that were to take place, in
order to work through our issues and learn the lessons we needed
to master.

Whatever our philosophy, our interpretation can be similar: Our
past  is neither an accident nor a mistake. We have been where
we needed to be, with the necessary people. We can embrace our
history, with its pain, its imperfections, and its mistakes, even its
tragedies. It is uniquely ours; it was intended just for us.

Today, we are right where we need to be. Our present circumstances
are exactly as they need to be - for now.

Today, I will let go of my guilt and fear about my past and present
circumstances. I will trust that where I have been and where I am
now are right for me.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Holding The Space For Transformation
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2002/10/holding-space.htm

The Truth About Fear
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/08/truth-about-fear.htm

Hold Onto The Wheel
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2001/December/opinion.htm

No Small Meetings, by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/10/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Don't Follow Me
by Alan Cohen

I saw a bumper sticker proclaiming, "Don't follow me -- I'm
following my bliss." Good advice! How much more creative
and successful would your life be if you remained true to your
own inner guidance rather than imitating the paths chosen
by others?

When you are secure in who you are, you set the trend for
your own life, and do not look to others to tell you how to live.
   I remember seeing Julia Roberts show up unannounced on
the David Letterman show one night, clad in jeans and a tee
shirt, with no make-up and her hair not styled. The audience
gave Julia a rousing welcome, and then she had a
lighthearted spontaneous interview with Letterman. Everyone
was thrilled to see her, and no one cared that she was not
glamorous that evening.

Authenticity yields far more power than ostentation. Sometimes
people become confident in themselves because they are
successful, but always people become successful because
they are confident.

For many years I wore a jacket and tie when I spoke in
churches, simply because I thought I should be appropriate.
Yet all the while I felt totally unnatural and hated it. Then one
night I asked Wayne Dyer what he wore when he spoke at
the same churches. "A sweater -- or whatever," Wayne told
me nonchalantly. "I don't even own a jacket and tie."

That did it. I realized that Wayne had been true to himself,
but I had not. I squirmed as I remembered the title of some
of my talks: "Dare to be yourself." That was the end of the
jacket and tie era for me. Other men love to wear a jacket and
tie. To be true to themselves, they must dress up. To be true to
me, I must dress comfortably. Realness is an inside job.

In Monty Python's hilarious film Life of Brian, a scofflaw during
the time of Jesus eludes Roman soldiers by disguising himself
as a pundit. Brian finds a soapbox in the town square and
spouts mock words of wisdom. As soon as the soldiers depart,
Brian makes a beeline for the city limits, only to discover that
he is being followed by a crowd of students. Soon the throng
grows from hundreds to thousands, begging their master to
teach them. Finally Brian turns and chides them, "I'm not your
master -- Just go away!"

"But master!" a voice cries out from the crowd, "tell us how we
should go away."

Many of us have given our power, money, and minds to people
whom we believe can tell us how to live. And many teachers
have given us good advice. But advice is useful only if it resonates
deep within us in a place that feels like home. So the teacher did
not give us anything we did not already have; he or she just
pointed us to what we already knew. A consultant is someone
who borrows your watch to tell you what time it is.A guru is
someone who sits by the bank of a river selling bottles of river
water. Anyone could just go directly to the river and obtain water
without going through a middle party. There are two kinds of
gurus: those who get their students hooked on bottled water
and keep upping the price, and those who show their students
how to get their own water. The best teachers are those who
work themselves out of a job.

Years ago I got involved with a cult led by a teacher who
claimed to be enlightened. The students in this organization
worshipped the teacher more than the teachings, and I went
right along with the hype. I gave my power away to this man
and I did things just to fit in with the crowd. But every time fit
in, I sold out. Eventually a scandal revealed that the teacher
had been lying to the students and engaging in covert activities
contrary to his teachings.

When the debacle became public, I felt ripped off, betrayed, and
angry. I blamed the teacher for fooling me. After some
introspection, however, I realized that I had fooled myself. If I
had been true to myself, I never would have become one of the
sheep. Then I began to appreciate the experience. I realized
that the purpose of my involvement with the teacher was not
the lessons he gave, but for me to learn to follow my own spirit
rather than the herd. Suddenly the whole process became
immensely valuable to me, and I laughed about it. It was worth
the experience to learn how to respect my sacred self rather
than external authority.

When you know that every truth you seek is available within
you, you will not place someone else's idea of how you should
live, above your own. There are many roads to the mountaintop,
but the only one that will take you all the way is the one with
your name on it.

Alan Cohen
Alan Cohen is the author of many popular inspirational books,
including the best-selling Why Your Life Sucks and What You
Can Do About It, the award-winning A Deep Breath of Life and
his newest is the prosperity guide Relax into Wealth. Join Alan
next March 9-152008 in Maui for a life-changing Mastery Training.
For information on this program and others, or to receive Alan's
free daily inspirational quote and monthly newsletter, visit
www.alancohen.com, email info@.... For information
and a free catalog of Alan's books, tapes, and seminars,
phone 800.568.3079 or write P.O. Box 835, Haiku, HI 96708.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Law Of Life

Whatever you give away today,
Or think or say or do;
Will multiply about ten fold,
And then return to you.

It may not come immediately,
Nor from the obvious source;
But the law applies unfailingly,
Through some invisible force.

Whatever you feel about another,
Be it love or hate or passion;
Will surely bounce back to you,
In some clear or secret fashion.

If you speak about some person,
A word of praise or two;
Soon tens of other people,
Will speak kind words of you.

Our thoughts are broadcasts of the soul,
Not secrets of the brain;
Kind ones bring us happiness,
Petty ones, untold pain.

Giving works as surely as,
Reflections in a mirror;
If hate you send, hate you'll get back,
But loving brings love nearer.

Remember, as you start this day,
And duty, crowds your mind;
That kindness comes so quickly back,
To those who first are kind.

Let that thought and this one,
Direct you through each day;
The only things we ever keep,
Are the things we give away.

Unknown Author

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Courage

Courage is admitting that you're afraid
and facing that fear directly.
It's being strong enough to ask for help and humble enough to accept it.
Courage is standing up for what you believe in
without worrying about the opinions of others.
It's following your own heart, living your own life,
and settling for nothing less than the best for yourself.
Courage is daring to take a first step, a big leap, or a different path.
It's attempting to do something
that no one has done before, and all others
thought impossible.
Courage is keeping heart in the face of disappointment,
and looking at defeat not as an end but as a new beginning.
It's believing that things will ultimately
get better even as they get worse.
Courage is being responsible for your own actions,
and admitting your own mistakes without placing blame on others.
It's relying not on others for your
success, but on your own skills and efforts.
Courage is refusing to quit even when you're intimidated by
impossibility.
It's choosing a goal, sticking with it,
and finding solutions to the problems.
Courage is thinking big, aiming high,
and shooting far.
It's taking a dream and doing anything,
risking everything,
and stopping at nothing to make it a reality.

Caroline Kent

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dawning of Reality

I woke up one morning and for some reason
I looked in the mirror for the first time in years.
My skin color was a sickly gray,
after changing from a greenish, yellow color.
My eyes still glowed a golden yellow.
I was skin and bones.
I was so sick and dazed from the itching
that kept me awake at night and the numerous trips
to the bathroom, when I made it that far.
I was alone, but I never felt so degraded, so low, so tired.
My stomach burned, like the inside was raw meat,
and I ached all over.
Tears were streaming down the face of the person
I didn't even recognize.
I pleaded " Help me", and at that moment I knew
that I could never live this way again.
I looked around at the filth and squalor of the little trailer
I lived in, all the empty liquor bottles crowded around
in that small camper, got sick,
and stumbled back to my filthy bed
and I prayed like I'd never prayed before
cause I knew my life was over and
I just realized for the first time that I wanted to live.
I was one of the lucky ones who was given yet another chance.

Sharlett Hunt
sharlette863@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Red Heart

Red heart is raw, ripe for the harvest.
Gently we lift each other off our branches,
careful not to bruise our fragile pride.
Red heart is rare, steak on a plate,
dripping with the savory juices of life.
Red heart is warm embers, soft memories
of birth and life, of love shared freely
with no fear too great to beat it down.
Red heart is hot copper skies, aflame
with hope; joyous unity rides each cloud.
Red heart is rhythm, pounding
count for the dancers, all moving
to the music inside their souls.
Red heart is a mother�s womb, releasing
and reveling in the miracle that she holds.
Red heart beats faster, pumps rich, red blood
through the connected veins of our lives,
nurturing and nourishing us all.
Red heart is reflection, a brilliant burning sun
alive on a calm, crystalline pool.
Red heart feels the numbing pain we share
with each other, every time a back is turned
upon another soul in need.
Red heart is open, and through its common pulse
civilization may be freed.

johnh
johnh94@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Until you make peace with who you are,
you'll never be content with what you have.
Doris Mortman

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Peace is better than war
because in peace sons bury their fathers,
but in war fathers bury their sons.
Roger Bacon

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The prayers that carry the most weight
and are of the rarest beauty
are those in which we don't demand,
but just report for duty.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Surrender to the pain.
Then learn to surrender to the good.
It's there and more is on the way.
Beyond Codependency

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

In what ways can I bring light
and warmth with my words today?
Today's Gift

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Recovery is not a given
it's an opportunity.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When you dance with a gorilla,
it's the gorilla who decides when to stop.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The first thing you put before your recovery
is the first thing you'll lose.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

My worst day in recovery was better
than my best day using.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
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and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
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To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
that you belong to
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or
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or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

It�s hard growing up when you�re old.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 24
Today I find healthy ways to express my anger
and resentments so that I can be free of them.
Today I empty myself of all anger and resentments
so that I can let love come into my heart.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I'm So Grateful

I'm so grateful that GOD
has delivered me from drugs,
and now I go to NA meetings
where I receive lots of hugs.
I'm so grateful today that money
does not burn a hole in my hands,
and I no longer run to give it to the drug man.
I'm so grateful to have a roof over my head,
life on the other side, I would probably be dead.
I'm so grateful to have a network of recovering friends,
who I know will be with me till the end.

I'm so grateful to have GOD in my heart,
for he has given me a brand new start,
I'm so grateful for my pastor at church,
because listening to him share
the words of God I have learned so much.
I'm so grateful to now be singing in the choir,
and it's all due to my higher power.
I'm so grateful because life on this side is so good,
Although I'd never thought I could do it,
my family always knew that I could.

I'm so grateful that recovery allows me to share
my experiences, hopes and strength with others,
and by doing so I'm allowed to go further.
I'm so grateful that God wakes me
every morning with "Peace of mind,"
because finally I left my other life behind
I'm so grateful that I know who I am and why I'm here,
God has also delivered me from fear

I'm so grateful to finally have a normal life,
although it's times that it's hard,
but with GOD living in my Heart, Mind and Soul
I will continue to do my part.

Written by: Ms. Carolyn Ann Jordan
mdiamond@...
Syracuse, New York

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Narcotics Anonymous is...
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=382

Twelve Traditions Checklist
www.barefootsworld.net/aatraditionchecklist.html

Eating Disorder Articles
www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/eating/index.html

NICOTINE FREEDOM: LEARNING FROM YOUR HISTORY
www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/atd/atdnicfr.html

The Oxford Group and Alcoholics Anonymous
Part Two � By Dick B.
The Steps, The Facts, The Oxford Group
www.silkworth.net/aahistory/oxford_group_connection2.html
www.silkworth.net/aahistory/oxford_group_connection3.html
www.silkworth.net/aahistory/oxford_group_connection4.html
www.silkworth.net/aahistory/oxford_group_connection5.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 24                                            Responsibility

"We are not responsible for our disease, only for our recovery
As we begin to apply what we have learned, our lives begin to
change for the better"      Basic Text, p.88

The further we go in recovery, the less we avoid responsibility
for ourselves and our actions. By applying the principles of the
Narcotics Anonymous program, we are able to change our lives.
Our existence takes on new meaning as we accept responsibility
and the freedom of choice responsibility implies. We do not take
recovery for granted.

We take responsibility for our recovery by working the Twelve
Steps with a sponsor. We go to meetings regularly and share
with the newcomer what was freely given to us: the gift of
recovery. We become involved with our home group and accept
responsibility for our part in sharing recovery with the still-
suffering addict. As we learn how to effectively practice spiritual
principles in all areas of our lives, the quality of our lives improves.

Just for today: Using the spiritual tools I've gained in recovery,
I am willing and able to make responsible choices.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Fixing Me, Not You
If somebody hurts us and we are sore, we are in the wrong also.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 90

What a freedom I felt when this passage was pointed out to me!
Suddenly I saw that I could do something about my anger, I could
fix me, instead of trying to fix them.  I believe that there are no
exceptions to the axiom.  When I am angry, my anger is always
self-centered.  I must keep reminding myself that I am human,
that I am doing the best I can, even when that best is sometimes
poor.  So I ask God to remove my anger and truly set me free.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 24th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Fourth, I have turned to a Power greater than myself.
Thank God, I am no longer at the center of the universe.
All the world does not revolve around me any longer.
I am only one among many.  I have a Father in heaven
and I am only one of His children and a small one at that.
But I can depend on Him to show me what to do and to
give me the strength to do it.  I am on the Way and the
whole power of the universe is behind me when I do the
right thing.  I do not have to depend entirely on myself
any longer.  With God, I can face anything.  Is my life in
the hands of God?

Meditation for the Day

The grace of God is an assurance against all evil.  It holds
out security to the believing soul.  The grace of God means
safety in the midst of evil.  You can be kept unspotted by
the world through the power of His grace.  You can have a
new life of power.  But only in close contact with the grace
of God is its power realized.  In order to renew it and
benefit from it, you must have daily quiet communion with
God, so that the power of His grace will come unhindered
into your soul.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may be kept from evil by the grace of God.
I pray that henceforth I will try to keep myself more
unspotted by the world.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 24, 2005

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Opening Ourselves to Love

Open ourselves to the love that is available to us.

We do not have to limit our sources of love. God and the Universe
have an unlimited supply of what we need, including love.

When we are open to receiving love, we will begin to receive it.
It may come from the most surprising places, including from
within us.

We will be open to and aware of the love that is and has been
there for us all along. We will feel and appreciate the love from
friends. We will notice and enjoy the love that comes to us from
family.

We will be ready to receive love in our special love relationships
too. We do not have to accept love from unsafe people - people
who will exploit us or with whom we don't want to have
relationships.

But there is plenty of good love available - love that heals our
heart, meets our needs, and makes our spirit sing.

We have denied ourselves too long. We have been martyrs too
long. We have given so much and allowed ourselves to receive
too little. We have paid our dues. It is time to continue the chain
of giving and receiving by allowing ourselves to receive.

Today, I will open myself to the love that is coming to me from the
Universe. I will accept it and enjoy it when it comes.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

  From Should To Would, By Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2001/09/alan-cohen.htm

Helping Loved One�s In A Crisis
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/08/helping-loved-ones.htm

Letters of Wisdom and Affirmation, Louise Hay
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/November/hay.htm

Love Stands
www.wisehearts2.com/stand/stand.html

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Let Me Help You Remember, Alan Cohen

While exiting a grocery store I noticed an unusual poster
announcing, "You already know how to meditate. Let me help
you remember." Ah, what an empowering offer, I thought�
a sharp contrast to the many advertisements for products
and services that tell us that we are stupid or broken and
need intelligence or fixing. How wonderful it feels�and how
powerfully it works�to regard ourselves and each other as
innately wise, capable of accomplishing anything we choose,
greater than any task or challenge before us. Wouldn't you
like to be regarded as magnificent?

A few years ago I signed up for a "You Fly" airplane flight
which promised that I would be able to take the stick of a
small airplane and control the plane myself. Flying an airplane
had been one of my long-time dreams, so I eagerly registered
for the flight, a three-hour jaunt over three Hawaiian islands.
What a treat, I imagined, to be in charge of the aircraft for a
few minutes in mid-air.

On the appointed day I drove to the commuter terminal at
the Maui airport, where I met the pilot, Scott. I informed Scott
that I had never piloted a plane before, and he told me that
would be no problem. Scott guided me out on the tarmac to
a small twin-engine Cessna, and he gave me a brief rundown
about the various instruments on the control panel. Scott
strapped himself into the seat next to mine and told me,
"Now here's how you take off..."

Excuse me, I thought, I don't remember the advertisement
saying anything about taking off. I started to open my mouth
to say, "Perhaps you didn't hear me say that I've never flown
before." But when I looked over at Scott he was on the radio
setting up our takeoff with the control tower. Suddenly I
understood what was happening: he thought I could do it.
To Scott, taking off was not too much to ask of me. So, in spite
of my hesitation, I decided to keep my mouth shut. I decided
that if I had a choice between me being right about my inability
or Scott being right about my ability, I would rather choose his
opinion. I would rather fulfill his expectations of my greatness
than my expectations of my ineptitude. I decided to believe in
his belief. I followed Scott's careful instructions, and within a
few minutes we were airborne.

I flew the airplane nearly three hours that day. I flew over the
dramatic north shore of Maui, past the thousand-foot
sweeping verdant cliffs of Molokai, across the golden sand
beaches of Lanai, then over whales and dolphins cavorting
in the rich blue ocean channel back to Maui. There we buzzed
my house and made our way back to the airport. For nearly
all that time I controlled the airplane, with Scott stepping in
occasionally to make minor corrections. Eventually my
nervousness had given way to exhilaration, and my doubts
yielded to confidence. As we approached the airport, Scott
surprised me again. "Now here's how you land," he told me
in a nonchalant way. Now wait just a minute, I felt like saying,
� la Barney Fife. Taking off and flying is one thing, but landing
�now that's outright dangerous. Then I remembered a
lesson from one of my favorite flyers, Richard Bach, who
suggested, " Argue for your limits, and sure enough they're
yours." I kept my mouth shut. As I guided us in according to
Scott's instructions, the Cessna was rocked by a gust of wind.
"Sure is windy here," Scott laughed. "I've seen pilots who got
their license on the mainland come here and try to deal with
these trade winds, and realize they didn't really know how to
land." Yow! Okay, just breathe, I thought. I kept following
Scott's direction until he took over the stick just before
touchdown. As I left the airport that day, I felt higher than our
flight. Scott's belief in me brought out the best in me. The
airplane flight was three hours, the lesson was for a lifetime.

Then I remembered the powerful film Stand and Deliver, in
which James Edward Olmos dramatized the true story or
Jaime Escalente, a math teacher who went into the Los
Angeles barrios and decided to teach calculus to some of
the school's lowest-functioning students. When the math
department chairwoman criticized Jaime, he boldly told her,
"The students will live up to the teacher's expectations!"
Everyone in Jaime's class went on to pass the state calculus
test. At any given moment we have two voices in our head:
one which tells us we can't, and another which tells us we
can. Which will prove true? The one we give the most
attention to. The one we act on. The one we make a stand
for.

You already know how to be magnificent. Let me help you remember.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Our Greatest Addiction

The master addiction is control.
It is not lack of courage that keeps us from moving forward,
as most people think; it is the fear of losing control.

The Spiritual Warrior can overcome addictions by surrendering control
and confronting inner enemies by embracing them like ones own children
who are misguided and looking for loving discipline
from the one who has control.
By being the master of acceptance, cooperation,
understanding, empathy and enthusiasm.

John-Roger

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Be patient.  God isn't finished with  me yet.

"Patience is our compassion for the distance between what we
are now and what we know we can be.  Because we have such fertile
imaginations, we have already formed a mental image of what the
"perfect, healthy, positively focusing" person "should" be.  You may
have formed such an image, and you also may have cast yourself as
the star of the production.  Bravo!  But, if you're putting undue
pressure on yourself to achieve these goals of perfection, health
and positivity ~ impatience has crept in.

Relax.  Life is a lifelong journey!  You'll never get out of it alive.
You're not finished with yourself and never will be.  I've yet to meet
a person who has declared, "I'm done!"  Humans have desires, dreams
and goals beyond their current reality, no matter how magnificent that
reality might be.  It's part of the human condition.

Realize, then, that the journey from here to there will never be
completed.  Such is life.  Have compassion for the distance between
where you are and where you're going next.  (Where you are now,
remember, is the goal of a former moment in time.)  Patience is a great
prescription for enjoying life.  When you learn patience with yourself,
it's easy to extend it to others.  Realize that, right now, everything
is
the way it "should" be, and when later comes, everything will be
"perfect" then, too."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

What She Doesn't Know
By Kate Reder

My friend has a problem, and sometimes I feel like I'm
the only one who notices her when she's lost and she's
tormented and she's alone in the world. And when she's
high, she comes to me and she tells me what she's done,
whether it's speed or cocaine or something bigger and
faster, something harder and louder, something else that
takes the person I laugh with and depend on away.

She is ripping herself away from her truth, and the
only way I can reach her is to let her know that I care
about her. All I can do is listen to her babble when she's
high, and weep when she's coming down, because I can't fix
her. All I can be is a friend to her until she realizes she
has a problem, until she stops running from her daytime
self to the lure of things that make her worries rest. I
can't make her stop. So it's been hard, to have her pass
out and the line go dead. To have her come to my house
running on speed, not to be with me, but so that she
doesn't get caught.

It is my right to help her. And to point out to her
how strong she is, how real and breathing and clear she is
to me, and to everyone. Because she is calling for help but
doesn't know it yet. She is yelling and swallowing her
tears, because somewhere she knows that she can't keep
packing herself away. Some time this anger or fury or
sadness will find her, and she needs to stand in its
torrential downpour and get filled by it, because somewhere
inside her she is empty. I can't be her mother, and I can't
be with her all the time, telling her what she can put in
her body and what she can't. So she has gotten lost
somewhere in the deep end, and I can't pull her out, but I
can show her how she can do it herself.

I am watching her, and I am hugging her and trying to
remind her of the countless reasons why I am so much better
from knowing her. I can listen to her when she needs me,
and when she doesn't. I can let her know that, no matter
what she does, she is my friend, and nothing will change
that. I can take a step back and see what's taking parts of
her away. I can encourage her to answer honestly when I ask
how she is. I can remind her about moderation. I can point
out the people who love her. I can show her how much she
needs to stop for herself. I can be a positive influence on
her. I can listen to her when her voice hints of this thing
that she is missing and can't find. She needs to see for
herself that her daytime self is alive and beating and
multicolored. I can help her remember what her life was
like before the dealers and the midnight fixes. I can help
her stand tall and strong, on feet and legs and ankles she
trusts. I can help her see that life is not about three-
hour solutions that make her wake up feeling dead. I can be
someone safe to her. I can care about her so much that I
point her to the exit and hold her hand as she gets there.

My friend has a problem and I am helping her. I am
listening and I am talking, and I am working with her, and
I am learning how to be the best to her. I have unshakable
confidence in her, and I know that she can stand where she
is and she can stop. I can be the person she turns to,
because she can't see right now that she can turn to
herself. She can't see it yet, but soon.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Can�t Afford It

Everything�s expensive these days
especially paying attention
to what hurts
It�s costly to look with compassion and care
many say they can�t afford it
especially if what is required
is not money
There�s no window shopping allowed
a cursory look will not suffice
After all, what�s the point of going there
if you�re not going to do something about it?

Might as well stay home
safe in your denial
It�s hard to incur the high cost of pride
by letting complacency fall off
the shoulders like a snug warm coat

Security and safety are hard to come by these days
Doesn�t matter if they come wrapped in a thin false shell
It costs dearly to look at a wound
trying-to-be-forgotten
which, when transmuted
only ends up in negative behaviours:
Denial and cold walls
A slow death from not being touched
A dying wrapped around the heart

What good if you gain the world but lose your own soul?
Is that a price you can afford?

� 2002 Stella Raymonde Savoie-Johnson
stellaraymonde@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We are Only Human

We can admit our limitations and defects.

When we admit the truth about our limitations and defects, we
create fertile ground for new growth and change. But if we
wallow in hopeless belief that our defects are just our true
nature, we grow committed to them. That is the difference
between powerlessness and helplessness. When we accept
our powerlessness to control everything, we wake up to a
deeper wisdom: that more willfulness only brings more defeat.
Some of our needs can only be met and some growth can
only happen when we receive a healing infusion of outside
help.

But when we tenaciously refuse to accept our powerlessness,
our dogged willfulness keeps us trying harder to do what we
cannot do alone. Eventually that leads to resignation and
helplessness. Our better choice is both painful and hopeful.
We can admit our limitations and defects. Then we become
receptive to help and acceptance from our mate, other people
and from our Higher Power.

Tell your partner one of your defects that you are willing to
give up.

from the book: The More We Find In Each Other by Merle Fossum
and Mavis Fossum

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Love and respect are the most important
aspects of parenting, and of all relationships."
Jodie Foster

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart...
Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens."
Carl Jung

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Dynamic" is a Greek word meaning power or strength.
To achieve greatness, we access the strength that lies within;
awakening to the belief that the universe is not malevolent,
but a benevolent place that only conspires to do us good.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The universe is one great kindergarten for man.
Everything that exists has brought with it its own peculiar lesson.
The mountain teaches stability and grandeur;
the ocean, immensity and change.
Forests, lakes, and rivers, clouds and winds, stars and
flowers, stupendous glaciers and crystal snowflakes -
every form of animate or inanimate existence,
leaves its impress upon the soul of man.
Orison Swett Marden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Recovery is a process;
relapsing is a process, too.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you escaped the lion's den,
why go back for your hat?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you fail to change the person you were
when you came in, that person will take you out.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Seven days without a meeting
makes one weak.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
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Even if your country is listed
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Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Always remember that YOU are Unique,
just like everyone else  :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting
clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 23
God is guiding me with every step
and every breath I take today.
All I have to do is wake up,
ask for help guidance and knowledge
to a power greater than myself,
and trust that I will know what to do.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


Gratitude in Reflection

As I reflect upon my past
and see the things I've done.
The selfish things to just fit in,
I thought that they were fun.
In retrospect I've realized,
that every evil deed,
were defects of my character,
driven by my greed.
Through the years I tried so hard,
to make up for my past.
Good things that I tried to do,
would seem to never last.
I tried so hard to overcome,
the wickedness in me.
Yet when I thought I really had,
I failed to truly see.
Once again the greed and lust,
would creep back in my heart.
I'd pick up my dearest friend,
drink and drugs would start.
These friends would always take me,
to places that I hated,
That was fine, because you see,
they kept me quite sedated.
As my life continued,
the sickness in me grew,
Insanity and darkness,
was all I ever knew.
Today I am so grateful,
for I've finally found my way.
To the peace of mind I longed for,
in the program of AA

Written by:
Rebecca Bowlin
rbowlin14@...
� 2002

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Newcomers Gratitude
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1136

Special Groups in A.A.
www.barefootsworld.net/aaspecialgroups.html

Bill W's Birthplace
www.wilsonhouse.org

Native American Indian General Service Office of AA
www.naigso-aa.org

Pre- A.A. Movement, The Washingtonians
www.silkworth.net/washingtonians/index.html

   The Oxford Group and Alcoholics Anonymous
www.silkworth.net/aahistory/oxford_group_connection1.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 23
Surrender

"By surrendering control, we gain a far greater power."
Basic Text, p.43

   When we were using, we did everything we could to run
things our way. We used every scheme imaginable to
bring our world under control. When we got what we wanted,
we felt powerful, invincible; when we didn't, we felt
vulnerable, defeated. But that didn't stop us-it only led to more
efforts to control and manipulate our lives into a manageable
state.

   Scheming was our way of denying our powerlessness. As
long as we could distract ourselves with our plans, we could
put off accepting that we were out of control. Only gradually
did we realize that our lives had become unmanageable and
that all the conning and manipulating in the world was not
going to put our lives back in order.

   When we admit our powerlessness, we stop trying to control
and manage our way to a better life-we surrender. Lacking
sufficient power of our own, we seek a Power greater than
ourselves; needing support and guidance, we ask that Power
to care for our will and our lives. We ask others in recovery to
share their experience with living the NA program instead
of trying to program our own lives. The power and direction we
seek is all around us; we need only turn away from self to find
it.

Just for today: I will not try to scheme and manipulate my way
to a manageable life. Through the NA program, I will surrender
myself to my Higher Power's care.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Without Reservation

When brimming with gratitude, one's heartbeat must surely result in
outgoing love, . . .
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 37

While practicing service to others, if my successes give rise to
grandiosity, I must reflect on what brought me to this point.
What has been given joyfully, with love, must be passed on
without  reservation and without expectation.  For as I grow,
I find that no matter how much I give with love, I receive
much more in spirit.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 23rd

A.A. Thought for the Day

Third, I have learned how to be honest.  What a relief!
No more ducking or dodging.  No more tall tales.  No
more pretending to be what I am not.  My cards are on
the table for all the world to see.  "I am what I am," as
Popeye used to say in the comics.  I have had an
unsavory past.  I am sorry, yet.  But it cannot be
changed now.  All that is yesterday and is done.  But
now my life is an open book.  Come and look at it, if you
want to.  I'm trying to do the best I can.  I will fail
often, but I won't make excuses.  I will face things as
they are and not run away.  Am I really honest?

Meditation for the Day

Though it may seem a paradox, we must believe in
spiritual forces which we cannot see more than in
material things which we can see, if we are going to
truly live.  In the last analysis, the universe consists
more of thought or mathematical formulas than it
does of matter as we understand it.  Between one
human being and another only spiritual forces will
suffice to keep them in harmony.  These spiritual
forces we know, because we can see their results
although we cannot see them.  A changed life --- a
new personality --- results from the power of unseen
spiritual forces working in us and through us.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may believe in the Unseen.  I pray that
I may be convinced by the results of the Unseen
which I do see.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 23

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Morning Cues

There is an important message for us first thing every day.

Often, once we get started with the day, we may not listen as
closely to life and ourselves as we do in those still moments
when we first awaken.

An ideal time to listen to ourselves is when we are laying
quietly, our defenses are down, and we're open and most
vulnerable.

What is the first feeling that floods through us, the feeling
that perhaps we are trying to avoid during the business of
the day? Are we angry, frustrated, hurt, or confused? That is
what we need to focus on and work through. That's the issue
we need to address.

When you awaken, what is the first idea or thought that
enters your mind? Do you need to finish a timely project?
Are you in need of a fun day? A restful day?

Do you feel sick and need to nurture yourself? Are you in
a negative frame of mind? Do you have an issue to resolve
with someone?

Do you need to tell someone something? Is something
bothering you? Is something feeling particularly good?

Does an idea occur to you, something you could get or
do that would feel good?

When you awaken, what is the first issue that presents
   itself? You don't have to be fearful. You don't have to
rush. You can lay still and listen and then accept the message.

We can define some of our recovery goals for the day by
listening to the morning message.

God, help me let go of my need to be in resistance to the
harmonic flow of life. Help me learn to go with the flow and
accept the help and support that You have to offer me.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Feng Shui And The Art On Your Walls
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2001/09/feng-shui.htm

How Long Healing Takes
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/08/alan-cohen.htm

Thank You For Everything
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/November/cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Help!  I'm Stuck in a Rut and I Can't Get Up!

By Lynn A.  Robinson, M.Ed.

Many self-help articles make the process of life-change and
transition look easy.

*  Lose your job?  Four Ways to Land a Six-Figure Job Next Week.

*  Getting Divorced?  Eight Dating Tips to Find the New Mr.  Or Ms.
Right

*  Broke?  Visualize Your Way to Millions!

People often fear that there's something wrong with them when
they can't instantly jump back on their feet after a setback.  It seems
easy for everyone else!  Loretta LaRoche puts it so humorously
when she says, "I'm always reminding people that the one constant
you can count on is that things happen -- and usually when you're
not in the mood for them."

Experts on change and transition have various names for the
stages of change we pass through.  You only have to look at
nature to see that all of life has ebbs and flows.  There are
seasons when plants and trees are flourishing, blooming and
growing, followed by a period where they regenerate, lying
dormant for awhile.  We as humans are no exception to this
cycle of nature.  You have periods of time when you are full to
the brim with excitement, growth, achieving your goals, meeting
with success at every turn.  Life is fun, joy-filled and amazing!

This phase is often followed by one in which you coast along
smoothly.  The job is going well, the marriage is happy, life is
good. There may be a few bumps in the road at times.  Most
days you feel that you've finally found the secret to life.  Blessed
be!  You are one of the lucky ones.

It's tempting to think that if you do all the right things in the first
two phases it will continue to be bliss all the time.  However, this
is usually not the case.  The next phase is the one that very few
people seem to like. You begin to feel dissatisfied with what
you've created.

We've all experienced these third stage life transitions.  They're
often characterized by feeling bored, restless, anxious and on
edge.  I see these feelings as a call from your wise inner being,
indicating that change is needed.  It's as if the Universe had
conspired to tell you to look within, hibernate, lie fallow for a
while and regain your strength for the next season of growth.
The writer Charles C.  West seemed to agree when he wrote,
"We turn to God for help when our foundations are shaking, only
to learn that it is God who is shaking them."

Here are some ideas to consider in order to move wisely through
this time of transition:

Understand You're Not Crazy
You just feel that way.  As noted above, this type of life transition
is likely to provoke some strong feelings, from fear to anxiety to
peace and back again.  Often your colleagues, friends and family
will try to make you feel better by offering solutions, quick fixes
and advice about what they feel you should do.  Forgive them.
It's difficult to watch someone in emotional pain, (in this case
you,) and friends will always want to help.

Be Patient
Sue Monk Kidd wrote in her wonderful book, "While the Heart
Waits," "When you're waiting, you're not doing nothing.  You're
allowing your soul to grow up.  If you can't be still and wait, you
can't become what God created you to be." This transition period
in your life is, in all likelihood, time-limited.  Practice saying the
mantra, "This too shall pass."

Honor Your Grief
There are many transitions that you go through in a few months.
You come out the other side feeling life is fresh and new and the
turmoil of the change you've gone through seems almost forgotten.
However, they are changes that leave a permanent mark on your
soul.  Losing someone -- a child, a friend, a parent --there's
nothing you can do to bring them back. You may also lose
something intangible -- a sense of safety, hope, financial
well being, or a belief in your physical immortality.  Whatever
your loss, there is part of this over which you have no control.
The part that you do control is your attitude about it.  Ask your
inner wisdom the question, "How can I find peace in this situation?"
   Listen for the answer. It will come and so will your serenity.

Talk to God
You can rail, yell, scream and cry.  God can handle it.  Talk to
God as you would to a good friend.  Tell him that you're scared
and don't know what to do.  Ask for insight.  Ask for peace and
be open to both when they come. The response may be
presented through inner means such as your intuition. It may
also come in an outer way.  You may unexpectedly run into an
old friend who has just the right thing to say, or you might find a
passage in a book that leaps out at you as the answer you've
been seeking. Remember this: You are loved.  You are cared
about and surrounded by a loving presence at all times.  You are
not alone.

Trust in a Higher Purpose
Why am I going through this?" you ask.  God knows!  And I'm
not being facetious.  Asking that question when you're in the
midst of any difficult situation doesn't usually provoke a satisfactory
response. The Universe has a plan for your life.  Have faith that
the power that causes the sun to rise and set, the trees to bloom
and babies to grow, also knows how to grow your soul and a
prosperous life for you.  There is a master plan.  The code to
unlocking this plan lies in your ability to keep your heart open
and listen to the voice of God within. Nothing else matters and
all is unfolding perfectly.  Trust the process.

Copyright (c) 2005, all rights reserved. Permission is granted
to reproduce, copy or distribute this newsletter as long as this
copyright notice and full information about contacting the
author is attached.

About the Author:
Lynn A.  Robinson, M.Ed.  Lynn is one of the nation's leading
experts on the topic of intuition.  Her most recent books include
"Real Prosperity:  Using the Power of Intuition to Create Financial
and Spiritual Abundance" (Andrews McMeel 2004), "Compass
of the Soul: 52 Ways Intuition Can Guide You to the Life of Your
Dreams" (Andrews McMeel, 2003) and "Divine Intuition: Your
Guide to Creating a Life You Love" (DK Books, 2001).

Lynn is a popular and widely recognized author and motivational
speaker as well as a columnist for www.ThirdAge.com  Her free
monthly "Intuition Newsletter" is available at her Web site,
www.LynnRobinson.com

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Spider...

I paused last night on my porch to look at a garden spider
weaving her web. I watched as she gently yet expertly wove
the suspension lines and the lines which would entrap any
insects unwary enough to wander into the gossamer treads.
She spent a great deal of time making sure everything was
perfect before centering herself in the middle of her work.
By morning, as the sun began to creep over the horizon,
this spider moves to the fringes of her web,
so carefully constructed the night before,
and snips the supporting lines to let it fall to the ground.
She repeats this every day until the end of her life.

The spider does not try to hold on to each day's work.
Instead, she lets it fall away so that she may build anew
each and every day. We should heed her lesson in our lives.
Our past failures should not be dwelled on so that
we can make room for the new opportunities of success.
Each new day brings with it renewed hope that
where we failed yesterday, we will succeed today.

Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Invocation of Oneness

I AM that I AM.
NOW and forever.
I encompass All of Life
in One Radiant Point
of Awareness.
This is my One Will.
Expanding
like a Flowering Star
with Rays of Purest Love.
This is my One Being.
Gracefully Expanding.
Loving All in Peaceful Bliss.
Opening up
into the Divine Majesty
of Supreme Being.

I AM that we are One Creation.
All Perfect.

Let it be REALIZED.
As it IS.

written by ~ QuanTron

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

New Moon

Twas dark and seldom light
In this soul of cages
Never knowing how
Just to be a bit courageous

Tis difficult to see
In this maze of confusion
Is there really light
Or is it an illusion

Darkness befalls me
Feeling so out of control
Yet there is a whispering wind
Which brings on a gentle pull

Pulling me up
  From time to time
Showing me light
A glimpse so divine

A spirit in the wind
Calls to my heart
A longing to be
And no longer depart

Stay with me
Calls the light
Embrace me
As we go in flight

Caress the moon
As it shines through the dark
A light to behold
And not just a spark

The new moon unfolds
For the unknown and the caged
And holds me tenderly
I am free from being enraged

Gently and slowly i agree
To the new moon
And take my place
No longer in a dark cocoon

oh... tis heavenly
to touch this brightness
to smell it, feel it
as it dispels the darkness

I see the stars now
so bright and so free
each having a purpose
as they twinkle with glee

no more cages
no hill to high to climb
Tis the new moon
That I embrace as mine

Written by:
Cheryl Grenert  on 3/24/01
Gr8ful2BCheryl@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Skid Row

I would think back then
I was doing so good
I would cry
If you only understood
Skid row was in my living room
I laid there drunk most every night
All I could do is yell at the children
An with my wife fight
I wasted precious years
Chasing that glow
I missed out watching my children grow
Now that family is long gone
An I'm still sitting here in my skid row chair
Wishing they were still here
Started thinking of my wife
God knows she was right
Drinking has become your only life
She would yell at loud
Me I would lay there feeling
Oh so proud
Then I saw the light
It lit up the room damn near took my sight
Oh God will you help me
Break these bonds of hell
Come to me my child and go to AA
Listen to what those people have to say
That seems so far back there
Yet it's just one drink away
Thanks to my God not today
Now God has really blessed me
With another chance
I get to see the grand kids dance
every now and then
I am so glad they did not see me back then

Daniel M Corkery
10/4/00
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

People travel to wonder at the height of mountains,
at the huge waves of the sea,
at the long courses of rivers,
at the vast compass of the ocean,
at the circular motion of the stars;
and they pass by themselves without wondering.
   Saint Augustine

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Wisdom Is The Capacity To View
Things From God's Perspective.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The grateful person doesn't measure service by the hour,
because the grateful person is always in a state of giving.
It begins with awareness.
We respond lovingly to a child asking for our help.
We give a friend a word of encouragement,
or do an act of kindness for a stranger.
And the greatest beneficiary of our caring is we.
It is our own hearts that expand.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The gem cannot be polished without friction,
nor man perfected without trials.
Chinese proverb

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If something makes your heart sing,
that's God's way of telling you it's a contribution He wants you to
make.
Sharing our gifts is what makes us happy.
We're most powerful, and God's power is most apparent on the earth,
when we're happy.
Marianne Williamson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Show up, slow up and grow up.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Keep it simple

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Relapse: Each time you come back, the tuition goes up.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

To recover, you need something to do and someone to love.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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or go to the website and unsubscribe

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http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Research Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/research.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Have you had to relocate since you`ve been in recovery ?
What was that like ?
What tips would you offer anyone else that had to move after getting clean ?

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 22
Today I pray for the knowledge of God's Will for me
and the power to carry it through.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by author
Ruth Fishel
titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK IN YOUR
LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same message, each
day
and the lasting effect that it would have on each of them as well as on the
people with
whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate for
peace, in
time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We actually do have the
power to make
that happen. This might sound like a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated
claim, but I
truly believe that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important
part of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS THIS
BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN
THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the power of
thought,
prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war can cease and there can be
peace for all
human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sobriety

There's a new glow about me,
I'm on fire!
All my loved ones gather round me
To admire.
A new spring in my gait,
A little excess overweight,
And it seems as if I never will retire.
My bright eyes seen to twinkle
When I smile.
I laugh like it's going out of style.
Seems to fit me to a tee,
Cause it's called sobriety,
And I pray that it will last for awhile.
God has opened each and every single door.
Never known this kind of happiness before.
Just as peaceful as can be,
It's my new reality,
And I hope to stay this way forevermore!

Sharlett Hunt
sharlette863@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Our Primary Purpose?
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=544

FROM AKRON to the INTERNET
A time line of A.A. communication
www.barefootsworld.net/aacommtimeline.html

A.A. Slogan
www.turningleafpress.com

He Who Loses His Life
E.B.R., "Bob," New York City.
(p. 540 in 2nd edition, p. 531 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/ebr.html

Freedom From Bondage
Wynn C. L., California.
(p. 553 in 2nd and 544 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/wynncorumlaws.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 22                                               Look who's talking

"Our disease is so cunning that it can get us into impossible
situations."
   Basic Text, p.80

Some of us say, "My disease is talking to me:' Others say, "My
head won't
turn off:' Still others refer to "the committee in my mind" or "the
monkey on my back:' Let's face it. We suffer from an incurable
malady that continues to affect us, even in recovery. Our
disease gives us warped
information about what's going on in our lives. It tells us not to
look at ourselves because what we'll see is too scary.
Sometimes it tells us we're not responsible for ourselves and
our actions; other times, it tells us that everything wrong with
the world is our fault. Our disease tricks usinto trusting it.

The NA program provides us with many voices that counter
our addiction, voices we can trust. We can call our sponsor for
  a reality check. We can
listen to the voice of an addict trying to get clean. The ultimate
solution is to work the steps and draw on the strength of a
Higher Power. That will get us through those times when "our
disease is talking."

Just for today: I will ignore the "voice" of my addiction. I will
listen to the voice of my program and a Power greater than
myself.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.
ww

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Our Children

The alcoholics may find it hard to re-establish friendly relations
with his children . . . In time they will see that he is a new man
and in their own way they will let him know it . . . From that point
on, progress will be rapid.  Marvelous results often follow such
a reunion.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 134

While on the road to recovery I received a gift that could not be
purchased.  It was a card from my son in college, saying, "Dad,
you can't imagine how glad I am that everything is okay.  Happy
Birthday, I love you."  My son had told me that he loved me before.
It had been during the previous Chirstmas holidays, when he had
said to me, while crying, "Dad, I love you!  Can't you see what
you're doing to yourself?"  I couldn't.  Choked with emotion, I
had cried, but this time, when I received my son's card, my tears
were of joy, not desperation.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden /October 22nd

A.A. Thought for the Day

Second, I am content to face the rest of my life
without alcohol.  I have made the great decision
once and for all.  I have surrendered as gracefully
as possible to the inevitable.  I hope I have no more
reservations.  I hope that nothing can happen to me
now that would justify my taking a drink.  No death
of a dear one.  No great calamity in any area of my
life should justify me in drinking.  Even if I were
on some desert isle, far from the rest of the world,
but not far from God, should I ever feel it right to
drink.  For me, alcohol is out---period.  I will always
be safe unless I take that first drink.  Am I fully
resigned to this fact?

Meditation for the Day

Day by day we should slowly build up an unshakable
faith in a Higher Power and in that Power's ability to
give us all the help we need. By having these quiet
times each morning, we start each day with a renewing
of our faith, until it becomes almost a part of us and
is a strong habit. We should keep furnishing the quiet
places of our souls with all the furniture of faith. We
should try to fill our thoughts each day with all that
is harmonious and good, beautiful and enduring.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may build a house in my soul for the spirit
of God to dwell in. I pray that I may come at last to an
unshakable faith.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 22

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Holding Your Own

Trust yourself. Trust what you know.

Sometimes, it is hard to stand in our own truth and trust what we
know, especially when others would try to convince us otherwise.

In these cases, others may be dealing with issues of guilt and
shame.They may have their own agenda. They may be immersed
in denial. They would like us to believe that we do not know what
we know; \they would like us not to trust ourselves; they would
prefer to engage us in their nonsense.

We don't have to forfeit our truth or our power to others. That is
codependency.

Believing lies is dangerous. When we stop trusting our truth,
when we repress our instincts, when we tell ourselves there
must be something wrong with us for feeling what we feel or
believing what we believe, we deal a deadly blow to our self
and our health.

When we discount that important part of ourselves that knows
what is the truth, we cut ourselves off from our center. We feel
crazy. We get into shame, fear, and confusion. We can't get our
bearings when we allow someone to pull the rug from under us.

This does not mean that we are never wrong. But we are not
always wrong.

Be open. Stand in our truth. Trust what you know. And refuse to
buy into denial, nonsense, bullying, or coercion that would like to
take you off course.

Ask to be shown the truth, clearly - not by the person trying to
manipulate or convince you, but by yourself, your Higher Power,
\and the Universe.

Today, I will trust my truth, my instincts, and my ability to ground
myself in reality. I will not allow myself to be swayed by bullying,
manipulating, games, dishonesty, or people with peculiar
agendas.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of
this publication may be reproduced in any manner without the
written permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Assisi
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2001/09/assisi.htm

God Lives Under The Bed
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/09/god-under-bed.htm

Divine Dance
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/November/feature1.htm

Get Up And Leave, by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/08/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Changing Core Beliefs
by Victoria Loveland-Coen, RScP

Many deeply held beliefs we have about ourselves and our
world stem from the original mistaken concept that we are
separate from our Source, separate from our good and
separate from each other. We were born into this belief
system which has been reinforced by our culture, and now
accept it as our reality. This deeply rooted sense of
separation gives rise to a variety of erroneous core beliefs.
These beliefs are perceptions of how life works, and are
not necessarily facts. At first glance many perceptions
appear to be true -- we can even quote statistics to support
them -- but upon closer examination we find they are not
inherently factual and, more importantly, need not be true
for us. Consider the following examples of common
erroneous core beliefs:

Life is hard and then you die


The odds are against you


All good things must come to an end


You must compete to get ahead


You have to work very hard to make enough money to live
comfortably


Good single men (women) are hard to find


Romance dies after marriage


True love is found only in fairy-tales


The older I get, the more prone to illness I am


There's not enough to go around


Or, any variation of the "I'm not enough " syndrome, such as:

I'm not educated enough, rich enough, talented enough,
young enough, well enough, thin enough, etc., to do, or have
what I desire.

You can probably add a few of your personal favorites to this list.
Many of these core beliefs have been with us a long time and are
deeply rooted in our subconscious. Imagine a record album which
has a groove deeply scored in the vinyl. Every time the record is
played, the needle falls automatically into that groove. In the same
way, our core beliefs may be deeply etched in our consciousness,
and our minds slip into those grooves automatically.

Example:
       Brenda has always wanted to have her own business. She's
had numerous innovative ideas for new ventures, so many that
her friends have dubbed her "the idea lady". Trouble is, each
time she considers putting one of her ideas into action, her
mind automatically goes to either "Most small businesses fail
in the first few years" or "I don't have enough business
education to manage it correctly" or "I don't have enough capital
to make it happen, and what bank is going to give me a loan?"
Brenda stops herself from acting before she even begins. Her
heart is telling her that having her own business would express
her potential and be a joyous, fulfilling experience, but she pulls
back every time.

       She can't even consider taking a business course to bone
up on her skills, or doing some market testing, or having
someone help her write a business plan so she can present it
to a potential investor. She can't get this far, because her
erroneous core beliefs arrest any further consideration. So, she
pushes her innovation aside and stands on the sidelines,
watching someone else bring her ideas to life.

No matter how long these erroneous core belief have been with
us, no matter how deeply implanted they are in our
subconscious, they can be uprooted. The process of uprooting
begins with identifying the erroneous core beliefs as mere
perceptions, then discovering the Truth which is hidden behind
them. When we shift our core beliefs from perception to Truth
we see the world and ourselves from a higher perspective.
Viewing our world from this vantage-point transforms our
experience of it.

The Collective Unconscious
We human beings have many prevailing perceptions we share
as a culture. These perceptions are the prevalent beliefs our
society accepts as true, generally without question. Psychologist
Carl Jung described this phenomenon as "the collective unconscious".
Ernest Holmes called it "race-mind consciousness" (referring to the
human race). Many of these shared perceptions form the basis of
our human awareness. If we do not make the effort to question
whether or not a perception is actually true, it will automatically
become part of our belief system and, consequently our experience.

Just as we can shift our individual core beliefs, those of the collective
unconscious can also be shifted. History is our best example of this.
Examine the following:

Examples:
       There was a time we believed it was impossible for a human
being to run a mile in less than four minutes. It was universally
acknowledged that the human body was physically incapable of
the challenge. Then, Roger Bannister came along and ran it in
3:59. Suddenly the limitation was removed. Since then, runners
have been steadily breaking Bannister's record. In fact, running
the mile in 3:59 is now considered slow.

       We once thought no one would ever land on the moon. In fact,
believability standards were set by this core belief, thus the phrase,
"Why, I could afford to buy that house about as easily as I could go
to the moon!" Then President Kennedy announced on television
his intention to send a manned space craft to the moon -- before the
Russians. We now had a strong national purpose for achieving this
goal. The American people believed Kennedy, and his intention
became ours. Keep in mind that the technology for such a mission
had not been developed yet! Nonetheless, as soon as we believed
we could do it, we found the way.

       Ten years ago, it was widely believed that a woman's
childbearing years were in her twenties. However, since the rise
of the women's movement, many women have chosen to delay
parenthood to have a career. As a result, the needs of women
have created an expanded consciousness. We refuse to accept
the "fact" that an older pregnancy is impossible. Again, in
response to the change in consciousness, technology has risen
to the occasion. Consequently, in the last decade, births to women
over 39 have increased by more than fifty percent. Recently,
women in their 40's and even 50's have been giving birth to
healthy babies. Today, it's not only possible, it's a common
occurrence. Looks like they'll have to update those textbooks.

In each of the above examples, as the individual or group
involved refused to accept the current limitation, they collectively
shifted from "impossibility thinking" to "possibility thinking". As a
result, they experienced freedom and success rather than limitation
and powerlessness.

Roger Bannister wrote the following about his experience: "No
longer conscious of my movement, I discovered a new unity with
nature. I had found a new source of power and beauty, a source
I never dreamt existed."

Herein lies the key. When we connect with that Source of Power
which is within us, it will expose limiting core belief for what they
are -- self-imposed. This exposure to Truth will render them
powerless.

This article is excerpted from
"Manifesting Your Desires"
by Victoria Loveland-Coen.


About The Author

Victoria Loveland-Coen is the founder of Self-Mastery Press,
a publishing company dedicated to publishing books and
tapes that promote the expression of the reader's highest
potential. Victoria facilitates workshops, is a motivational
speaker, and coaches businesses to achieve their personal
and professional goals. This article is excerpted with permission
from her book Manifesting Your Desires, �1998, published by
Self-Mastery Press. For info. about seminars, books, etc., visit
www.selfmastery.org, call 800-906-3629, or email
info@....

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beginning Today

Beginning today I will no longer worry about yesterday.
It is in the past and the past will never change.
Only I can change by choosing to do so.

Beginning today I will no longer worry about tomorrow.
Tomorrow will always be there,
waiting for me to make the most of it.
But I cannot make the most of tomorrow
without first making the most of today.

Beginning today I will look in the mirror and I will
see a person worthy of my respect and admiration.
This capable person looking back at me is someone
I enjoy spending time with and someone
I would like to get to know better.

Beginning today I will cherish each moment of my life.
I value this gift bestowed upon me in this world and
I will unselfishly share this gift with others.
I will use this gift to enhance the lives of others.

Beginning today I will take a moment to step off the
beaten path and to revel in the mysteries I encounter.
I will face challenges with courage and determination.
I will overcome what barriers there may be which hinder
my quest for growth and self-improvement.

Beginning today I will take life one day at a time,
one step at a time.
Discouragement will not be allowed
to taint my positive self-image,
my desire to succeed or my capacity to love.

Beginning today I walk with renewed faith in human kindness.
Regardless of what has gone before, I believe there
is hope for a brighter and better future.

Beginning today I will open my mind and my heart.
I will welcome new experiences. I will meet new people.
I will not expect perfection from myself nor
anyone else: perfection does not exist in an imperfect world.
But I will applaud the attempt to overcome human foibles.

Beginning today I am responsible for my own happiness
and I will do things that make me happy . . .
admire the beautiful wonders of nature, listen to my
favorite music, pet a kitten or a puppy, soak in a bubble bath
. . .pleasure can be found in the most simple of gestures.

Beginning today I will learn something new; I will
try something different; I will savor all the
various flavors life has to offer.
I will change what I can and the rest I will let go.
I will strive to become the best me I can possibly be.

Beginning today. And every day.

Penny White

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Trusting the Source
Paul Ferrini

"Trust in your connection to the Source of all things.  You have
everything you need to be guided wisely in your life.  You are
no further away from God than I am.  You don't need me to
bring you to the feet of the Divine.  You are already there.

God is incapable of moving away from you.  When you do
not feel the presence, it is because you have moved away.
You have given your power to some earthly authority.  You
have left the place of the indwelling God in search of
something special in the world.  That search always comes
up empty, but that doesn't mean that you won't keep trying to
find the answer somewhere outside of yourself. If you have
a teacher who empowers you, I am happy.  It does not matter
to me if that teacher is a Buddhist or a Jew, a Christian or
a Moslem, a shaman or a businessman.  If you are learning
to trust yourself, if you are becoming more open in your mind
and your heart, then I am happy for you.  It does not matter
what specific path you are on, what symbols you believe in,
or what scrolls you consider sacred. I look to the fruit of your
beliefs to see if you are stepping into your divinity or giving
your power away to someone else.

No, I do not want your exclusive allegiance.  I simply ask you to
choose a teacher who empowers you to discover truth within
your own heart, for there alone will you find it.  When you give
your power away, to me or to anyone else, I know that you have
not heard me."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Gift

I have a gift
that shines more brilliantly
than the brightest star.
This gift gives me strength,
it preserves my hope,
allowing me to escape disaster.
I work daily for this gift,
struggling step by step,
living in traditions.
My gift is powerful
carrying the message to others.
I give my gift freely
to those attracted to it,
as I have been told
"You can't keep it
unless you give it away".
Once a year my peers
congratulate me
by making me a cake,
giving me a coin,
and asking me to speak
about this wonderful gift
I have received from them
and my Higher Power.

Written by ~ Frank
FBERESHEIM@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Walking Toward Surrender
by Judy Shepps Battle

So God
What do You want next?
What is Your will
                    or won't?
How many more layers
       to peel
one illusion at a time?

My life
     built on addiction
     ego-based structure
     grandiose architect
flounders.

Recovery teaches lessons
offers opportunity for surrender
but
My Self does not yield gracious
My Will wants its way
My Disease wants to live
      mutated
      distorted
      in disguise
protected from God's presence
safe from God's healing
free to gain revenge
   for its abandon.

Simple the antidote
Profound the prayer
Gentle the heart

Whispering...

Father I give my Self to thee.
Teach me to live
Each moment breathing Thy will
Dying unto expectation
Living unto hope.

Grant me courage, Lord
To walk ego-free
To enjoy You in me
                    in others
                    in this day.

Father
I flail and flounder
wrestling this disease
calling out Uncle
only after the wreckage returns.
.
Thank you for accepting my
aging addict self.

It's a one-sided bargain
You get disease, riotous will,
  endless expectation, disappointment,
  dissatisfaction, pessimism, omnipotence,
  grandiosity, perpetual pout and
  lack of gratitude
and each time
give me peace and
another chance to get it right.

Copyright 2003 Judy Shepps Battle
WriteAction@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Change.
It has the power to uplift, to heal, to stimulate, surprise,
open new doors, bring fresh experience and create excitement
in life. Certainly it is worth the risk.
Leo Buscaglia

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sadder than work left unfinished is work never begun.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You get treated in life the way you train people to treat you.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you believe you can, you probably can.
If you believe you won't, you most assuredly won't.
Belief is the ignition switch that gets you off the launching pad.
Denis Waitley

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Love and compassion are the moral fabric of world peace.
The Dalai Lama

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Service is gratitude in action.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sharing: Be a channel, not a dam.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sharing: Give to God and God will give to you.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sharing: We can only keep what we have, by giving it away.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer's Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
are included:

To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
that you belong to
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or
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or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

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http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

        ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
   <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
       \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
        /  \/  \        embracing each other"
        `""``""`

Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

Mom and Dad Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/mom&dad.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"One of My Friends In Recovery Passed On,
I am going through so many feelings..... HELP!!!
How do I Deal with Loss and Grieving in Recovery
and feel these feelings and not use?"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 21
Today I know that I am not alone.
Today I know that God guides me in all situations
and all I have to do to get help is to ask for it.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by author
Ruth Fishel
titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK IN YOUR
LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same message, each
day
and the lasting effect that it would have on each of them as well as on the
people with
whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate for
peace, in
time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We actually do have the
power to make
that happen. This might sound like a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated
claim, but I
truly believe that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important
part of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS THIS
BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN
THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the power of
thought,
prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war can cease and there can be
peace for all
human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Who Knew

Who knew when we took that first chance,
And decided to follow the crew.
That our life would turn into one from hell,
And we'd do things we normally wouldn't do.

I didn't mean to steal my mommy's sleep,
Or cause my brother's & sister's to cry.
I thought it was a joke when mom took out that policy,
When she felt my lifestyle would cause me to die.

I didn't know when at the end of the road,
As I stood at the edge of those tracks not wanting to do any more,
No longer having a will to live,
My Higher Power had something else in store.

You couldn't have told me how life could be,
At a time  in my life when I could not see.
My candle was dim but it wasn't burned out,
Once again God showed me what he's all about.

My spirit is on fire now that I've had a chance to live,

The only way I can keep what I have, is to freely give it away.
To anyone God puts in my path,
In hopes they may see another day.

(c) 2002
Rob W.
icmeinu2@...
Harrisburg, Pa.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Positively Negative
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=850

How It (An AA Group) Works
www.barefootsworld.net/aahowgroupworks.html

N.A. Step Working Guide
www.earthgroupna.org/literature/stepguide/

The Career Officer
Sackville M., Dublin, Ireland.
(p. 523 in 2nd, p. 517 in 3rd editions.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/sackvillemollins.html

Another Chance
Bertha V., Louisville, Kentucky.
(p. 526, 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/berthav.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 21                                        God's Will Today

"This decision demands continued acceptance, ever-increasing
faith, and a daily commitment to recovery."
IP No.14, "One Addict's Experience�"

  Sometimes, we really live the Third Step-and it's great! We
don't regret the past, we aren't afraid of the future, and we're
generally pleased with the present. Sometimes, though, we
lose our vision of God's will in our life.

  Many of us dream of erasing the mistakes of our past, but the
past cannot be erased. Many of us are grateful this is so, for
our past experiences have brought us to the recovery we
enjoy today. By working the program, we can learn to accept
the past and reconcile ourselves with it by amending our
wrongs. Those same Twelve Steps can help eliminate our
worries over the future. When we practice NA principles
on a daily basis in all our affairs, we can leave the results
up to our Higher Power.

  It seems as though our members with the strongest faith are
the ones who are best able to live in the present moment.
Enjoyment, appreciation, and gratitude for the quality of our
lives-these are the results of faith in life itself. When we
practice the principles of our program, today is the only
day we need.

Just for today: I will make the most of today, and trust that
yesterday and tomorrow are in God's care.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

First Things First

Some of us have taken very hard knocks to learn this truth:
Job or no job - wife or no wife - we simply do not stop
drinking so long as we place dependence upon other people
ahead of dependence on God.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 98

Before coming to A.A., I always had excuses for taking a drink:
"She said.. .," "He said. . .," "I got fired yesterday,"  "I  got a
great job today."  No area of my life could be good if I  drank
again.  In sobriety my life gets better each day. I must always
remember not to drink, to trust God, and to stay active in A.A.
Am I putting anything before my sobriety, God, and A.A.  today?

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 21st

A.A. Thought for the Day

Now that we have considered the obligations of real,
working members of A.A., let us examine what the
rewards are that have come to us as a result of our
new way of living.  First, I understand myself more
than I ever did before.  I have learned what was the
matter with me and I know now a lot of what makes
me tick.  I will never be alone again.  I am just one of
many who have the illness of alcoholism and one of
many who have learned what to do about it.  I am not
an odd fish or a square peg in a round hole.  I seem
to have found my right place in the world.  Am I beginning
to understand myself?

Meditation for the Day

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock.  If any man hear
my voice and open the door, I will come in to him and will
remain with him and him with me."  The knocking of God's
spirit, asking to come into your life, is due to no merit of
yours, though it is in response to the longing of your heart.
Keep a listening ear, an ear bent to catch the sound of the
gentle knocking at the door of your heart by the spirit of
God.  Then open the door of your heart and let God's spirit
come in.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may let God's spirit come into my heart.
I pray that it may fill me with an abiding peace.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 21

You are reading from the book  The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

"When I began recovery from chemical dependency, I had to
face my money mess stone cold sober, and I really had a
mess," said one woman.

"I wasn't able to earn much at first, and it was important to me
to make amends. I had past due bills from years before. I
needed to try to stay current with my new bills. I had a lot
more money before I sobered up. But in time, slowly, gradually,
my financial situation cleared up. I restored my credit. I had a
checking account. I had a little money in the bank.

"Then I married an alcoholic and began to learn about my
codependency - the hard way. I lost myself, my feelings, my
sanity, and all the progress I had made with my financial affairs.
My husband and I opened a checking account together, and
he over drafted checks until I lost the right to have a checking
account. I let him charge and charge on my credit card, and he
drove that into the ground.

"We borrowed and borrowed to keep our sinking ship afloat -
and we borrowed a lot from my parents," she said. "By the time
I began my recovery from codependency, I was again facing
a real financial mess. I was furious, but it didn't matter who did
what. I had some serious financial matters to face if that part of
my life was ever going to become manageable again.

"Slowly - very slowly - I began to work out of my mess. It seemed
impossible! I didn't even want to face it, it felt so overwhelming
and hopeless. But I did. And each day I did the best I could to
be responsible for myself.

"One decision I made was to separate and protect myself
financially from my husband, the best I could, before and
after we divorced. The other decision I made was to face
and begin reconstructing the financial affairs in my life.

"It was difficult. We owed over fifty thousand dollars, and my
ability to produce income had dramatically decreased. I was
grieving; my self-esteem was at an all time low; my energy was
low. I did not know how I would ever untangle this nightmare.
But it did happen. Slowly, gradually, with the help of a Higher
Power, manageability crept in and replaces chaos.

"I began by not spending more than I earned. I paid back some
creditors, a little at a time. I let go of what I couldn't do, and
focused on what I could do.

"Now, eight years have passed. I am debt free, which I never
imagined possible. I am living comfortably, with money in the
bank. My credit has been restored, again. And I intend to keep
it that way.

"I am not willing to lose my financial sanity and security again,
ever, for love or for alcoholism. With the help of God and the
Twelve Steps, I won't have to."

One day at a time, we can be restored in recovery - mentally,
emotionally, spiritually, physically, and financially. It may get
worse before it gets better - because we are finally facing reality
instead of dodging it. But once we make the decision to take
financial responsibility for ourselves, we are on our way.

God, help me remember that what seems hopeless today can
often be solved tomorrow, even if I can't see the solution. If I
have allowed the problems of others to hurt me financially, help
me repair and restore my boundaries around money - and what
I am willing to lose. Help me understand that I do not have to
allow anyone else's financial irresponsibility, addiction, disease,
or problem to hurt me financially. Help me go on with my life in
spite of my present financial circumstances, trusting that if I am
willing to make amends and be responsible, things will work out.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permissionof the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Let Me Help You Remember, by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2000/10/alan.htm

How Heavy Is This Glass of Water?
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/09/heavy-glass-water.htm

The Beauty Of Spiritual Psychotherapy:
From Despair to Hope; From Rage to Infinite and Unconditional Love
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/December/pressman.htm

Get Up And Leave, by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/08/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Free To Be Me
by Marie T. Russell

Marie T. RussellWhat a liberating thought � I am free to be
me! Think about it... for years you have been molded and
pushed to behave in certain 'acceptable' ways. You have
been asked to adhere to tradition, to behave according to
certain accepted rules of behavior, and to dress according
to the norm. To act like the Jones. To make sure you didn't
"paint outside the lines".

You have done as you were told, fearing punishment or worse,
afraid of not being loved. You have accepted beliefs that others
held without question. You agreed with what others said about
you -- you were smart, stupid, pretty, ugly, etc. You have
believed that what others thought was true of you had to be
so � that others knew best -- that they were smarter or wiser
and somehow knew what was good for you.

Yet, if you look within, you know that some of those accepted
beliefs are not necessarily your truths. They are the truths of
those around you. For example as a child, you may have been
told that you were too noisy, or too playful. Now obviously, if
you were behaving in that fashion this was how you wanted to
be -- that was the real you wanting to express itself. When we
were told that we were 'too' this or 'too' that, we felt that our
behavior must be incorrect and adapted ourselves to what was
expected of us... and thus lost our spontaneity and joy in the
process.

Whose rules are we following now? The ones imposed by our
parents? And whose rules were they following? Their parents?
It goes back for many millennium and has nothing to do with us.
Need there be rules at all? If we all were true to our "inner self"
or our "higher self", rules would be unnecessary.

We all have an ingrained sense of right and wrong, of what is
loving and what is not, of what is "right" and what is not. It is time
to return to trusting ourselves -- to trusting that small inner voice,
that sense of true joy and spontaneity. We need to free up our
true selves by releasing them from the chains and rules of
conduct that were imposed on us. We are trustworthy! We can
  follow our inner wisdom and it will always support us and guide
us.

I am free to be me! This thought, when affirmed regularly, brings
freedom. Now the first thing you may notice, as you tell yourself
that you are free to be you, are certain fears, doubts, and guilt
coming up. I remember thinking that the 'me' that was inside was
not a 'good' one � that I was selfish, unworthy, unlovable, etc.
etc. When you look inside yourself, you may discover some similar
beliefs � that if you are truly 'yourself' you will be unacceptable to
your boss, friends, mate, co-workers, etc. Yet that is simply a
figment of your imagination, of your fears, or of someone else's
fears.

The 'you' inside is that same innocent, spontaneous child that you
were � the one who was amazed at the beauty of a dandelion
flower, or that could find immense joy in splashing around in a
mud puddle � that playful being who enjoyed the present and did
not concern itself about "proper" and acceptable societal norms (i.e.
dirty clothes, weeds on the lawn, 'proper' attire and behavior, etc.).
That spontaneous, natural, and joyful person still resides inside of
you. All you need to do is give it permission to 'come out and play'.

We can now step forth from behind our masks and take the risk to
be real... to express our joys, our fears, our insecurities, our love,
our hopes, and our dreams. I am free to be me! I can allow myself
to be spontaneous. I can let myself be real and feel my feelings,
express the truth as I see it in the present moment, and let my love
for life radiate from my being, expressed in my thoughts, words,
and actions.

Trust yourself. You are an innocent, joyful being. Within you are
the seeds of joy, happiness, and success. Affirm: "I am free to be
me! I am free to express myself in whatever ways seem loving and
true to my inner being. I am free to be me and to create the world I
want around me. I have the right to express my inner divinity and
to live a life of love, joy, and creativity."

Trust your instincts. Trust that small inner voice that guides you to
the right, loving action. That small inner voice is who you really
are. That terrible person you have imagined yourself to be is a
machination of your imagination, fears, and self-doubts. Yes, you
have made mistakes... haven't we all? Yes, you had instances
where you were unjust, petty, and did not express loving or peaceful
thoughts. Those are nothing more than experiences that you went
through -- errors in judgment. Your true inner self is still an innocent,
loving being -- an angel in physical form. That is who you are. You
can reclaim it now! You are free to be who you really are! A divine
child of the Universe...

About The Author

Marie T. Russell is the founder of InnerSelf Magazine (founded 1985).
She also produced and hosted a weekly South Florida radio broadcast,
Inner Power, from 1992-1995 which focused on themes such as self-
esteem, personal growth, and well-being. Her articles focus on
transformation and reconnecting with our own inner source of joy
and creativity.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

This is the Day
Virginia Santoro

"There won't be a day much better than this.
This is the day you just don't want to miss...
The chance to speak up, to make amends.
This is the day to love your family and friends.

There's never a time much better than now.
There's no time like today for discovering how...
To say I love you, or to apologize.
Forget about finding what for's and why's.

There's never a chance much better than yours.
This opportunity has never been before.
Step up and take it.  Don't hesitate.
Do your heart's urging before it's too late.

This is the day the Lord has made.
Use each precious second before it fades.
Rejoice!  Go for it!  Do what you can do!
This day is made especially for you."

Virginia Santoro
� 2000
MorningMusings@...
www.myspace.com/morningmusings
www.hometown.aol.com/morningmusings

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The world is a wheel always turning. Those who are high go
down low, and those who've been low go up higher.
-- Anzia Yezierska

Everything changes. Nothing stays the same. And letting go of
the way things are, anticipating instead what they might become,
frees us to live each moment more fully.

Time marches on, and our destiny marches with it. There is
purpose in how our lives unfold; the ups and downs serve
our growth. We must neither resent the doldrums nor savor
too long the elation. Giving too much attention to either state
interferes with our awareness of the present. And the present
has come to teach us.

We must move with time. We must focus our attention on the
moment and accept whatever feelings each experience elicits.
Emotional maturity is accepting our feelings and letting them
go and facing instead the next moment with fresh receptivity.
Our lessons are many, and they accompany the lows as well
as the highs. We can be grateful for both.

Our journey has taught us freedom from lingering lows. It has
given us the tools to move confidently forward, trusting that all
is well. Nothing lasts forever, and within each struggle is the
opportunity for real growth.

The highs will pass away, just as will the lows. They visit us
purposefully. I will give them their freedom and find mine as well.

from the book: Each Day a New Beginning by Karen Casey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Recovery and Discovery

In this program I have found real friends
Cuz they're still there for me in the end.

I cannot say the road wuz perfect
But this program works if ya work it.

Now I'm leaving to be on my own
to fight my addiction all alone.

But I won't be alone anymore
For my Higher Power will help me open the door,
To guide and protect,
To help me learn and accept,
To let me learn to drop my pride,
And say how I really feel inside.

Now I'm leaving and saying goodbye to discovery
To enter the real world and start my recovery.

So now it's over and I'm on my my way.
I gotta do it just for today.

by Josh P.

This is a poem written by a 17 year old addict for his completion
of treatment. I thought it was moving and wanted to share it.
DEve880886@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

  Choices

Choices here and choices there
Choices seem to be everywhere
There are good choices
And
There are bad
There are happy choices
And
There are sad
The choices I make today
I handle with prayer
I consider others before I act
Remembering always my pact
To God above
He spared me with His love
Seems like only yesterday
I would say
It's my choice
I would say hush to my inner voice
I know what's good for me
I'm self-centered as can be
Self centered and selfish
I blazed a trail
Caring not whom I would impale
Make choices only for me
I chose to use alcohol and drugs
To set me free
I felt my it was choice to do it all
I hurt my children
And
I hurt my wife
I hated my addicted life
Now I thank God that I'm finally free
I owe it all to the God of my world you see
God at the center me to the side
Feeling free no need to hide
Share my experience and hope
With all I see
I show them how I cope
With 12 steps to be free

Daniel M Corkery
10/6/00
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Too often we under estimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind
word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of
caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.
Leo Buscaglia

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Applied to other people, forgiveness is a process through which
we seek to free ourselves from the bondage to another person
that is maintained for as long as we stand in judgment of them.
Joan Borysenko, Ph.D., Fire In The Soul

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

...As it relates to forgiveness, you must give up what you do not want
in order to make room for what you do want.
You must give up pain, anger, resentment, and fear
in order to experience goodness, joy, peace, and love...
As long you hold on to the belief that
anyone on earth can do anything to you,
you will be unable to forgive.
Iyanla Vanzant

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Forgiveness remains the only path that leads out of hell.
Whether we're forgiving our parents, someone else, or ourselves,
the laws of mind remain the same:
As we love, we shall be released from pain,
and as we deny love, we shall remain in pain.
Marianne Williamson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Steps =
Trust in God,
clean house,
and help others others.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Steps =
Trace it,
Face it,
Erase it
and Replace it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Steps =
Give it up,
Clean it up,
Make it up
and Keep it up.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The answers are in the Steps

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Steps  = Solution To Every Problem's Spiritual


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer's Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
are included:

To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
that you belong to
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

        ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
   <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
       \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
        /  \/  \        embracing each other"
        `""``""`

Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

Homelife Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/homelife.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"One of My Friends In Recovery Passed On,
I am going through so many feelings..... HELP!!!
How do I Deal with Loss and Grieving in Recovery
and feel these feelings and not use?"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 20
It feels so good to know that
I am healing from my old wounds.
As I bring love and acceptance to myself today
I can watch the pain disappear and
I feel so much better about myself.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Light

Playing in the sunlight
happy as can be;
making images with my shadow
was a past-time filled with glee.
My shadow followed faithfully
while playing in the light,
always willing to tag along
and never out of spite.

Then I found new playmates
they truly made me laugh;
blindly I would follow them
onto a darkened path.
Frolicking in the darkness
was fun for a short while,
but as I spent more time there
I found I lost my smile.

With hope I ran back to the light,
but I was blinded by the glare.
Looking down, I was filled with guilt,
my shadow was lying there.
In fear I ran back to the night
to Quench my shame with false delight.

Looking for my smile
I wandered aimlessly:
finding only desolation,
I was filled with agony.

Then a whisper called out to me,
from somewhere in the night.
It sounded like the shadow
that I left back in the light.

"Close your eyes and listen", it said,
"I'll tell you where to go."
"I'll lead you back into the light but,
you have to take it slow."
"Why", I cried, "I'm dying,
going slow just don't seem right!"
"Your eyes so used to darkness", he said,
"could never take the light."

So I closed my eyes and listened
for the way I was to go,
and soon I was united with
that friend from long ago.
Reunited with my shadow
has brought me such delight, but,
the voice that I was hearing
was coming from the light.

Rick J.
10/01/00
mrclean57103@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Recovery Acronyms
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1157

On the 4th Edition of The BigBook, Boston Globe, 12/26/01
An article on page F1 by David Mehegan, Globe Staff, 12/26/01.
www.barefootsworld.net/aabostglobe122601.html

History of A.A.
www.silkworth.net/aahistory/historyaa.html

Slips and Human Nature
www.silkworth.net/silkworth/slipshumannature.html

Desperation Drinking
Pat M., New York City
(p. 509 in 2nd edition, p. 512 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/patm.html

The Prisoner Freed
Author unknown, New York City.
(p. 495 in 2nd edition, 508 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown10.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 20                                      Freedom to Choose

"Enforced morality lacks the power that comes to us when we
choose to live a spiritual life."   Basic Text, p.44

     In our active addiction, many of us lived our lives by default.
We were unwilling or unable to make choices about how we
wanted to act, what we preferred to do, or even where we would
live. We allowed the drugs or other people to make our most
basic decisions for us. Freedom from active addiction means,
among other things, the freedom to make those choices for
ourselves.

      Freedom of choice is a wonderful gift, but it's also a great
responsibility. Choice allows us to find out who we are and
what we believe in. However, in exercising it, we're called on
to weigh our own choices and accept the consequences. This
leads some of us to seek out someone who will make our
choices for us-our sponsor, our home group, our NA friends-
just as our disease made our choices for us when we were
using. That's not recovery

Seeking others' experience is one thing; abdicating personal
responsibility is something else. If we don't use the gift of
freedom we've been given, if we refuse to accept the
responsibilities that go along with it, we'll lose that gift and
our lives will be diminished. We are responsible for our own
recovery and our own choices. Difficult as it may seem; we
must make those choices for ourselves and become willing
to accept the consequences.

Just for today: I am grateful for the freedom to live as I choose.
Today, I will accept responsibility for my recovery, make my own
choices, and accept the consequences.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Vigilance

We have seen the truth demonstrated again and again: "Once
an alcoholic, always an alcoholic." Commencing to drink after
a period of sobriety, we are in a short time as bad as ever.  If we
are planning to stop drinking, there must be no reservation of any
kind, nor any lurking notion that someday we will be immune to
alcohol.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 33

Today I am an alcoholic. Tomorrow will be no different.  My
alcoholism lives within me now and forever. I must never forget
what I am.  Alcohol will surely kill me if I fail to recognize and
acknowledge my disease on a daily basis. I am not playing a
game in which a loss is a temporary setback. I am dealing with
my disease, for which there is no cure, only daily acceptance and
vigilance.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden  / October 20th

A.A. Thought for the Day

For the past few weeks we have been asking ourselves
some searching questions.  We have not been able to
answer them all as we would like.  But on the right
answers to these questions will depend the usefulness
and effectiveness of our lives and to some extent the
usefulness and effectiveness of the whole A.A. movement.
It all boils down to this: I owe a deep debt to A.A. and to
the grace of God.  Am I going to do all I can to repay that
debt?  Let us search our souls, make our decisions, and
act accordingly.  Any real success we have in life will
depend on that.  Now is the time to put our conclusions
into effect.  What am I going to do about it?

Meditation for the Day

"Our Lord and our God, be it done unto us according to
Thy will."  Simple acceptance of God's will in whatever
happens is the key to abundant living.  We must continue
to pray.  "Not my will but Thy will be done."  It may not
turn out the way you want it to, but it will be the best
way in the long run, because it is God's way.  If you
decide to accept whatever happens as God's will for
yourself, whatever it may be, your burdens will be lighter.
Try to see in all things some fulfillment of the Divine intent.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may see the working out of God's will in my life.
I pray that I may be content with whatever He wills for me.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 20

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Detaching with Love

Sometimes people we love do things we don't like or approve of.
We react. They react. Before long, we're all reacting to each other,
and the problem escalates.

When do we detach? When we're hooked into a reaction of anger,
fear, guilt, or shame. When we get hooked into a power play - an
attempt to control or force others to do something they don't want
to do. When the way we're reacting isn't helping the other person
or solving the problem. When the way we're reacting is hurting us.

Often, it's time to detach when detachment appears to be the least
likely, or possible, thing to do.

The first step toward detachment is understanding that reacting
and controlling don't help. The next step is getting peaceful -
getting centered and restoring our balance.

Take a walk. Leave the room. Go to a meeting. Take a long, hot
bath. Call a friend. Call on God. Breathe deeply. Find peace. From
that place of peace and centering will emerge an answer, a solution.

Today, I will surrender and trust that the answer is near.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Labyrinths� A Resurgence of Ancient Tools
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2000/10/Labyrinths.htm

The Moment After
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/09/dannial-jackson.htm

Healthy Boundaries
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/December/vissell.htm

Mistake Salad, by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/07/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Healing Allowed
Alan Cohen

While I was presenting a program at a long-established spiritual
retreat center, several participants and I were eating lunch at a
picnic bench next to a snack bar. As we finished, one of the
participants stood behind me and began to gently massage my
neck and shoulders. I, of course, was delighted to receive this
gift. I sat at the bench with my eyes closed, soaking it up.

Suddenly I was jarred by a deep voice booming, "No healing
allowed here!" I was certain this was another student playing
a joke, and I opened my eyes to see who it was. To my surprise,
the retreat center security guard was standing behind us. He
looked the part: burly, a close-shorn crew cut, and a well-
substantiated gut brimming over his belt. His name badge
said "George." I looked at George in disbelief.

"Im sorry,"

George uttered authoritatively. "No healing is allowed on the
campus except in the healing temple. If you want to be healed,
you have to go there."

I looked around at my friends and we cracked up. We thought
this was a practical joke. After all, who would make a rule
against someone being healed? We looked again at George
and realized this was no joke. The student removed her
hands from my shoulders and sat down.

After lunch I walked back to my room for a siesta. By that time
I decided the situation was quite funny. Who, then, do you think
I encountered along the way? You guessed it! Officer George.
I decided I would have some fun with George. "Sorry about that
healing back there," I told him. "I can't imagine what came over
me."

George remained quite serious. "I hope you understand. If I let
you do healing there, before you know it, people will be healing
all over the place!" I had to muster all the will power I could to
keep a straight face.

I told George, "And that's the last thing we would want to see
happen, isn' it?"

"That's right," he answered.

I dashed to my room, closed my door, and roared. This was too
strange to be true. Then I remembered a Bible story that put my
experience in perspective.

Jesus was admonished by the Pharisees for healing on the
Sabbath. Now, if you value healing, you would love to see
anyone who needed healing, receive it, right? My God, if you
were in pain and someone came along who could help you
feel better, you would jump at the opportunity. But not the
Pharisees; they had rules, you know. Later Jesus chastised
them, "You pay more attention to the letter of the law than the
spirit. . .You strain over a gnat, and miss the whole camel."

Now I'm sure that George was a very nice man, and he was just
doing his job to the best of his ability. I took the experience as a
lesson that I cannot afford to miss the Big Picture because I have
gotten caught in the details. And what about other ways that we
push healing away? What about the various actions we believe
are prerequisites for healing? Do you believe that you need to
attain a certain level of spiritual purity before you can be healed?
Or quit smoking? Or meet the right guru? Or master your sexual
desires? Or be a vegetarian? Or have the right mate? Or earn
enough money to have the right medical treatment? Or lose 10
pounds? Or? Or? Or?

Healing can happen anywhere, in any way, under any
circumstances, through any person or avenue. The universe is
always trying to deliver well-being to us. There are no obstacles
outside of us. The only obstacle is our own resistance to it. No
external condition whatsoever is required for healing. The only
conditions are internal. What makes or breaks healing is our
belief, our desire, our willingness, our openness, our readiness.
One thing is or sure: the moment you are ready and willing, the
healing must come.

A Course in Miracles tell us that all that is required for healing
is "a little willingness," and that "the real doctor is the mind of
the patient." We choose doctors or external agents who tell us
what we want to hear. If you want to be healed, you will find a
doctor who will tell you that you can get better, If you hold some
investment in staying ill, there are plenty of doctors who will
agree with you.

When my mother was seeing an oncologist, one day I
accompanied her to his office and asked him about my mother's
prognosis. He told me it was not good. When I asked him if there
was anything he could do for her, he answered, "We are not the
masters of biology."

Right then and there I knew he and I had nothing to talk about.
He believed that cells are in charge of the universe, and I believed
souls are in charge of the universe. End of conversation.

My mother, you see, was ready to leave. A few months later
she passed away, but before she did, she told me that she was
ready to go. She told me that she had led a good life, she was
very proud of me, and she had done everything she had wanted
to do. It was her choice to move on. Interesting, isn't it, that she
picked a doctor who agreed with what she intended to do
anyway?

There are many cancer patients who are not ready to go, and they
find Bernie Siegels and Andrew Weills and others who say, "You
have a choice. If you choose to be alive and well, I can help you
to do that." These doctors would be the first to admit that they are
not the source of healing; they are the agents chosen by the
patients to assist them with their intentions. There are Patients
who realize that spirit is the master of life, not biology.

Healing is allowed here. Healing is allowed wherever it is
chosen.

Alan Cohen
Alan Cohen is the author of many popular inspirational books,
including the best-selling Why Your Life Sucks and What You
Can Do About It, the award-winning A Deep Breath of Life and
his newest is the prosperity guide Relax into Wealth. Join Alan
next March 9-152008 in Maui for a life-changing Mastery
Training. For information on this program and others, or to
receive Alan's free daily inspirational quote and monthly
newsletter, visit www.alancohen.com, email info@....
For information and a free catalog of Alan's books, tapes, and
seminars, phone 800.568.3079 or write P.O. Box 835, Haiku, HI 96708.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Not Yet
Virjinja

This is a work-in-progress,
this thing called "Me."
God's not finished with me yet...
how can I hope to be?

Every day a chance for refinement
comes begging after me...
I'm given the chance to perfect my dance ~
with blessed opportunities.

When they ask if I've arrived,
if I'm where I'm supposed to be,
my answer is a resounding "maybe..."
I'm on my way, at the very least.

What an amazing lifetime project!
I'm always "in the works," you see.
"Not yet" is the reply you'll be getting...
when inquiring as to my finality.

�  2003 Virginia Santoro ~ All Rights Reserved
MorningMusings@...
www.myspace.com/morningmusings
www.hometown.aol.com/morningmusings

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Inner Balance

   There's a small shrub growing in the middle of the lawn. When
we first came here, it was just a bunch of sticks with a little bit
of green here and there. If it had been mine, I would have pruned
out all the dead wood, probably right down to the ground, and
because pruning encourages new growth, a 'new plant' would
have emerged. But it wasn't mine and consequently, I didn't
touch it. That was in the winter.

   Now it's Spring and that little Cape Myrtle is very green... all
over. There are still some dead grey limbs showing through the
new foliage but it's very much alive. I see some flower buds all
along the thin branches. Both types of wood grow on the same
shrub and both live happily side by side. The plant has adapted
to its condition: new life is sprouting alongside lifeless matter.

   My life is a bit like that. There has been plenty of deep pruning
along the years since I've started the Recovery path. But some
parts I haven't had the chance to prune yet. Maybe I never will.
Maybe it's just as well.

   There's a term scientists use to describe the state of balance,
chemical or otherwise, an organism maintains within itself:
homeostasis. Psychologists are now certain that even the human
psyche is endowed with this capacity. It is a natural law that
assures a system's survival, no matter what happens to it in its
lifetime.

   Like the shrub, I keep contradictions and opposites living inside
myself, right alongside the agreeable complements that keep me
comfortable and 'safe.' The old experiences live with the new, the
sad with the glad, the growing with the dying. There's a cycling
balance between my inner parts that wasn't there before. I accept
that my self wants it that way; somehow I feel more whole. And life
continues... with or without the pruning.

Love,
Stella

� 2001 Stella Raymonde Savoie
www.soulopen.com
stellaraymonde@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Personal Inventory

" Our prayer work demands that we be rigorously honest
with ourselves and God.
We must be willing, with His help,
to pluck from our minds every non-loving, critical, judgmental thought.
Have a go.

    Let�s begin with the world in general.
Let�s look in our hearts for any prejudice or intolerance.
Where we find ourselves with a bigoted thought toward someone else�s
religion, nationality, color, or political orientation,
let us ask God to remove those thoughts,
to rid our minds of any hatred or judgment."

Marianne Williamson, from her book Illuminata �

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Do All Things With Love

Love is the most important ingredient of life.
Your life echoes emptiness without it.
With it your life vibrates meaning and warmth.
Love will shine through even in hardship.
You will find as you look back upon your life
that the moments that stand out the moments when
you have really lived are the moments when
you have done things in a spirit of love.
If you have it you don't need to have anything else
and if you don't have it it doesn't much matter what else you have.
Treasure the love you receive above everything else.
It will survive long after your wealth and good health have vanished.
The way is not in the sky.
The way is in the heart.
Life in abundance comes only through great love.
Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Do All Things With Love

Love is the most important ingredient of life.
Your life echoes emptiness without it.
With it your life vibrates meaning and warmth.
Love will shine through even in hardship.
You will find as you look back upon your life
that the moments that stand out the moments when
you have really lived are the moments when
you have done things in a spirit of love.
If you have it you don't need to have anything else
and if you don't have it it doesn't much matter what else you have.
Treasure the love you receive above everything else.
It will survive long after your wealth and good health have vanished.
The way is not in the sky.
The way is in the heart.
Life in abundance comes only through great love.
Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There is no limit to the power of loving.
John Morton
(From: The Blessings Already Are)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The grateful person doesn't measure service by the hour,
because the grateful person is always in a state of giving.
It begins with awareness.
We respond lovingly to a child asking for our help.
We give a friend a word of encouragement,
or do an act of kindness for a stranger.
And the greatest beneficiary of our caring is we.
It is our own hearts that expand.
   Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We must love one another as God loves each one of us.
To be able to love, we need a clean heart.
Prayer is what gives us a clean heart.
The fruit of prayer is a deepening of faith and
the fruit of faith is love.
The fruit of love is service,
which is compassion in action.
Mother Teresa

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Practicing being in service takes the focus off ourselves
and looks for how we might help others.
When we feel grateful, we naturally want to share ourselves
and our good fortune.
Then we find that being in service only
increases our gratitude and joy.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When you are convinced that all the exits are blocked,
either you take to believing in miracles
or you stand still like the hummingbird.
The miracle is that the honey is always there, right under your nose,
only you were too busy searching elsewhere to realize it.
The worst is not death but being blind,
blind to the fact that everything about life
is in the nature of the miraculous.
Henry Miller

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Religion is for those afraid of going to hell.
A spirituality is for those who have
been to hell and don't want to go back.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I sought my soul and it escaped me
I sought my God and he eluded me
I sought my brother and I found all three.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The only thing that you get by sitting on the pity pot,
is a ring around your ass.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There is one promise and one guarantee,
The promise is if you don't use it will get better
And if you do use it is guaranteed to get worse.
Johnnie Sullivan


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
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Even if your country is listed
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Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Court Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/court.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"One of My Friends In Recovery Passed On,
I am going through so many feelings..... HELP!!!
How do I Deal with Loss and Grieving in Recovery
and feel these feelings and not use?"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
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http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October  19
I am so grateful I have a power greater than myself
to turn to when I do not have the answers.
I am so grateful for the program of recovery
that has brought me joy and purpose and love.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Bother to Pray

My life is so very different today
I remember when I lived in a whole other way
Nothing I did or nothing I say
Could make the emptiness inside go away
So I never even bothered to pray

There was no such thing as a whole new day
Because nothing ever changed not even a sway
I remember the prices I was willing to pay
Can't stop the pain not even delay
So I never even bothered to pray

Why can't I just be happy and gay
Learn how to laugh learn how to play
Instead I just hurt you when you come in my way
Finding hope was like looking for a needle in hay
So I never even bothered to pray

I reached a bottom and had enough one day
To admit to myself and out loud I did say
I need help I need help is there a way
To stop hurting myself and feel okay
That was the first time I bothered to pray

My cries for help led me to the rooms of NA
I thought to myself this won't work no way
Addicts hugged me and held me and told me to stay
Just don't pick up you will be okay
They also reminded me to remember to pray

I went to meetings just for today
I didn't pick up I avoided that way
I was afraid to try the things that they say
But I did anyway
But mostly I would pray and pray and pray

I found a sponsor to lead the way
Out of my darkness and into today
Working the steps was the price I would pay
To be able to live differently today
To know in my heart it is never a bother to pray

Those who are new to you I do say
You don't have to use just for today
It wasn't an accident you found NA
Your life can be different in a whole new way
God does listen when we bother to pray

Bonnie
steve-bonnie-cope@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Recovery Tool Kit
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=725

Fourth Edition BIG Book Changes
www.barefootsworld.net/aa4thchanges.html

Yesterday - Today - And � Tomorrow
www.webhome.idirect.com/~avroarow/P6.HTM#YESTRD

Affirming My Assets
www.webhome.idirect.com/~avroarow/P6.HTM#ASSETS

The Great Remover
www.webhome.idirect.com/~avroarow/P6.HTM#AGAINST

Jim's Story
Jim S., Washington, D.C.
(p. 471 in 2nd edition, p. 483 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/jims.html

Our Southern Friend
John H. F. (Fitz) M., Cumberstone, Maryland.
(p. 226 in 1st edition, p. 460 in 2nd edition, p. 497 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/fitzmayo.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 19                                Standing For Something

"... we could feel time, touch reality, and recognize spiritual
values long lost to many of us."                Basic Text, p.85

In our active addiction, we were prepared to compromise
everything we believed in just to get our hands on more drugs.
Whether we stole from our families and friends, sold ourselves,
or lied to our employers, we were ignoring the values that
mattered most to us. Each time we compromised another
dearly held belief, another chunk of the mortar holding our
characters together fell away. By the time many of us came to
our first meeting, nothing was left but the ruin of our former
selves.

We will locate our lost values as we carry out our first honest
self-examination. But in order to rebuild our characters, we'll
find it necessary to maintain those values, no matter how great
the temptation to shove them aside. We will need to be honest,
even when we think we could fool everyone by lying. If we
ignore our values, we'll discover that the biggest fibs we've
told have been the ones we've told ourselves.

We don't want to start the demolition of our spirits again after all
the work we've put into their restoration. It's essential that we
stand for something, or we risk falling for anything. Whatever we
find important to us, we honor.

Just for today: I stand for something. My strength is the result of
living my values.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"I Was An Exception"

He [Bill W] said to me, gently and simply, "Do you think that you
are one of us?"
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 413

During my drinking life I was convinced I was an exception.  I
thought I was beyond petty requirements and had the right to be
excused.  I never realized that the dark counterbalance of my
attitude was the constant feeling that I did not "belong."  At first,
in A.A., I identified with others only as an alcoholic.  What a
wonderful awakening for me it has been to realize that, if human
beings were doing the best they could, then so was I!  All of the
pains, confusions and joys they feel are not exceptional, but
part of my life, just as much as anybody's.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 19th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Do I realize that I do not know how much time I have left?
It may be later than I think.  Am I going to do the things
that I know I should do before my time runs out?  By the
way, what is my purpose for the rest of my life?  Do I
realize all I have to make up for in my past wasted life?
Do I know that I am living on borrowed time and that I
would not have even this much time left without A.A. and
the grace of God?  Am I going to make what time I have
left count for A.A.?

Meditation for the Day

We can believe that somehow the cry of the human soul is
never unheard by God.  It may be that God hears the cry,
even if we fail to notice God's response to it.  The human
cry for help must always evoke a response of some sort
from God.  It may be that our failure to discern properly
keeps us unaware of the response.  But one thing we can
believe is that the grace of God is always available for
every human being who sincerely calls for help.  Many
changed lives are living proofs of this fact.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may trust God to answer my prayer as He sees
fit.  I pray that I may be content with whatever form that
answer may take.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 19

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Our Good Points

      What's a codependent? The answer's easy. They're some
of the most loving, caring people I know.
--Beyond Codependency

We don't need to limit an inventory of ourselves to the negatives.
Focusing only on what's wrong is a core issue in our
codependency.

Honestly, fearlessly, ask: "What's right with me? What are my
good points?"

"Am I a loving, caring, nurturing person?" We may have
neglected to love ourselves in the process of caring for others,
but nurturing is an asset.

"Is there something I do particularly well?" "Do I have a strong
faith?" "Am I good at being there for others?" "Am I good as part
of a team, or as a leader?" "Do I have a way with words or with
emotions?"

"Do I have a sense of humor?" "Do I brighten people up?" "Am
I good at comforting others?" "Do I have an ability to make
something good out of barely nothing at all?" "Do I see the
best in people?"

These are character assets. We may have gone to an extreme
with these, but that's okay. We are now on our way to finding
balance.

Recovery is not about eliminating our personality. Recovery
aims at changing, accepting, working around, or transforming
our negatives, and building on our positives. We all have assets;
we only need to focus on them, empower them, and draw them
out in ourselves.

Codependents are some of the most loving, caring people around.
Now, we're learning to give some of that concern and nurturing to
ourselves.

Today, I will focus on what's right about me. I will give myself some
of the caring I've extended to the world.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Whatever Works, Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/1999/10/alan.htm

Thank You, Oprah Winfrey
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/09/oprah.htm

Letters of Wisdom and Affirmation, Louise Hay
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/December/hay.htm

�Headed In The Right Direction� by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/06/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Don't Kill the Messenger
by Marie T. Russell

Many of our "life lessons" come to us through what we might
usually call a "negative" experience, or possibly a "negative"
person, in our life. However, the addition of the term negative
to any person or situation is simply a perception, or a judgment,
on our part. I'm sure there is at least one instance in your life
when something you thought terrible happened (losing a job,
a boyfriend, a chance to do something you wanted to do) which
later turned out as a wonderful gift. At the time you might have
described that event as negative, only to discover down the
road, that it actually was a blessing in disguise.

In the same way, many of the people in our lives that we find
"especially challenging" (that's a nice way to say we think
they're a "pain in the.") are really messengers or teachers
here to help us along -- to help us progress to the next level
in our life's learning.

Most of us, I think, need to learn patience. (Who, me?) I think
it is a major life lesson for everyone on the planet. Especially
those of us raised in North America (I can't speak for other parts
of the world, but it may be the same there). We were raised on
the "instant gratification" model -- we have instant food (just
add water or milk), instant communication (phone, fax, email),
fast food restaurants, guaranteed next day (or same day)
delivery, etc. We want our stuff, and we want it now.

When we apply this to our relationships with other humans, we
end up with a slight glitch in the works. Humans, as we all may
have found out by now, are unpredictable. While someone may
have the full intention to do something now, or change a
behavior now, the actual "doing" is different. That person
is actually a messenger helping to bring you a lesson in patience.

Maybe the order you placed was supposed to be delivered today,
and due to some mix-up at the other end, the order isn't coming till
tomorrow, or next week. We have two choices in how we respond.
We can scream, rant and rave, get angry at the "messenger", get
all worked up about it, or we can accept "what is" and make the
best of it, and see if there's a peaceful resolution to the situation.
The first choice is obviously not the patient choice -- it's not the
choice that gives us a passing score on our "patience exam".

Many times in our life, we tend to "chew up" the messengers.
Whether these people are here to help us learn patience,
acceptance, unconditional love, or another of our life's lessons,
how we respond is always our choice. Do we become impatient,
judgmental, critical, and angry at the messenger -- or do
we put our lesson in practice and pass with flying colors.

Everyone in our life is a messenger -- sometimes the message
is an easy one to handle, sometimes the message is a
challenging one. Many times, we mistake the messenger for the
message. For example, when Ralph (whether Ralph is a person
or your dog) behaves in a way that we feel is inappropriate, do
we "get on the messenger's case"? Unfortunately, we often
do. We get angry at the person (or the dog) who after all is simply
here to assist us to become a better person -- by learning
patience, compassion, understanding, non-judgmentalism (I
made that word up), unconditional love, etc.

I've noticed that in my life, when I can remember that everything
happens "for a reason" and turns out for the best, it is easier for
me to keep a calm, detached perspective. Instead of getting
all worked up because something doesn't turn out the way it "
should have", I let go, and say, "somehow this will work out for the
best".

Just the other week, I was delayed in leaving for a trip, and at
first was impatient at the cause of the slow-up. Then, once I got
on the road, I came across an accident that had happened just a
few minutes before. Thus, had I been "on time", I might have been
involved in that accident -- and the person who caused my delay
was actually there to help me be late so I would be safe. One
doesn't know ahead of time the reason for something -- so why
not give people and events the benefit of the doubt, and rather
than assume they are "negative", assume that down the road you
will discover that they were a blessing in disguise.

We never know what the purpose of an event is -- other that we
know that "all is in Divine Order" and that even when we can't
see the "positive" outcome way up the road, the Universe (or
God, or whatever you choose to call the Creative Force) has it
already all figured out. Everything happens for our highest
good -- even the challenges, the hard spots, the person
who's a "pain" -- everything and everyone is a Cosmic
Messenger there to assist us on our life's path.

It is up to us to stop "killing the messenger" or giving the
messenger, and ourselves, a hard time, and instead pay
attention  to the messages. When we remember that everyone
is our teacher and a divine emissary from the Universe, then
we can see everything around us with a different eye, and
start progressing much faster up the path of inner peace
and enlightenment.

About The Author:
Marie T. Russell is the founder of InnerSelf Magazine (founded
1985) and The Natural Yellow Pages (1987). She also produced
and hosted a weekly South Florida radio broadcast, Inner Power,
from 1992-1995 which focused on themes such as self-esteem,
personal growth, and well-being. Her articles focus on transformation
and reconnecting with our own inner source of joy and creativity.
www.innerself.com

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Strength from Within

" We are strong enough to do any job He asks us to do.
Don�t be concerned about your own readiness,
says the Course, but be consistently aware of His.
It is not you doing the work, but the spirit who is within
you. Forgetting this causes fear.
A Course in Miracles says that the presence of fear is a sure sign
we�re trusting in our own strength.
"If you are trusting in your own strength,
you have every reason to be apprehensive, anxious and fearful."
Of ourselves, none of us have the capacity to work miracles.
With 'the power that is in us but not of us,'
however, there is nothing we can not do. "

Marianne Williamson, from her book A Return to Love �

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Waiting

"I'm tapping my foot and I'm waiting.
I don't wish to belabor the point by debating.
I know what I want.  I don't mean to be a haunt.
Can't You see I'm impatient?  I'm waiting.

I'm pacing the floor and I'm waiting.
A delay only gets my heart racing.
I don't have any doubt.  I don't care to know how.
Have You noticed I'm antsy?  I'm waiting.

Time is slipping away while I'm waiting.
Am I supposed to give up or just keep on praying?
If I wait around much more, it won't matter much more.
Is that why You've got me doing this waiting?

Waiting is essential.  It's Divinely designed.
With Faith, you'll find it eases your mind.
Once you've brought it to God,
and surrendered your resolve...
Patience shows you it's well worth the waiting."

Virginia Santoro
� 2000
MorningMusings@...
www.myspace.com/morningmusings
www.hometown.aol.com/morningmusings

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Room

Inside my mind there is a room,
No doors or windows I can see.
Only screens showing my life,
Repetition of my lasting misery.

I try to escape every chance I get,
To leave the degradation behind.
Running can kill me, if done wrong,
My release must be the right kind.

As for substances that make me forget,
There is only a temporary effect.
Then back to reality and pain,
And again my thoughts start to collect.

Like piles of debris cluttering my mind,
They pollute my self worth and value.
I look to others to verify me,
When of themselves they don't have a clue.

So in this spiral of a questionable state,
I live with the past here and now.
A colloquia of thoughts decorate my room,
Preventing total surrender some how.

I know that someday I'll understand,
And attain a true and complete release.
Until then I'll remain overly aware,
And keep focused on complete peace.

written by ~ Heidi P.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Being in Recovery

There is one thing nice
About being in recovery
We have a large family
To wish us well
Also to help us see
Some we know and love
And many we will never know
Yet that is OK because
As part of the whole we grow
Here I am in the hospital
With many praying for me
Also wishing me well
Some sent cards
Others took time to call
I am so blessed to be a part of it all
Just knowing that I will never again be alone
Brings peace serenity and happiness into my home
I look at all of the get well cards
Also notes of the phone calls
I feel so blessed to be a part of it all
I thank you brothers and sisters
For your thoughts and prayers
For you have made this old man aware
I am loved and many do care
You sent light into my day
I thank God above
You passed my way

Daniel M Corkery
10/15/2003
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Question
Written by an African Shakespeare

Dear white fella,
Couple things you should know...
When I born, I black.
When I grow up, I black.
When I go in sun, I black.
When I cold, I black.
When I scared, I black.
When I sick, I black.
And when I die, I still black...

    You, white fella...
    When you born, you pink.
    When you grow up, you white
    When you go in sun, you red.
    When you cold, you blue.
    When you scared, you yellow.
    When you sick, you green.
    And when you die, you gray.

    And you call me colored?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God
who is sending a love letter to the world.
Mother Teresa

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Along our spiritual journey, every one of us is thrust into the desert.
We find ourselves in a relationship wasteland or financially barren.
We feel lost and abandoned,
but it is during this time in the desert that God grows our souls.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Plant the seed of hope, it will grow in due time...for
each of us the water of time is different.....

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Have you ever wondered who answers God's prayers?
A seeker asked God, "How is it that a loving Creator
allows people to be disabled, lonely, and poor?
Why don't you do anything for them?"
And God replied, "I did.  I created you."
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

IT gets better and better and better
And if IT doesn't get better
Your ability to deal with IT will get better.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There is a difference between being in a meeting
and being at a meeting.

There is a difference between being a visitor
and being a member.

There is a difference between the fellowship
and the program.

Don't let the fellowship get in the way of the program,
If you give this disease an inch , it will take your life.
Scott H

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

N.A. is a self-help program but you can't do it by yourself.
An addict alone is in bad company.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Self-pity: Poor me, poor me, pour me another drink.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
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Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
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or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

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http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Dating Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/dating.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"One of My Friends In Recovery Passed On,
I am going through so many feelings..... HELP!!!
How do I Deal with Loss and Grieving in Recovery
and feel these feelings and not use?"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 18
I am full of joy in the discovery that
I am okay just the way I am.
Today I can accept all of me
today and that is a miracle.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Goodbye Letter

Dear Heroin,

This is it, this is the end.
Me and You are no longer friends.
We've been together for so many years,
You've ruined my friendships and brought me and my family to tears.
Between me and you there's only one thing to say
you've played with my mind and made me stay.
It's been some time now that we've been apart-
I have a clear mind and a chance at a new start.
One things for sure you will not be forgotten-
I dedicated my life to you and you treated me rotten.
I ask one thing from you, stay out of my head-
you've robbed me blind and left me for dead-

We're through.
Heartbroken,
Jennifer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Rent-A-Sponsor
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=431

Big Book Changes
www.barefootsworld.net/aabigbookchanges.html

Newcomers Cartoons
www.recoveryjonescartoons.com/more_cartoons!.htm

Things
www.geocities.com/Heartland/Woods/7383/things.html

Join the Tribe
Maynard B.
(p. 474 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/maynardb.html

Belle of the Bar
Author unknown.
(p. 478 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown9.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 18                                                 We ALL Belong

"Although 'politics makes strange bedfellows,' as the old saying
goes, addiction makes us one of a kind."           Basic Text, p.84

   What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In
any given meeting on any given night, we'll find a variety of
people that probably never would have sat down in a room
together if it weren't for the disease of addiction.

   A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to
identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into "that room full
of junkies:' Another member with an extensive background in
jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock
and surprise stemmed from the realization that "there were nice
people there-wearing suits, yet!" These two friends recently
celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

   The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other,
and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery
together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the
future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two
things we all have in common- addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A "Limitless Lode"

Like a gaunt prospector, belt drawn in over the last ounce of
food, our pick struck gold.  Joy at our release from a lifetime
of frustration knew no bounds.  Father feels he has struck
something better than gold.  For a time he may not see at
once that he has barely scratched a limitless lode which will
pay dividends only if he mines it for the rest of his life and
insists on giving away the entire product.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 128-29

When I talk with a newcomer to A.A., my past looks me straight
in the face.  I see the pain in those hopeful eyes; I extend my
hand, and then the miracle happens; I become healed.  My
problems vanish as I reach out to this trembling soul.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 18th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Have I got over most of my sensitiveness, my feelings
that are too easily hurt, and my just plain laziness and
self-satisfaction?  Am I willing to go all out for A.A. at
no matter what cost to my precious self.  Is my own
comfort more important to me than doing the things
that need to be done?  Have I got to the point where
what happens to me is not so important?  Can I face up
to things that are embarrassing or uncomfortable if they
are the right things to do for the good of A.A.?  Have I
given A.A. just a small piece of myself.  Am I willing to
give all of myself whenever necessary?

Meditation for the Day

Not until you have failed can you learn true humility.  Humility
arises from a deep sense of gratitude to God for giving you
the strength to rise above past failures.  Humility is not
inconsistent with self respect.  The true person has
self-respect and the respect of others and yet is humble.
The humble person is tolerant of others' failings, and does
not have a critical attitude toward the foibles of others.
Humble people are hard on themselves and easy on others.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may be truly humble and yet have self respect.
I pray that I may see the good in myself as we'll as the bad.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 18

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Throwing Out the Rule Book

Many of us feel like we need a rulebook, a microscope, and a
warranty to get through life. We feel uncertain, frightened. We
want the security of knowing what's going to happen, and how
we shall act.

We don't trust life or ourselves.

We don't trust the Plan.

We want to be in control.

"I've made terrible mistakes about my choices, mistakes that
nearly destroyed me. Life has really shocked me. How can I
trust myself? How can I trust life, and my instincts, after where
I've been?" asked one woman.

It is understandable that we fear being crushed again, considering
the way many of us were when we bottomed out on our
codependency. We don't have to be fearful. We can trust our self,
our path, and our instincts.

Yes, we want to avoid making the same mistakes again. We are
not the same people we were yesterday or last year. We've
learned, grown, changed. We did what we needed to do then.
If we made a mistake, we cannot let that stop us from living and
fully experiencing today.

We have arrived at the understanding that we needed our
experiences - even our mistakes - to get to where we are today.
Do we know that we needed our life to unfold exactly as it did to
find ourselves, our Higher Power, and this new way of life? Or is
part of us still calling our past a mistake?

We can let go of our past and trust ourselves now. We do not have
to punish ourselves with our past. We don't need a rulebook, a
microscope, a warranty. All we really need is a mirror. We can
look into the mirror and say, "I trust you. No matter what happens,
you can take care of yourself. And what happens will continue to
be good, better than you think."

Today, I will stop clinging to the painful lessons of the past. I will
open myself to the positive lessons today and tomorrow hold for
me. I trust that I can and will take care of myself now. I trust that
the
Plan is good, even when I don't know what it is.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Eyes Of A Stranger
www.inlightimes.com/archives/1999/10/hess.htm

Overcoming Addictions
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/09/chopra.htm

Online Holiday Shopping with a Spiritual Twist
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/December/cyberweave.htm

A Perfect Match, by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/05/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Bridge of Empathy
by Sharon Salzberg

Contemporary psychological research shows that some
individuals, when they are in a highly agitated state of mind,
are oblivious to how they are feeling. Their hearts may be
racing, their blood pressure climbing, and they may be
sweating profusely, yet they are not aware of being angry or
afraid or anxious. About one person in six exhibits this pattern.
Being so unaware of their own pain, is it possible that they could
understand or empathize with what someone else may be
feeling? Being unable to empathize, how can they live complete
lives?

When we practice mindfulness, one of the qualities that we are
developing is empathy. As we open to the full range of
experiences within ourselves, we become aware of what we
perceive in each moment, no longer denying some feelings
while clinging to others. By coming to know our own pain, we
build a bridge to the pain of others, which enables us to step
out of our self-absorption and offer help. And when we
actually understand how it feels to suffer -- in ourselves and
in others -- we are compelled to live in a way that creates as
little harm as possible.

With empathy acting as a bridge to those around us, a true
morality arises within. Knowing that someone will suffer if we
perform a harmful action or say a hurtful word, we find we do
these things less and less. It is a very simple, natural, and
heart-full response. Rather than seeing morality as a set of
rules, we find a morality that is an uncontrived reluctance to
cause suffering.

In Buddhist teachings, an image is used to reflect this quality
of mind: a feather, held near a flame, instantly curls away
from the heat. When our minds become imbued with an
understanding of how suffering feels and fill with a
compassionate urge not to cause more of it, we naturally
recoil from causing harm. This happens without
self-consciousness or self-righteousness; it happens as a
natural expression of the heart. As Hannah Arendt said,
"Conscience is the one who greets you if and when you ever
come home."

Two qualities are traditionally attributed to this beautiful and
delicate sense of conscience that gives rise to harmlessness:
in Pali they are known as biri and ottapab, traditionally
translated as "moral shame" and "moral dread". The translation
is somewhat misleading, as these qualities have nothing to do
with fear or shame in the self-deprecating sense. Rather, they
have to do with that natural and complete turning away from
causing harm. Ottapah, or moral dread, comes from a feeling
of disquietude at the possibility of hurting ourselves or others.
Hiri, moral shame, manifests in the form of a reluctance to
cause pain in others because we know fully in ourselves how
that feels.

In this sense, opening to our own suffering can be the source
of our deep connection to others. We open to this pain, not for
the sake of getting depressed, but for what it has to teach us:
seeing things in a different way, having the courage not to
harm, recognizing that we are not alone and could never be
alone.

Sometimes we are afraid to open to something painful because
it seems as though it will consume us. Yet the nature of
mindfulness is that it is never overcome by whatever is the
present object of awareness. If we are mindful of a twisted or
distorted state of mind, the mindfulness is not twisted or distorted.
Even the most painful state of mind or the most difficult feeling
in the body does not ruin mindfulness. A true opening, born of
mindfulness, is marked by spaciousness and grace.

In our culture we are taught to push away, to avoid our feelings.
This kind of aversion is the action of a mind caught in separation.
Whether in the active, fiery form of anger and rage, or in a more
inward, frozen form like fear, the primary function of these mental
states is to separate us from what we are experiencing. But the
only way that we can be free from suffering ourselves and avoid
doing harm to others is by connection -- a connection to our
own pain and, through awareness and compassion, a connection
to the pain of others. We learn not to create separation from
anything or anyone. This is empathy.

This article was excerpted from
A Heart As Wide As The World: Stories on the Path of Lovingkindness

Sharon Salzberg is a cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society
in Barre, Massachusetts, and author of Lovingkindness: The
Revolutionary Art of Happiness. This article is excerpted with
permission from her book "A Heart As Wide As The World", ?1997,
published by Shambhala Publications, Inc., Boston.
www.shambhala.com.  For a schedule of Sharon's workshops, visit
www.dharma.org/sharon/sharon.htm.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Inside You Lies Greatness

In each of you, there is a seed
a seed of vast potential
A place beyond the ego mind
A place so rich and fertile
that you can smell its rich fragrance
like after a cool summer rain
you can feel this pulse of life
as it pulses through you

This infinite part of you knows
Like a beacon in the night
it guides you on your journey...
back home...
back... to the Real You

This greatness requires just one thing
...your awareness

Awareness through your breath
noticing in each moment
how precious life really is...

and how precious You really are
for you are its Source
and It is your beginning...

You now stand at the crossroads...
A crossroads of your old self
and the Real you

Embrace this moment
embrace yourself as the creator in your life
This is your essence
breathe it in...
let it flow...
let it just Be...

and so it is....
Paul Bauer
(written in Hawaii October 1999
during our Living From Vision Retreat)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The God Box

If you have a problem on your mind
God wants to solve it, He's so kind
With this dilemma you can't cope
He really wants to give you hope
When you're sad and shed a tear
Just remember He is near
Jot it down, drop it in the box
You couldn't carry it alone, heavy as rocks
If in your soul you feal a fire
It just might be your hearts desire
If it's really meant to be
Telling him will be the key
His love is always strong and true
Especially patient, He's waiting for you
So write it down and let it go
Your trust in Him soon will show
Ask and you will always receive...
Already you've been given a daily reprieve

written by
Wendie K. 1999

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Cultivate peace first
In the garden of your heart
By removing the weeds
of lust,
Hatred,
Greed,
Selfishness,
and Jealousy.
Then only you can manifest it externally.
Then only, those who come in contact with you,
will be benefited by your vibrations
of Peace
and Harmony.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hangover Haven

I�m writing this poem, up late in the evening,
At a place known as Hangover Haven.
It�s open all night for all of those with the plight�
Being now sick and who shake from a cravin�.
So if you�re thinking of drugs or of taking a drink
And your burden is heavily laden,
Please look at yourself, then at all of here,
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

It stands to the wayside of life�s flashy fast lane
And has grown old in it�s many long years.
It is fore ever haunted by us unfortunates�
By our memories of hurt and our fears.
The faces will change, but the stories remain,
We�re lost souls who are in need of some savin��
So enter, if you will, and please have a close look
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

There is Mr. McArthur, he�s a very old man,
Who will quite often sit down and cry.
He will look in the mirror, and ask, "What have I done?"
As another year quickly slips by.
He once had a family, and once had a job,
And was always so very clean shaven.
Now he sits all alone with a face full with growth
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

There�s a very young girl sitting there by the phone
Wearing jeans and an oversized shirt.
She�s been to the doctor, then called a man,
And her needle marks begin to hurt.
She looks to the phone, then stares to the ceiling,
And soon will commence into prayin�.
She�s a heroine addict and carrying a baby
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

Big Jim was a boxer and he�ll tell you his tales,
How no man on the earth does he fear.
But just watch him shake with a fright in his eyes,
When HIS image he sees in a mirror.
He�d beat up his wife, and the kids and the dog�

Because of their rantin� and ravin��
And couldn�t pay bills chasing alcohol thrills.
And now lives at the Hangover Haven.

There�s a punker who blows upon his shirt with his nose,
And claims that it�s all in good taste.
He�s sporting a head- that is half green, half red.
On his shirt�s written, �Nuclear Waste!�
His father and mother can�t figure him out,
But the two tell him �life is worth savin��,
And he just sniffed some glue he had stashed in his shoe�
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

Old Janie will sit around the tables and tell
Of the good men she�s know in her life.
The warm-hearted lawyer, the dashing young banker,
And the surgeon who cured with a knife.
But Janie took pills for imaginary ills
And now is too sick for the savin�.
She lives in her memories as if they were real
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

There�s a young man just in, he�s clutching the wall,
And shaking so hard he can�t stand.
He�s done too much coke and way too much speed
And he�s clutching his heart with his hand.
He�s praying to God, "Just please bring me down,

I will quit and I will start behavin�"
In the morning he�ll leave and by night he�ll be back
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

Tex Manley is a cowboy wearing old faded jeans
Whose six-string will always be near.
If you ask him, on a good day, he will sing you a song
Guaranteed to bring you to tears.
And there once was a time when our Tex could fill dance halls
And everyone talked of his playin�.
Till he met Johnny Walker and ol� Jimmy Beam�
Now he plays at the Hangover Haven.

Then as Zarley stands up, and at near six feet four,
He�s a vision of ol� biker pride,
For he�s clad in tattoos with his key�s danglin� loose
And his t-shirt reads, " I live to ride."
But he�s no longer high, and just gives a big sigh�
As before us he seems to be fadin�,
For he screwed with his crew and knows not what to do
And they�re headed now for Hangover Haven.

There�s a young man named Michael doing volunteer work here,
He�s been sober two years just today.
He will talk about good things in time with sobriety
But to us that seems far, far away.
Right now his is sitting with old Mr. McArthur,
Explaining that there�s time for his savin�,
    But I just heard a cry, and soon our old friend will die�
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

There�s a beautiful young girl who looks all so fine
And goes by the name April May.
She�s dressed up in expensive clothing and jewelry
And her hips move in just the right way.
She brags that she takes in a thousand a night�
Though that barely takes care of her cravin�.
For her cash is all gone and her pimps looking for her
And she hides at the Hangover Haven.

Just entering the room comes old saggy hips June,
All withered and scarred through the years.
As she makes her slow entrance she spots April May
And her eyes start to swell up with tears.
She starts to remembering the old glory days�
How she�d get her tricks simply by wavin�
Now everyone laughs when she stands on the corner

Just down from the Hangover Haven.

And the two of them sit there and stare at each other
Both looking like the ghost they have seen.
One gets a glimpse as to where she is going�
While the other to where she has been.
Confrontations of this kind are a common occurrence
When we met who are equally laden.
The young with the old, and the meek and the bold,

Exchange fears at the Hangover Haven.

And a young lonely artist, alone in the darkness
Of a seat at the end of the hall,
Where the cobwebs grow thick, and the paints dried and peeled,
Is etching scenes from his life on the wall.
And right now he is drawing a picture of a house
As he sweats as he works at creatin�,
A picture that looks like a place we all know�
The place known as Hangover Haven.

And as the days turn to weeks, and the weeks to months,
Some of us will go on to be fine.
We will beat this addiction, and change our old ways,
And we�ll do it �One Day At A Time�.
But there are the unfortunates, like old Mr. McArthur,
And to this disease they�ll succumb,
For he died with the shakes, and the night of his wake,
No one but no one did come.
    And we�re open all night for all of those with the plight,
For those who shake from the cravin�
And if you see some of us when you look in the mirror,
Well a spot for you here we are savin�.
So if you�re thinking of drugs or of taking a drink

And your burden is heavily laden,
Please look at yourself, then at all of us here�
At the place known as Hangover Haven.

Anonymous

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Cultivate peace first
In the garden of your heart
By removing the weeds
of lust,
Hatred,
Greed,
Selfishness,
and Jealousy.
Then only you can manifest it externally.
Then only, those who come in contact with you,
will be benefited by your vibrations
of Peace
and Harmony.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

No wonder the soul doesn't remember its ancient home,
its original dwelling and place of birth,
since the sleep of this world covers it as clouds hide the stars.
It has walked through so many cities,
and the dust hasn't yet been wiped from its perception.
It hasn't yet worked to purify its heart and behold the past,
that its heart might peek from the aperture of mystery
and see its beginning with open eyes.
Jelaluddin Rumi, Sufi poet

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It is never too late to be what you might have been.
George Eliot

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

God is here, everywhere present, right now.
God is good and that means good exists everywhere,
even in the most challenging situations.
When we don't see the good, it's not because it is not present
but we are simply not aware of the good present.
There's a practice you can do to open up to the experience of God's
good,
called, "Pause Power."  When you're tempted to say,
"This is bad, I don't like this, there's no good here," pause,
and in the pause say, "I don't see the good, but if God's here then
there
must be some good so I'm going to invite that good to reveal itself to
me."
   Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Insanity is not doing the same thing over and over again
expecting different results;
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again
knowing full well what the results will be .

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Those who quit going to meetings
aren't there to find out what happens
to people who quit going to meetings .

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Resentment: When you are living inside someone's head,
you are out of your mind.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Resentment is from the Latin,
meaning to "feel again."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Resentment is like pissing on your own leg
Everyone else see's it
and your the only one who feels it!


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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or go to the website and unsubscribe

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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Holidays Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/holidays.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"One of My Friends In Recovery Passed On,
I am going through so many feelings..... HELP!!!
How do I Deal with Loss and Grieving in Recovery
and feel these feelings and not use?"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 17
Today I look to my Higher Power for
strength, courage and direction.
I gather my own strength and confidence
from all possible resources and follow my own inner voice.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Arrive Alive

Living here in the Sunshine State, with the Lotto,
The slogan, Arrive Alive, is our greatest motto,
Oh, the fun we made of that silly little sign!
Back then, the Arrive Stoned sign took most of our time.
Reminiscing about the "good old days"
Ahead of our time in so many ways,
The sixties were some of the good times, I'd say,
The joints and Boone's Farm, Rock"n'Roll 's here to stay!
Protesting was in.  Patty Hearst was our hero.
I never had a thought that amounted to zero.
Someone said, "Sign here and be all that you can,
Really makes no difference if you're woman or man."
Next thing I know I'm in boot camp, you see,
They thought they were making a better woman out of me.
Eighteen in uniform, dressed fit to kill,
I learned about blackouts, I practiced self will,
Many years, in a daze, I wandered around,
Can't remember the people, don't remember the towns.
One day, in a stupor, it clicked in my head,
I had gone too far, I was almost dead.
Dear God, please help me, I don't want to die."
I wanted to live, but I didn't know why.
I talked to some people I met in AA,
They took me by the hand and showed me a way,
A program for happiness and freedom and hope
"You'll clean up your act, we'll give you some soap."
Wasn't easy, at first to give up my old ways,
Then I found freedom, I'm happy these days.
My friends are now many, they take up the slack,
I've finally "Arrived Alive" and I'll keep coming back!

� 2002
Sharlett Hunt
sharlette863@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spiritual NOT Religious
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=561

Some History of AA Chips
www.barefootsworld.net/aachips.html

Instructions for life
www.my-tgif.com/instructions.shtml

Purpose
www.geocities.com/Heartland/Woods/7383/purpose.html

A Five-Time Loser Wins
Morris B., Long Island, New York.
(p. 457 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/morrisb.html

Promoted to Chronic
Helen B., New York.
(p. 485 in the 2nd edition, p. 464 in the 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/helenb.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 17                                                     The Truth

"Everything we know is subject to revision, especially what we
know about the truth."  Basic Text, p.91

Many of us thought we could recognize "The Truth:' We believed
the truth was one thing, certain and unchanging, which we could
grasp easily and without question. The real truth, however, was
that we often couldn't see the truth if it hit us square in the face.
Our disease colored everything in our lives, especially our
perception of the truth-in fact, what we "knew" about the truth
nearly killed us. Before we could begin to recognize truth, we
had to switch our allegiance from our addiction to a Higher
Power the source of all that is good and true.

The truth has changed as our faith in a Higher Power has grown.
As we've worked the steps, our entire lives have begun to change
through the healing power of the principles of recovery. In order
to open the door for that change, we have had to surrender our
attachment to an unchanging and rigid truth.

The truth becomes purer and simpler each time we encounter it.
And just as the steps work in our lives every day-if we allow
them-our understanding of the truth may change each day as
we grow.

Just for today: I will open my eyes and my heart to changes
brought about by the steps. With an open mind, I can understand
the truth in my life today. pg. 303

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Last Promise

We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could
not do for ourselves.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 84

The last Promise in the Big Book came true for me on the very
first day of sobriety.  God kept me sober that day, and on every
other day I allowed Him to operate in my life.  He gives me the
strength, courage and guidance to meet my responsibilities in
life so that I am then able to reach out and help others stay sober
and grow.  He manifests within me, making me a channel of His
word, thought and deed.  He works with my inner self, while I
produce in the outer world, for He will not do for me what  I can
do for myself.  I must be willing to do His work, so that He can
function through me successfully.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 17th

A.A. Thought for the Day

What am I going to do today for A.A.?  Is there someone
I should call up on the telephone or someone I should go
to see?  Is there a letter I should write?  Is there an
opportunity somewhere to advance the work of A.A. which
I have been putting off or neglecting?  If so, will I do it
today?  Will I be done with procrastination and do what
I have to do today?  Tomorrow may be too late.  How do
I know there will be a tomorrow for me?  How about
getting out of my easy chair and getting going?  Do I
feel that A.A. depends partly on me today?

Meditation for the Day

Today look upward toward God, not downward toward
yourself.  Look away from unpleasant surroundings, from
lack of beauty, from the imperfections in yourself and
in those around you.  In your unrest, behold God's
calmness; in your impatience, God's patience; in your
limitations, God's perfection.  Looking upward toward
God, your spirit will begin to grow.  Then others will
see something in you that they also want.  As you grow
in the spiritual life, you will be enabled to do many
things that seemed too hard for you before.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may keep my eyes trained above the horizon
of myself.  I pray that I may see infinite possibilities for
spiritual growth.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 17

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Feelings and Surrender

Surrendering is a highly personal and spiritual experience.

Surrender is not something we can do in our heads. It is not
something we can force or control by willpower. It is something
we experience.

Acceptance, or surrender, is not a tidy package. Often, it is a
package full of hard feelings - anger, rage, and sadness,
followed by release and relief. As we surrender, we
experience our frustration and anger at God, at other people,
at ourselves, and at life. Then we come to the core of the pain
and sadness, the heavy emotional burden inside that must
come out before we can feel good. Often, these emotions are
connected to healing and release at a deep level.

Surrender sets the wheels in motion. Our fear and anxiety about
the future are released when we surrender.

We are protected. We are guided. Good things have been
planned. The next step is now being taken. Surrender is the
process that allows us to move forward. It is how our Higher
Power moves us forward. Trust in the rightness of timing, and
the freedom at the other end, as you struggle humanly through
this spiritual experience.

I will be open to the process of surrender in my life. I will allow
myself all the awkward and potent emotions that must be
released.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Deeply Loving Story
www.inlightimes.com/archives/1999/10/deep.htm

The Secret
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/09/editorial.htm

The Proper Plate, Alan Cohen
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/December/cohen.htm

Whose Pictures Are You Taking Home? by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/04/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Affirmation Power
by Louise L. Hay

Affirmations are really anything that we say or think. Our thoughts
create our feelings, beliefs, and experiences. Too often they are
negative. we say, "I don't want this in my life" or "I don't want to
be sick anymore" or "I hate my job". If we want to change or
manifest something in our lives, we must state what we do want.
We must affirm that we are willing to see ourselves or our lives
in a different perspective. Thus, we can change our experiences
by first changing our thoughts.

When you first start using an affirmation, it may not seem true for
you.  If it were already true, you would not need the affirmation.
For example, think of what happens when you plant a seed. First it
germinates, then it sprouts roots, and then it pokes its first shoot
up through the ground.  It takes time to go from a seed to a full-grown
plant. And so it is with affirmations. Be gentle and patient with
yourself.

You may also experience some doubt as to whether you are doing
the affirmations correctly or even whether the affirmations are doing
any good at all. This is perfectly normal. You see, the subconscious
mind is like a filing cabinet - all the thoughts, words, and experiences
you have had since birth get filed away like messages. Think of
your mind as having a team of couriers who grab the messages,
look at them, and put them in the appropriate files. Perhaps you have
been building up files for years with messages such as: I'm not good
enough," "I'm not smart enough to do that," or "Why Bother?" The
subconscious gets absolutely buried under these files.

Suddenly, when the couriers begin seeing messages that say, "I'm
wonderful and I love myself", they respond with, "What is this? Where
do we file this? We've never seen this message before."

That's when they call in "Doubt". Doubt picks up the message and
says to you, "Hey, look at this. We have no place to file this one - it
must be a mistake." You can either say to Doubt, "Oh, you re right.
'I'm terrible. I'm not good. Sorry, I made a mistake", and go back to
your old way of thinking. Or, you can say to Doubt, "Thank you for
sharing, but this is the new message. Set up a new file because
there are going to be lots of these coming through." By doing so,
over time you will change your thinking and create a new reality
for yourself. Remember, you are in charge.

Reinforce your new, positive affirmations in any way you can: in
your thoughts, your conversations with yourself and others, and by
writing them down in this journal, which I created to inspire you
on your path to personal growth and healing. You may choose to
use the affirmations on each page as a springboard to write your
own. Once you find affirmations that are right for you, you may
want to put them up on your mirror, on your desk, or on your car
dashboard.

Remember: One thought does not mean much, but thoughts that
we think over and over are like drops of water - at first there are
just a few, and then after a while you've created a pool, and then
a lake, and then an ocean. If our thinking is negative, we can
drown in a sea of negativity; if its positive, we can float on the
ocean of life.

This article was excerpted from: "A Garden of Thoughts - My
Affirmation Journal" by Louise L. Hay.  Reprinted with permission
of Hay House. www.hayhouse.com

About The Author:
Louise L. Hay is a metaphysical lecturer and teacher and the
bestselling author of 20 books, including You Can Heal Your Life
and Empowering Women. Her works have been translated into 25
different languages in 33 countries throughout the world. Since
beginning her career as a Science of Mind minister in 1981,
Louise has assisted thousands of people in discovering and
using the full potential of their own creative powers for personal
growth and self-healing. Louise is the owner and founder of Hay
House, Inc., a self-help publishing company that disseminates
books, audios, and videos that contribute to the healing of the
planet. This article was excerpted with permission of Hay House
from A Garden of Thoughts by Louise L. Hay. www.hayhouse.com

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Complex God

God is.
Is that your God or mine?
What is God?
Many or just one,
Divided into thirds or whole?
Hindu or Buddhist?
Islamic, Judaic, or Christian?
To me God is
Air, earth, and sky
The land and the seas
us and them, you and I
The great void of space
and a molecule, too.
The dreams of the young and
The memories of the old
To me God is
autumn colors on a crisp fall day
a harvest moon
a foggy glen of tiny spring flowers
a gentle snowfall
The songs of the birds or
silence of the night
The taste of honeysuckle
and the smell of the forest
Glacier topped mountains and
puffy white clouds
The colors of the rainbow
the laughter of mankind
To me God is
all that has been and is now
all that will come to be
Is that your God or mine?
God is.

Sara Harvat

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Letting Go

A form of magic emerges/materialises
when given permission by two little words
�*let go*�

An invisible door opens
Double French patio doors, wide and large
A full view of landscape/seascape
spreads itself before your eyes

Two little words that strip down walls
of restraint, judgment, cold heart and
expectations ~ the defence mechanisms
that exist to protect the ego ~
leaving bare a kind of innocence
as a wrapped-up gift
colourfully boxed just for you

Freedom blossoms only in the arms of an open heart
Permission gives birth to Passion only with Surrender
to the gentler forces of Nature
Replacing the good with the Better

Don�t hold on so tight
Let go � You�ll be all right

With Love & Blessings
Stella
� 2002 Stella Raymonde Savoie-Johnson
stellaraymonde@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

New Way of Life?

    I am just a scared little girl inside...I feel alone and abandoned...
I do not know which road I should travel...will you help me find my way?

   I am a lost soul...looking, searching for what my Higher Power's will
for me is... will you light the way?

   I see a light in the distance...I see a shadow standing there...
I hear a gentle voice...I turn into the light...Are you there?

.I am no longer afraid...I feel safe...I reach out to you...
will you hold my hand?

   I ask of you this..will you lead me?...for I am very much, like a
child...
I am willing to learn ...a "new way of life."
Will you share your knowledge with me?

   By: Coleen A. - Recovering Addict/ Clean since: 04-25-95
gmaladybug66@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Above The Illusion

One day I rose above the alcoholic illusion
I was sick and in the middle of confusion
Seemed like my life had no hope
It seemed to hard without a drink to cope
I always turned to my best friend
Alcohol
There was no peace only haunted ends
I found the truth along the way
It was planted in my heart
So to AA I went for a start
Surrender, admit and than quit
Give myself a chance to fit
Pray to be restored to sanity
Give my will and my life to God to be free
At first it was not for me
But shortly afterwards I could see
My heart belongs to recovery
I sat down with pen and pad
Took an inventory of what I had
Admit to myself, God, than man
Now after years I finally understand
Pray for the defects to be removed
Go to meetings and be reproved
Share from the heart
Share from the soul
Soon after that God made me whole
Made a list of my amends
Paid them back and made new friends
Continued to take personal inventory
So goes the recovery story
Prayed to improve my conscious contact
With God
Practice these principals in all my affairs
Than give it away because I care

Daniel M Corkery
� 10/5/00
DMCDREAMER1@aol,com
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Between stimulus and response, there is a space.
In that space lies our freedom and power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and freedom
Victor Frankl

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

God answers our prayers in four ways:
1. No
2. Yes
3. Wait
4. I have something better in store for you

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Let us be grateful to people who make us happy;
they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.
Marcel Proust

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You cannot be lonely if you like the person you're alone with.
Wayne Dyer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Behind every blade of grass
is its very own angel that forever whispers:
grow ... grow.
Ethics of Judaism

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you're not clean and IN recovery you can't relapse,
your just continuing to use.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Relapse = Reliving Every Low And Pitiful Scene Exactly.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

For true intimacy to take place,
I must be a whole person forming a partnership,
not a broken person seeking another to be whole.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It's more important to be the right person,
than to meet the right person.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
are included:

To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
that you belong to
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Institutions Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/institutions.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"One of My Friends In Recovery Passed On,
I am going through so many feelings..... HELP!!!
How do I Deal with Loss and Grieving in Recovery
and feel these feelings and not use?"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 16
Today I am following my own inner guide,
know that I am coming from the best of who I am.
That makes me feel good about me.
That gives me great pleasure.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Gratitude List

The life I lived, I've never missed,
So, it's time to write a gratitude list.
I thank you Lord for the times in jail,
for, I admit, it sure was hell.
I'm thankful for the nights I cried,
And all the times my spirit died.
The tears upon my daddy's face,
His daughter bringing such disgrace.
For every time I wore black eyes,
It was a blessing in disguise.
I thank you mostly for the pain,
For the knowledge that I was insane.
The wasted years I'll never see,
With thoughts of death consuming me.
I thank you, God, for in this way,
You made me the person I am today.

� 2002
Sharlett Hunt
sharlette863@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sponsor
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1196

The Truth of what happened to The Triangle In The Circle
www.barefootsworld.net/aacircletriangle.html

Deaf and Hard of Hearing AA 12 Step Recovery Resources
www.dhh12s.com/index.htm

12 Step Graphics
www.d21c.com/kiddlehopper/12stepgraphicspage1.html
www.d21c.com/kiddlehopper/12stepgraphicspage2.html
www.d21c.com/kiddlehopper/12stepgraphicspage3.html

Me an Alcoholic?
Author unknown.
(p. 419 in 2nd edition, p. 432 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown8.html

Doctor, Alcoholic, Addict
Paul O., MD, Laguna Niguel, California.
(p. 439 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/paulohliger.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 16                                   The Simplest Prayer

"�praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power
to carry that out." Step Eleven

   How do we pray? With little experience, many of us don't even
know how to begin. The process, however, is neither difficult nor
complicated.  We came to Narcotics Anonymous because of our
drug addiction. But underlying that, many of us felt a deep sense
of bewilderment with life itself. We seemed to be lost, wandering
a trackless waste with no one to guide us. Prayer is a way to gain
direction in life and the power to follow that direction.

   Because prayer plays such a central part in N.A. recovery, many
of us set aside a particular time each day to pray, establishing a
pattern. In this quiet time, we "talk" to our Higher Power, either
silently or aloud. We share our thoughts, our feelings, our day.
We ask, "What would you have me do?" At the same time we ask,
"Please give me the power to carry out your will."

   Learning to pray is simple. We ask for "knowledge of His will for
us and the power to carry that out:' By doing that, we find the
direction we lacked and the strength we need to fulfil our God's
will.

Just for today: I will set aside some quiet time to "talk" with my
Higher Power. I will ask for that Power's direction and the
ability to act on it. pg. 302

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

H.P. As Guide

See to it that your relationship with Him is right, and great events
will
come to pass for you and countless others. This is the Great Fact for
us.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 164

Having a right relationship with God seemed to be an impossible
order.  My chaotic past had left me filled with guilt and remorse
and I wondered how this "God business" could work.  A.A. told me
that I must turn my will and my life over to the care of God, as I
understand Him.  With nowhere else to turn, I went down on my
knees and cried, "God, I can't do this. Please help me!"  It was
when I admitted my powerlessness that a glimmer of light began
to touch my soul, and then a willingness emerged to let God control
my life.  With Him as my guide, great events began to happen, and
I found the beginning of sobriety.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 16th

A.A. Thought for the Day

How seriously do I take my obligations to A.A.?  Have I
taken all the good I can get out of it and then let my
obligations slide?  Or do I constantly feel a deep sense
of loyalty to the whole A.A. movement?  Am I not only
grateful but also proud to be a part of such a wonderful
fellowship, which is doing such marvelous work among
alcoholics?  Am I glad to be a part of the great work
that A.A. is doing and do I feel a deep obligation to carry
on that work at every opportunity?  Do I feel that I owe A.A.
my loyalty and devotion?

Meditation for the Day

How seriously do I take my obligations to A.A.?  Have I
taken all the good I can get out of it and then let my
obligations slide?  Or do I constantly feel a deep sense
of loyalty to the whole A.A. movement?  Am I not only
grateful but also proud to be a part of such a wonderful
fellowship, which is doing such marvelous work among
alcoholics?  Am I glad to be a part of the great work
that A.A. is doing and do I feel a deep obligation to carry
on that work at every opportunity?  Do I feel that I owe
A.A. my loyalty and devotion?

Prayer for the Day

I pray that the hidden power within me may be released.
I pray that I may not imprison the spirit that is within me.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 16

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Being Honest with Ourselves

Our relationship with ourselves is the most important relationship
we need to maintain. The quality of that relationship will
determine the quality of our other relationships.

When we can tell ourselves how we feel, and accept our
feelings, we can tell others.

When we can accept what we want and need, we will be ready
to have our wants and needs met.

When we can accept what we think and believe, and accept what's
important to us, we can relay this to others.

When we learn to take ourselves seriously, others will too.

When we learn to chuckle at ourselves, we will be ready to laugh
with others.

When we have learned to trust ourselves, we will be trustworthy
and ready to trust.

When we can be grateful for who we are, we will have achieved
self-love.

When we have achieved self-love and accepting our wants and
needs, we will be ready to give and receive love.

When we've learned to stand on our own two feet, we're ready to
stand next to someone.

Today, I will focus on having a good relationship with myself.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ring Out The Old, Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/1998/10/ringout.htm

We Are All In The Same Boat
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/10/same-boat.htm

�The Faith Factor� ,by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/03/alan-cohen.htm

Finding an Herbalist
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2002/December/feature2.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

THE GENTLE ART OF BLESSING

    On awakening, bless this day, for it is already full of unseen
good which your blessings will call forth; for to bless is to
acknowledge the unlimited good that is embedded in the very
texture of the universe and awaiting each and all.

    On passing people in the street, on the bus, in places of work
and play, bless them. The peace of your blessing will accompany
them on their way and the aura of its gentle fragrance will be a
light to their path.

    On meeting and talking to people, bless them in their health,
their work, their joy, their relationships to God, themselves, and
others. Bless them in their abundance, their finances...bless them
in every conceivable way, for such blessings not only sow seeds
of healing but one day will spring forth as flowers of joy in the
waste places of your own life.

    As you walk, bless the city in which you live, its government
and teachers, its nurses and street sweepers, its children and
bankers and its priests.

    The minute anyone expresses the least aggression or
unkindness to you, respond with a blessing: bless them totally,
sincerely, joyfully, for such blessings are a shield which protects
them from the ignorance of their misdeed, and deflects the arrow
that was aimed at you.

    To bless means to wish, unconditionally, total, unrestricted
good for others and events from the deepest wellspring in the
innermost chamber of your heart: it means to hallow, to hold in
reverence, to behold with utter awe that which is always a gift
from the Creator. He who is hallowed by your blessing is set
aside, consecrated, holy, whole.

    To bless is yet to invoke divine care upon, to think or speak
gratefully for, to confer happiness upon - although we ourselves
are never the bestower, but simply the joyful witnesses of Life's
abundance. To bless all without discrimination of any sort is the
ultimate form of giving, because those you bless will never know
from whence came the sudden ray of sun that burst through the
clouds of their skies, and you will rarely be a witness to the
sunlight in their lives.

    When something goes completely askew in your day, some
unexpected event knocks down your plans and you too also,
burst into blessing: for life is teaching you a lesson, and the very
event you believe to be unwanted, you yourself called forth, so
as to learn the lesson you might balk against were you not to bless
it. Trials are blessings in disguise, and hosts of angels follow in
their path. To bless is to acknowledge the omnipresent, universal
beauty hidden to material eyes; it is to activate that law of
attraction which, from the furthest reaches of the universe, will
bring into your life exactly what you need to experience and
enjoy.

    When you pass a prison, mentally bless its inmates in their
innocence and freedom, their gentleness, pure essence and
unconditional forgiveness; for one can only be prisoner of one's
self-image, and a free man can walk unshackled in the courtyard
of a jail, just as citizens of countries where freedom reigns can
be prisoners when fear lurks in their thoughts.

    When you pass a hospital, bless its patients in their present
wholeness, for even in their suffering, this wholeness awaits in
them to be discovered.

    When your eyes behold a man in tears, or seemingly broken by
life, bless him in his vitality and joy: for the material senses
present  but the inverted image of the ultimate splendor and
perfection which only the inner eye beholds.

    It is impossible to bless and to judge at the same time. So hold
constantly as a deep, hallowed, intoned thought that desire to
bless, for truly then shall you become a peacemaker, and one
day you shall, everywhere, behold the very face of God.

from a book by Pierre Pradervand

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I Spoke to Myself

I spoke to the gentle bird winging in the forest;
"Bring your soothing song to my sad heart."

It answered; "I cannot be found in the forest without, my
Song lives already within your heart!"

I spoke to Mother Nature; "Shine your rays of light
On me and lift my weary spirit".

She answered; "There is no sun outside yourself. Seek my
Eternal Light where it shines, within your Mind."

I spoke to the highest being my world had taught me of;
"Save me from this world of darkness and pain."

He answered; "There is no world to save you from except
That made manifest in your imaginings. Within, will you find the
Light and Joy and Love you seek.

I spoke to God; "Bring near to me Your wisdom that I may
Find my way home to you."

It answered; "You live now within me and I within you
Where distance does not exist. Wake up my Son, and know you
speak Only to Yourself, for you are...
"All that Is'!"

John McIntosh and Rev. Jo Ann "Ananda" Polito
Copyright � Teach Only Love

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Truth is one; sages call it by various names,
     it is one sun which reflects in all ponds.
It is the one water which slakes the thirst of all;
     It is the one air which sustains all life.
     It is the one fire which shines in all houses.
Colors of the cows may be different, but the milk is white.
Flowers and bees may be different, but honey is the same.
     Systems of faith may be different, but God is one.
As the rain dropping from the sky wends its way toward the ocean,
So the prayers offered in all faiths reach the one God, who is supreme.

Rig-Veda
Hindu Scriptures

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Great Lesson

    One day a father and his rich family took his son to a trip to the
country with the firm purpose to show him how poor people can be. They
spent
a day and a night in the farm of a very poor family.

   When they got back from their trip the father asked his son, "How was
the trip?"

    "Very good Dad!"
    "Did you see how poor people can be?" the father asked.
    "Yeah!"
    "And what did you learn?"

    The son answered, "I saw that we have a dog at home, and they have
four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of the garden, they have
a creek that has no end.  We have imported lamps in the garden, they
have the stars.  Our patio reaches to the front yard, they have a whole
horizon."

    When the little boy was finishing, his father was speechless.  His
son
added, "Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are!"

    Isn't it true that it all depends on the way you look at things?
If you
have love, friends, family, health, good humor and a positive attitude
towards life -- you've got everything!

   You can't buy any of these things, but still you can have all the
material possessions you can imagine, provisions for the future, etc.,
but
if you think poor thoughts, you have nothing!

Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Another Day of Gratitude

Another day of gratitude
Fades gently with the night
Mine has been the privilege
To pray and read and write
Recovery again is mine
Earned by the Grace of God
Learning one day at a time
The path others have trod
I haven't had to use today
What happens matters not
Easy does it, first things first
I haven't lost the plot
Applied the Program for today
Shared with N.A. friends
Another four-and-twenty hours
Where the story ends - Just for today.

Submitted By
Kaz

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There is a magnificent artist in you just waiting to be brought forth.
You can reproduce your parent's story,
leave the canvas blank,
or you can recognize your true identity and create a masterpiece.
The life you hold is in your hands.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes
but in having new eyes.
Marcel Proust

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If we bestow a gift or favor and expect a return for it,
it is not a gift but a trade.
Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Real love begins where nothing is expected in return.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900-44)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dig deep into the soil of your giving.
No matter what we think we've accomplished,
we have only scratched the surface of our own generosity.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

No matter what, don't use.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Don't leave before the miracle happens.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Miracles are our birthright.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

God doesn't make ANY junk.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
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Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
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Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
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Even if your country is listed
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12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
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For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Trust Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/trust.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"One of My Friends In Recovery Passed On,
I am going through so many feelings..... HELP!!!
How do I Deal with Loss and Grieving in Recovery
and feel these feelings and not use?"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 15
I have a quiet place within me where I can rest today,
I have a quiet place where I can go
that offers peace, comfort and healing.
It is as close as this moment.... as close as a breath.
This place is mine whenever I want it.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Light That Shines Inside

Listen Friend,
And you will hear,
A tale of true simplicity,

For you have looked
Your whole life through
To find the spirit
Inside of you.

Just how it happens,
We know not when,
The date's not important,
Now, as then.

We celebrate life
With each passing day,
The gifts we are given
We can all give away.

A smile, a hug,
A wink or a nod,
The joy of the moment,
It all comes from God
.
To share and be shared,
This love that's so true,
This light that shines out
  From inside of you.

The miracle was given
To all near and far
The hope that is shining
So bright, like a star,

For now and forever,
This light we shall see,
Brings peace and joy to All,
Begins with you and me.

� written by ~ Sharlett H.
Sharlette863@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The 12 Steps in Plain English
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=712

The 24-Hour Club for Alcoholics
www.barefootsworld.net/aathe24hourclub.html

12 Step Prayers
www.ipass.net/~a1idpirat/prayers.html

Unto the Second Generation
Author unknown, Chicago, Illinois.
(p. 355 in 2nd edition, p. 422 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown7.html

Stars Don't Fall
Countess Felicia G., New York City.
(p. 401 in 2nd edition, p. 400 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/feliciagizycka.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 15                                                       Choices

   "We did not choose to become addicts."      Basic Text p. 3

   When we were growing up, all of us had dreams. Every child
has heard a relative or neighbor ask, "What do you want to be
when you grow up?" Even if some of us didn't have elaborate
dreams of success, most of us dreamed of work, families,
and a future of dignity and respect. But no one asked, "Do you
want to be a drug addict when you grow up?"

   We didn't choose to become addicts, and we cannot choose
to stop being addicts. We have the disease of addiction. We
are not responsible for having it, but we are responsible for
our recovery. Having learned that we are sick people and that
there is a way of recovery, we can move away from blaming
circumstances-or ourselves-and into living the solution.
We didn't choose addiction, but we can choose recovery.

Just for today: I choose recovery.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Acceptance

We admitted we couldn't lick alcohol with our own remaining
resources, and so we accepted the further fact that dependence
upon a Higher Power (if only our A.A. group) could do this hitherto
impossible job.  The moment we were able to accept these facts
fully, our release from the alcohol
compulsion had begun.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 109

Freedom came to me only with my acceptance that I could turn my
will and my life over the care of my Higher Power, whom I call God.
Serenity seeped into the chaos of my life when I accepted that
what I was going through was life, and that God would help me
through my difficulties -- and much more, as well.  Since then He
has helped me through all of my difficulties!  When I accept
situations as they are, not as I wish them to be, then I can begin
to grow and have serenity and peace of mind.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden / October 15th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Am I deeply grateful to A.A. for what it has done for
me in regaining my sobriety and opening up an entirely
new life for me?  A.A. has made it possible for me to
carry on other interests in business and in various other
associations with people.  It has made a full life possible
for me.  It would perhaps be wrong if all my activities
were limited to A.A. work.  It has made a well-rounded
life possible for me in work, in play, and in hobbies of
various kinds.  But will I desert A.A. because of this?
Will I accept a diploma and become a graduate of A.A.?
Do I realize that I could have nothing worthwhile without A.A.?


Meditation for the Day

There is only one way to get full satisfaction from life and
that is to live the way you believe God wants you to live.
Live with God in that secret place of the spirit and you
will have a feeling of being on the right road.  You will
have a deep sense of satisfaction.  The world will have
meaning and you will have a place in the world, work to
do that counts in the eternal order of things.  Many things
will work for you and with you, as long as you feel you are
on God's side.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may have a sense of the eternal value of the
work I do.  I pray that I may not only work for now, but
also for eternity.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

   Today's Thought
OCTOBER 15

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Letting Go of Chaos

No good work comes from unrest.

Unrest, fear, anger, or sadness may motivate us. These feelings
are sometimes intended to compel action. But our best work
emerges after these feelings have been replaced by peace.

We will not accomplish our task any sooner, or any better, by
performing it out of a sense of urgency, fear, anger, or sadness.

Let go of unrest. Let peace fill the void. We do not have to forfeit
our power, our God given personal power - or our peace - to do
the work as we are called upon to do today. We will be given
all the power we need to do what we are meant to do, when it is
time.

Let peace come first. Then proceed. The task will get done,
naturally and on time.

Today, I will get peaceful first, and let my work and life emerge
from that base.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

All This From One Little Mouse
www.inlightimes.com/archives/1998/10/mouse.htm

Ten Tips On Coping With Pet Loss
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/10/pet-loss.htm

Zen and the Brain
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2003/January/pressman.htm

�The Addict And The Sage� ,by Alan Cohen
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2003/02/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Yes You Can!
FIND THE PEARLS IN YOUR LIFE

A time comes when we finally awaken and start finding the
"Pearls" in our life. When in the midst of all our fears and
insanity, we stop dead in our tracks, and realize that it's
time to stop hoping and waiting for something to change,
or for happiness, safety and security to come galloping over the
next horizon. We awaken to the fact that we are not perfect, that
not everyone will always love, appreciate, or approve of who
or what we are, and that's okay. (They're entitled to their own
views and opinions.) And we learn the importance of loving
and championing ourselves; and in the process a sense of
new-found confidence is born of self-approval.

We learn that people don't always say what they mean or mean
what they say, and sometimes they don't even know themselves.
We also learn that not everyone will always be there for us;
and that it's not always about us. So, we learn to stand on our
own, and to take care of ourselves, and in the process, a sense
of safety and security is born of self-reliance.

We stop judging and pointing fingers and we begin to accept
people as they are, and to overlook their shortcomings and
human frailties; and in the process, a sense of peace and
contentment is born. We realize that much of the way we view
ourselves and the world around us, is as a result of all the
messages and opinions that have been ingrained into our
psyche.

We begin to sift through all that we've been fed about how we
should behave, how we should look, and how much we should
weigh; what we should wear and where we should shop, and
what we should drive; how and where we should live, and
what we should do for a living; who we should sleep with, who
we should marry, and what we should expect of a marriage; the
importance of having and raising children, or what we owe our
parents. We learn to open up to new worlds and different points
of view. And we begin reassessing and redefining who we are
and what we really stand for.

We learn that we don't know everything, it's not our job to save
the world and that we can't teach a cat to sing. We learn to
distinguish between guilt, and responsibility, and the importance
of setting boundaries, and learning to say NO. We learn that the
only cross to bear is the one we choose to carry. We learn to
look at relationships as they really are and not as we would
have them be. We stop trying to control people, situations,
and outcomes.

We look in the mirror and come to terms with the fact that we
will never be a perfect size, and we stop trying to compete with
the image inside our head and agonizing over how we "stack up."
We stop working so hard at putting our feelings aside, smoothing
things over and ignoring our needs; and we come to the
realization that we deserve to be treated with love, kindness,
sensitivity, and respect.

We learn that fatigue diminishes the spirit and can create
doubt and fear. So we take more time to rest. And, just as food
fuels the body, laughter fuels our soul,and crying cleans our
hurts. Suppressing our hurt makes us weak. It's OK to cry;
it's a form of releasing our hurt, after we feel the fullness of
our hurt, we will grow strong again.

So we take more time to laugh and to play. We learn that for
the most part, in life we get what we believe we deserve and
that much of life truly is a self-fulfilling prophecy. We learn
that anything worth achieving is worth working for, and that
wishing for something to happen is different from working
toward making it happen. More importantly, we learn that in
order to achieve success we need direction, discipline, and
perseverance.

We also learn that no one can do it all alone and that it's
OK to risk asking for help. We learn that the only thing we
must truly fear is the great robber baron of all time, fear itself.
We learn to step right into and through our fears because we
know that whatever happens we can handle it, and to give in
to fear is to give away the right to live life on our terms.

And we learn to fight for our life and not to squander it living
under a cloud of impending doom. We learn that life isn't
always fair, we don't always get what we think we deserve;
and that sometimes-bad things happen to unsuspecting, good
people. On these occasions, we learn not to personalize
things.

We begin to take responsibility for our actions. And we learn
to deal with evil in its most primal state - the ego. We learn
negative feelings such as anger, envy and resentment must
be understood and redirected, or they will suffocate the life out
of us, and poison the universe that surrounds us. We learn to
admit when we are wrong and to build bridges instead of walls.

We learn to be thankful and to take comfort in many of the simple
things we take for granted, things that millions of people upon
the earth can only dream about: a full refrigerator, clean running
water, a soft warm bed, a long hot shower. Slowly, we begin to take
responsibility for ourselves; and we make ourselves a promise to
never betray ourselves and to never settle for less than our heart's
desire.

And we hang a wind chime outside our window so we can listen
to the wind. And we make it a point to keep smiling, keep trusting,
and to stay open to every wonderful possibility.

Finally, with courage in our heart and with Spirit by our side,
we take a stand, for we have found one of life's most important
"Pearls" ... we take a deep breath and ...

we begin to design the life that WE want to live.

Written by Adam Khan

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Things Are Not Always Black or White

     When I was in elementary school, I got into a major
argument with a boy in my class.  I have forgotten what the
argument was about, but I have never forgotten the lesson I
learned that day.

     I was convinced that 'I' was right and 'he' was wrong - and
he was just as convinced that 'I' was wrong and 'he' was right.
The teacher decided to teach us a very important lesson.  She
brought us up to the front of the class and placed him on one
side of her desk and me on the other.    In the middle of her
desk was a large, round object.  I could clearly see that it was
black.  She asked the boy what color the object was.  "White,"
he answered.

     I couldn't believe he said the object was white, when it
was obviously black!  Another argument started between my
classmate and me, this time about the color of the object.

     The teacher told me to go stand where the boy was standing
and told him to come stand where I had been. We changed
places, and now she asked me what the color of the object was.
I had to answer, "White."  It was an object with two differently
colored sides, and from his viewpoint it was white.  Only from my
side was it black.

     My teacher taught me a very important lesson that day:  You
must stand in the other person's shoes and look at the situation
through their eyes in order to truly understand their
perspective.

by Judie Paxton from Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul
Copyright 1998 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Patty
Hansen and Irene Dunlap

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Impeccable Truth

Tell the impeccable truth about your feelings in every situation.
When someone asks you which restaurant you would like to go
to, be honest about the choice that would make you happiest.
When someone asks you for a date and the thought of going
doesn't feel attractive, say no. (If thinking about something
doesn't feel good, doing it won't feel better!) When you feel drawn
to a movie in the video store, take it home. If you're watching
a video that feels emotionally debilitating, turn it off. Trust the
messages your feelings are giving you as feedback on how well
your current choice matches your well-being. Living from joy is
like building a muscle; the more you trust and act on your intuition,
the louder, stronger, and more real it becomes. If you don't live
from your truth, your ability to access it will atrophy, and you will
not know who you are, what you want, or what you are doing here.
Live from the truth and you will be set free.

Alan Cohen

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Masterful Illustration

An aging master grew tired of his apprentice complaining, and so,
one morning, sent him for some salt.
When the apprentice returned, the master instructed the
unhappy young man to put a handful of salt in a glass of water
and then to drink it.

"How does it taste?" the master asked.

"Bitter," spit the apprentice.

The master chuckled and then asked the young man to take
the same handful of salt and put it in the lake.
The two walked in silence to the nearby lake, and once the
apprentice swirled his handful of salt in the water, the old man said,
"Now drink from the lake."

As the water dripped down the young man's chin, the master asked,
"How does it taste?"

"Fresh," remarked the apprentice.

"Do you taste the salt?" asked the master.

"No," said the young man.

At this, the master sat beside this serious young man who
so reminded him of himself and took his hands, offering,
"The pain of life is pure salt; no more, no less.
The amount of pain in life remains the exactly the same.
However, the amount of bitterness we taste depends
on the container we put the pain in.
So when you are in pain,
the only thing you can do is to enlarge your sense of things . . .
Stop being a glass. Become a lake."

Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I Believe

I believe in the power of a woman,
I have seen what she can do, can become!
I believe she has the power to become...
Whole...complete.
I believe this is possible...when...
She allows others who have been there...
Love her until she...
Has faith in herself again.
We can help one another...
As no one else can.
We can lend strength until...
Another can grasp our hands...
Together with one purpose...
To help the newcomer stand.
For once we were new...
Once we were full of fear...
And once we learned how to stand...
On our own two feet...
In this lies our power...
Grabbing the hand of another...
Sharing our strength...
Until she too, can stand.

�SMD 1999
Sheila3444@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Freedom and Grace

I'm in a high spot in my life
Very grateful and blessed
I need for nothing
And want for less
I long for spiritual growth for today
To be blessed to give it away
How many die to get what we have
We only have to go to meetings to see
They just found a man that was three weeks dead
In an old AA meeting hall
So sad he did not hear the call
Had an empty mouth wash bottle in his pocket
My kid brother died of liver disease
Thirteen years after my dad died in his disease
If only we could of reached them
If your new at this give time
Time
If you've got time
Call them they need you
Break the ice
Be nice
To new comers
Help them overcome their fears
Share with them your tears
They have to learn and need our help
Let them know we need them
God will work wonders within us
'We will see miracles
Right before our eyes
We will be rewarded by our HP
I believe then we will truly know peace
As the promises say
Twelve steps are a life line for me
The longer I'm around the more I see

Daniel M Corkery 10/4/00
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you have made mistakes, even serious mistakes,
you may have a fresh start any moment you choose,
for this thing we call "failure" is not the falling down,
but the staying down.
Mary Pickford

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Something you put down, you leave.
Something you can't face stays with you forever.
Dr. Wayne W. Dyer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We must view young people not as empty bottles to be filled,
but as candles to be lit.
Robert H. Shaffer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When they think that they know the answers,
people are difficult to guide.
When they know that they don't know,
People can find their own way.
Tao Te Ching, Translated by Stephen Mitchell

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I'm getting better.
I try to save my best argument
for when someone else is in the room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The 12 steps and 12 traditions are like 24 wrenches
that will fit any size nut that walks into these rooms.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We can disagree without being disagreeable.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Some people say I may not have another recovery,
If I get honest with myself,
  From where I came from,
I don't have another run.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

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or go to the website and unsubscribe

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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Change Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/change.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"How do I deal with gossiping?
This stuff has really hurt me in the past
and I don't want to get hurt or hurt anyone else"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 14
I can accept whatever I am feeling today.
Without resistance my feelings pass and
I am then open to experience whatever is next.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Live Life Free

I told him he needs to give me a call
Before he gets his ass against the wall
I consistently say call me before you start
He has a space inside of my heart
I will not supply his crack habit today
It is so sad to see one you love go that way
He has to get honest open and willing
He must realize who he is killing
I will no longer waste my time you see
I must remember thanks to God it is not me
He has money and gas to go and cop
He knows where recovery is if he wants to stop
I know now I must give him over to God above
I do not want to see drugs killing the one I love
So damn sad to realize so many have to die
I pray and realize all I can do is sit and cry
Recovery is not for those who need it
Recovery is for those who want to quit
Those who seek it and want it will find
Recovery is a better way to peace of mind
The steps are the way for us to live free today
This is the easier softer way
So come along and follow me
This is truly the way for us to live life free

Daniel M Corkery
5/29/2002
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The 12 Steps We Arrived With
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1174

COME ON! BE HAPPY TOO
September 1967 AA Grapevine
Big Book Story - Update
www.barefootsworld.net/aaloseslifeupdategv967.html

Welcome to SpiritSite.com
www.SpiritSite.com/

SpiritSite.com Spiritual Retreat Centers Directory
www.SpiritSite.com/centers/index.htm

Calculating the Costs
Author unknown.
(p. 396, 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown6.html

Growing Up All Over Again
Harris K., Illinois.
(p. 418, 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/harrisk.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 14                                   The End of Loneliness

"With the love that I am shown in Narcotics Anonymous, I have
no excuse for loneliness." Basic Text p. 262

   Addiction is a lonely disease. We may be surrounded by people
but,  sooner or later, our addiction drives a wedge between us
and even our closest loved ones. Many of us are driven to
Narcotics Anonymous by a desperate loneliness.

   Though we may approach the rooms of NA with caution and
suspicion, we are welcomed with a hug, a smile, and a warm
"keep coming back." This may be the first place where we
have felt welcome in a long, long while. We watch other
members talking and laughing, leaving the meeting in
groups for more talk at the local coffee shop. We wonder if we,
too, could become a part of this loving bunch.

   Our pattern of isolation can make it difficult for us to join in. Over
time, however, we begin to feel "a part of" rather than "apart from."
Soon, when we walk into the rooms, we feel at home. We begin to
make friends and our lives start to change.

   NA teaches us how to overcome our isolation. Through our first
tentative friendships formed in our home group, we start to find
that making friends isn't hard. A sense of belonging comes when
we share ourselves with others.

Just for today: I am thankful for the friendships my Higher Power
has given me in NA. Because of them, I am lonely no more.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous
©
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Loved Back to Recovery

Our whole treasured philosophy of self-sufficiency had to be
cast aside. This had not been done with old-fashioned willpower;
it was instead a matter of developing the willingness to accept
these new facts of living.  We neither ran nor fought.  But accept
we did.  And then we were free.
BEST OF THE GRAPEVINE, Vol. 1, p. 198

I can be free of my old enslaving self.  After a while I recognize,
and believe in, the good within myself.  I see that I have been
loved back to recovery by my Higher Power, who envelops me.
My Higher Power becomes that source of love and strength that
is performing a continuing miracle in me.  I am sober . . . and I
am grateful.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 14th

A.A. Thought for the Day

How big a part of my life is A.A.?  Is it just one of my
activities and a small one at that?  Do I only go to A.A.
meetings now and then and sometimes never go at all?
Do I think of A.A. only occasionally?  Am I reticent about
mentioning the subject of A.A. to people who might need
help?  Or does A.A. fill a large part of my life?  Is it the
foundation of my whole life?  Where would I be without
A.A.?  Does everything I have and do depend on my A.A.
foundation?  Is A.A. the foundation on which I build my life?

Meditation for the Day

Lay upon God your failures and mistakes and shortcomings.
Do not dwell upon your failures, upon the fact that in the
past you have been nearer a beast than an angel.  You have
a mediator between you and God—your growing faith—which
can lift you up from the mire and point you toward the
heavens.  You can still be reconciled with the spirit of God.
You can still regain your, harmony with the Divine Principle
of the universe.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may not let the beast in me hold me back from
my spiritual destiny.  I pray that I may rise and walk upright.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a © Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 14

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie ©

Controlling Versus Trust

      There was a time in my life when I felt so afraid of and
overwhelmed by the very act of living that I actually wanted to
make out a schedule for each day of my life for the next five
years. I wanted to include all the chores I had to do, when I
would do them, even when I would schedule relaxation. I wanted
to get some order into what felt overwhelming. I wanted to feel
like I was in control.
      --Anonymous

Controlling is a direct response to our fear, panic, and sense of
helplessness. It is a direct response to feeling overwhelmed,
and to distrust.

We may not trust ourselves, our Higher Power, the Plan, the
Universe, or the process of life. Instead of trusting, we revert to
control.

We can approach this need to control by dealing with our fear.
We  deal with fear by trusting - ourselves, our Higher Power,
the love and support of the Universe, the Plan, and this process
we call life and recovery.

We can trust that when things don't work out the way we want,
God has something better planned.

We can trust ourselves to get where we need to go, say what we
need to say, do what we need to do, know what we need to know,
be who we need to be, and become all we can become, when we
are intended to do that, when we are ready, and when the time is
right.

We can trust our Higher Power and the Universe to give us all the
direction we need.

We can trust ourselves to listen, and respond, accordingly.

We can trust that all we need on this journey shall come to us.
We will not get all we need for the entire journey today. We shall
receive today's supplies today, and tomorrow's supplies tomorrow.
We were never intended to carry supplies for the entire journey.
The burden would be too heavy, and the way was intended to
be light.

Trust in yourself. We do not have to plan, control, and schedule
all things.The schedule and plan have been written. All we need
to do is show up.

The way will become clear and the supplies will be amply and
clearly provided, one day at a time.

Trust, my friend, in today.

Today, I will trust that I will receive all I need to get me through
today. I will trust that the same shall happen tomorrow.

©1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Everyday Matters, Get On It
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2007/October/Everyday%20Matters.html

Radical Self-Acceptance
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/10/radical-self-acceptance.htm

What Do You Choose To Remember?
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2003/January/vissell.htm

“How Long Healing Takes” , Alan Cohen
www.spiritsite.com/forums/columns/others/part22.shtml

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Let Me Help You Remember  written by Alan Cohen

   While exiting a grocery store I noticed an unusual poster
announcing, "You already know how to meditate. Let me help
you remember." Ah, what an empowering offer, I thought a
sharp contrast to the many advertisements for products and
services that tell us that we are stupid or broken and need
intelligence or fixing.

      How wonderful it feels and how powerfully it works to regard
ourselves and each other as innately wise, capable of
accomplishing .

   A few years ago I signed up for a "You Fly" airplane flight which
promised that I would be able to take the stick of a small
airplane and control the plane myself. Flying an airplane had
been one of my long-time dreams, so I eagerly registered for
the flight, a three- hour jaunt over three Hawaiian islands. What
a treat, I imagined, to be in charge of the aircraft for a few minutes
in mid-air.

   On the appointed day I drove to the commuter terminal at the
Maui airport, where I met the pilot, Scott. I informed Scott that
I had never piloted a plane before, and he told me that would
be no problem. Scott guided me out on the tarmac to a small
twin-engine Cessna, and he gave me a brief rundown about
the various instruments
on the control panel. Scott strapped himself into the seat next to
mine and told me, "Now here's how you take off".

   Excuse me, I thought, I don't remember the advertisement
saying anything about taking off. I started to open my mouth to
say, "Perhaps you didn't hear me say that I've never flown before.
" But when I looked over at Scott he was on the radio setting up
our takeoff with the control tower. Suddenly I understood what
was happening: he thought I could do it. To Scott, taking off was
not too much to ask of me. So, in spite of my hesitation, I
decided to keep my mouth shut. I decided that if I had a choice
between me being right about my inability or Scott being right
about my ability, I would rather choose his opinion. I would rather
fulfill his expectations of my greatness than my expectations of
my ineptitude. I decided to believe in his belief. I followed Scott's
careful instructions, and within a few minutes we were airborne.

   I flew the airplane nearly three hours that day. I flew over the
dramatic north shore of Maui, past the thousand-foot sweeping
verdant cliffs of Molokai, across the golden sand beaches of Lanai,
then over whales and dolphins cavorting in the rich blue ocean
channel back to Maui. There we buzzed my house and made our
way back to the airport. For nearly all that time I controlled the
airplane, with Scott stepping in occasionally to make minor
corrections. Eventually my nervousness had given way to
exhilaration, and my doubts yielded to confidence.

As we approached the airport, Scott surprised me again. "Now
here's how you land," he told me in a nonchalant way. Now wait
just a minute, I felt like saying, à la Barney Fife. Taking off and
flying is one thing, but landing 3⁄4 now that's outright dangerous.
Then I remembered a lesson from one of my favorite flyers, Richard
Bach, who suggested, "Argue for your limits, and sure enough
they're yours." I kept my mouth
shut.

   As I guided us in according to Scott's instructions, the Cessna
was rocked by a gust of wind. "Sure is windy here," Scott
laughed. "I've seen pilots who got their license on the mainland
come here and try to deal with these trade winds, and realize
they didn't really know how to land." Yow! Okay, just breathe,
I thought. I kept following Scott's direction until he took over
the stick just before touchdown. As I left the airport that day, I
felt higher than our flight. Scott's belief in me brought out the
best in me. The airplane flight was three hours, the lesson was
for a lifetime.

   Then I remembered the powerful film Stand and Deliver, in
which James Edward Olmos dramatized the true story or Jaime
Escalente, a math teacher who went into the Los Angeles
barrios and decided to teach calculus to some of the school's
lowest-functioning students. When the math department
chairwoman criticized Jaime, he boldly told her, "The students
will live up to the teacher's expectations!" Everyone in Jaime's
class went on to pass the state calculus test. At any given moment
we have two voices in our head: one which tells us we can't, and
another which tells us we can. Which will prove true? The one we
give the most attention to. The one we act on. The one we make
a  stand for.

You already know how to be magnificent. Let me help you
remember.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Where We Begin

    "God is love.  That is where we must begin.  We cannot expect
to have a loving relationship with our family, mate or children
until we heal our individual relationship with God.  In the ancient
traditions, all life was centered around a wholesome respect for
the Creator and all creations. They honored the earth for support,
the sun for the life force and themselves as expressions of
creation.

    Today, we relate to one another's ego.  We want to please one
another because of who we are or what we have.  We hold people
in awe; we want people to fulfill our needs; we demoralize ourselves
and one another for what we believe is love.

   God is love.  That's it!  God does not give presents.  God does not
have needs.  God does not argue.  God does not make threats.
God does not feel abandoned.  God does not deal with rejection.
The only thing God does is love you, and that is the only reason you
are here.

The only relationship I will seek today is a relationship with Love."

Iyanla Vanzant

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Focus

As we weave the words of our lives together
to form original stories and songs
that we live out each day
we don't often see the part that we play
in how the chapters end
in how the story goes

There may be twists of fate and turns of fortune
But it is first and foremost
the telling of your life as you imagine it, wish it
will it and think it to be

What kind of story are you writing for yourself?
Keep a focused eye on a plot with many positivities
Spark new adventures from total dream immersion
Above all, have faith in your self and your inspiration

Because, in truthful essence
your future is in your hands, heart and mind
How will you weave your story today?

Love,
Stella

© 2002 Stella Raymonde Savoie-Johnson
stellaraymonde@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Reflection for the Day.....

Looking back, I realize just how much of my life has been spent
in dwelling upon the faults of others. It provided much self-
satisfaction, to be sure, but I see now just how subtle and actually
perverse the process became. After all was said and done, the net
effect of dwelling on the so-called faults of others was self-granted
permission to remain comfortably unaware of my own defects. Do
I still point my finger at others and thus self-deceptively overlook
my own shortcomings?

Today I Pray.....

May I see that my preoccupation with the faults of others is really a
smokescreen to keep me from taking a hard look at my own, as well
as a way to bolster my own failing ego. May I check out the "why's"
of my blaming.

Today I Will Remember.....

Blame-saying is game-playing.

from the book: A Day at a Time (Softcover) by Anonymous

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Turnaround

Been down the road of death and despair,
thought I was indifferent and really didn't care

Aware of life, outside always looking in,
focused on the next one, not where I'd been

For granted, complacent, no vision on tap,
direction and guidance now with the N.A. map

Finally a reason, a season to live,
results are contingent on what I'm willing to give

Will I waste and squander this second chance?
or gratefully put in the effort, my life to enhance

When all is said and done, life really is OK,
LIVING the Program, "Just for Today"

So I'll live the solution, there's no other way,
because the day I said "GOD HELP ME !"
GOD showed me N.A.

Gratefully - A J
aj4how@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us
to an understanding of ourselves.
Carl Jung

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Learn how to be happy with what you have
while you pursue all that you want.
Jim Rohn

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A musician must make music,
an artist must paint,
a poet must write,
if he is to be ultimately at peace with himself.
What a man can be, he must be.
Abraham Maslow

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A cynic is someone who knows the price of everything
and the value of nothing.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There is no greater sorrow than a frozen heart.
Chinese Proverb

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Rationalizing your way out of anything,
Justifying yourself about everything
and Manipulating everyone.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It's o.k to look back, just don't stare.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I may not be where I want to be,
but Thank God I am not where I used to be.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

God doesn't need much;
whatever you have left is enough.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer’s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for…
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@¿@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott’s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Denial Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/denial.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"How do I deal with gossiping?
This stuff has really hurt me in the past
and I don't want to get hurt or hurt anyone else"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.

This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 13
I am at peace today knowing that God
is doing for me what I cannot do for myself.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ashes

It's late in the evening and my world is asleep.
Peaceful, wonderful, dreamless sleep.
The night is a friend now...who would have thought...
That from utter chaos where battles were fought...
Would rise from the ashes
Such a beautiful sight,
As the peace that surrounds me
On this very night.
The ashes of battle that I knew had to come,
The ashes that must be...for me to be one.
One with self, not walking in fear.
One with my God, who keeps my head clear.
The battle with fear that I had won...
The battle for my soul that I had begun.
The battle that burned the fear that claimed...
For itself my soul to maim.
I never knew the strength I had indeed,
But with my God it was surely freed.
Freed to soar, with Him taking my hand,
Restoring strength to a soul He would softly command.
Returning to sanity all that was me,
To walk with sure dignity.
No longer afraid in the dark,
No fear to command and rip me apart.
No need to run anymore,
No need to stray or roar.
Roaring is the sound I'd make in my fear,
When frightened by whatever was near.
The place that is mine, comes from within...
What rose from those ashes the battle did win.
The battle for self, and all that it means...
The battle for peace, and sleep without dreams.
I share this with you, in hope that you will...
Head my words, and your dreams fulfill.
With God at your side,
Out of the ashes rescue your pride.
Pride in yourself and all you can be,
Overcoming the darkness in spiritual victory!

� SMD 1998
Sheila3444@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The A.A. Wish
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=442

Interview With Dr.Paul O.
Author of "Doctor, Alcoholic, Addict"
AA Grapevine, July 1995
www.barefootsworld.net/aadrpaul1995.html

Early A.A.
www.dickb.com/index.shtml

The 12 Step Cyber Cafe Chat Room
www.12steps.org

It Might Have Been Worse
Chet R.
(p. 382 in 2nd edition, p. 373 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/chetrude.html

A Flower of the South
Esther E., Houston, TX.
(p. 343 in 2nd edition, p. 384 in 3rd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/estherelizardi.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 13                                       Making a Difference

"Words cannot describe the sense of spiritual awareness that we
receive when we have given something, no matter how small, to
another person".    Basic Text p. 100

   Sometimes it seems as though there is so much wrong with the
world that we might as well forget trying to make a difference.
"After all," we think, "what in the world can I do? I'm just one
person." Whether our concerns are so broad that we desire
global peace or so personal that we simply want recovery made
available to every addict who wants it, the task seems
overwhelming. "So much work to do, so little time," we sigh,
sometimes wondering how we'll ever do any good.

   Amazingly enough, the smallest contributions can make the
biggest difference. To gain more from life than an ordinary,
plodding existence requires very little effort on our parts. We
ourselves are transformed by the deep satisfaction we experience
when we lift the spirits of just one person. When we smile at
someone who is frowning, when we let someone in front of us on
the freeway, when we call a newcomer just to say we care,
we enter the realm of the extraordinary.

   Want to change the world? Start with the addict sitting next to you
tonight, and then imagine your act of kindness multiplied. One
person at a time, each one of us makes a difference.

Just for today: An act of kindness costs me nothing, but is priceless
to the recipient. I will be kind to someone today.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Freedom from Fear

When, with God's help, we calmly accepted our lot, then we found
we could live at peace with ourselves and show others who still
suffered the same fears that they could get over them, too. We
found that freedom from fear was more important than freedom
from want.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 122

Material values ruled my life for many years during my active
alcoholism.  I believed that all of my possessions would make me
happy, yet I still felt bankrupt after I obtained them.  When I first
came into A.A., I found out about a new way of living.  As a
result of learning to trust others, I began to believe in a power
greater than myself.  Having faith freed me from the bondage of
self.  As material gains were replaced by the gifts of the spirit,
my life became manageable.  I then chose to share my
experiences with other alcoholics.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 13th

A.A. Thought for the Day

A.A. work is one hundred percent voluntary. It depends on
each and every one of our members to volunteer to do his
or her share. Newcomers can sit on the sidelines until they
have got over their nervous- ness and confusion. They have
a right to be helped by all, until they can stand on their own
feet. But the time inevitably comes when they have to speak
up and volunteer to do their share in meetings and in
twelfth-step work. Until that time comes, they are not a
vital part of A.A. They are only in the process of being
assimilated. Has my time come to volunteer?

Meditation for the Day

God's kingdom on earth is growing slowly, like a seed in the
ground. In the growth of His kingdom, there is always
progress among the few who are out ahead of the crowd.
Keep striving for something better and there can be no
stagnation in your life. Eternal life, abundant life is yours
for the seeking. Do not misspend time over past failures.
Count the lessons learned from failures as rungs upon the
ladder of progress. Press onward toward the goal.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may be willing to grow. I pray that I may 'keep
stepping up on the rungs of the ladder of life.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 13, 2005

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Substance over Form

      I'm learning that for a variety of reasons, I've spent much of my
life focusing on form rather than substance. My focus has been
on having my hair done perfectly, wearing the right clothes, having
my makeup applied perfectly, living in the right place, furnishing it
with the right furniture, working at the right job, and having the right
man. Form, rather than substance, has controlled my behavior in
many areas of my life. Now, I'm finally getting to the truth. It's
substance that counts.
      --Anonymous

There is nothing wrong in wanting to look our best. Whether we
are striving to create a self, a relationship, or a life, we need to
have some solid ideas about what we want that to look like.

Form gives us a place to begin. But for many of us, form has been
a substitute for substance. We may have focused on form to
compensate for feeling afraid or feeling inferior. We may have
focused on form because we didn't know how to focus on
substance.

Form is the outline; substance is what fills it in. We fill in the
outline
of ourselves by being authentic; we fill in the outline of our life by
showing up for life and participating to the best of our ability.

Now, in recovery, we're learning to pay attention to how things
work and feel, not just to what they look like.

Today, I will focus on substance in my life. I will fill in the lines of
myself with a real person - me. I will concentrate on the substance
of my relationships, rather than what they look like. I will focus on
the real working of my life, instead of the trappings.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Good Enough to be True
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2007/October/Cohen.html

Wounds To Blessings
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2006/10/wounds-to-blessings.htm

Letters of Wisdom and Affirmation, Louise Hay
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2003/January/hay.htm

Faith
www.spiritualityhealth.com/newsh/items/blank/item_185.html

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Cave People

Taken from Max Lucado's
The Woodcutter's Wisdom and Other Favorite Stories

Long ago, or maybe not so long ago, there was a tribe in a
dark, cold cavern. The cave dwellers would huddle together
and cry against the chill. Loud and long they wailed. It was
all they did. It was all they knew to do. The sounds in the
cave were mournful, but the people didn't know it, for they
had never known joy. The spirit in the cave was death, but
the people didn't know it, for they had never known life.

But then, one day, they heard a different voice. "I have
heard your cries," it announced. "I have felt your chill and
seen your darkness. I have come to help."

The cave people grew quiet. They had never heard this
voice. hope sounded strange to their ears. "How can we
know you have come to help?"

"Trust me," he answered. "I have what you need."

The cave people peered through the darkness at the figure
of the stranger. He was stacking something, then stooping
and stacking more.

"What are you doing?" one cried, nervous.

The stranger didn't answer.

"What are you making?" one shouted even louder.

Still no response.

"Tell us!" demanded a third.

The visitor stood and spoke in the direction of the voices.
"I have what you need." With that he turned to the pile at his
feet and lit it. Wood ignited, flames erupted, and light filled
the cavern.

The cave people turned away in fear. "Put it out!" they cried.
"It hurts to see it."

"Light always hurts before it helps," he answered. "Step closer.
The pain will soon pass."

"Not I," declared a voice.

"Nor I," agreed a second.

"Only a fool would risk exposing his eyes to such light."

The stranger stood next to the fire. "Would you prefer the
darkness? Would you prefer the cold? Don't consult your
fears. Take a step of faith"

For a long time no one spoke. The people hovered in groups
covering their eyes. The fire builder stood next to the fire.
"It's warm here," he invited.

"He's right," one from behind him announced. "It's warmer."
The stranger turned a saw a figure slowly stepping toward
the fire. "I can open my eyes now," she proclaimed. "I can
see."

"Come closer," invited the fire builder.

She did. She stepped into the ring of light.

"It's so warm!" she extended her hands and sighed as her
chill began to pass.

"Come, everyone! Feel the warmth," she invited.

"Silence, woman!" cried one of the cave dwellers. "Dare you
lead us into your folly? Leave us. Leave us and take your light
with you."

She turned to the stranger. "Why won't they come?"

"They choose the chill, for though it's cold, it's what they
know. They'd rather be cold than change."

"And live in the dark?"

"And live in the dark."

The now-warm woman stood silent. Looking first at the dark,
then at the man.

"Will you leave the fire?" he asked.

She paused, then answered, "I cannot. I cannot bear the cold."
Then she spoke again. "But nor can I bear the thought of my
people in darkness."

"You don't have to," he responded, reaching into the fire and
removing a stick. "Carry this to your people. Tell them the light
is here, and the light is warm. Tell them the light is for all who
desire it."

And so she took the small flame and stepped into the shadows.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Yesterday a butterfly came floating gently through the sky.
He soared up through the atmosphere then drifted close enough to hear.
I said, "I'd love to fly with you and sail around the way you do.
It looks like it would be such fun to fly up toward the summer sun.
But I have not your graceful charm. I haven't wings, just these two
arms.
I've been designed to walk around. My human feet must touch the ground.
Then magically he spoke to me and told me what his wish would be.
He said, "What I'd love most to do is walk upon God's Earth with you,
to squish it's mud between my toes or touch my finger to my nose.
I'd love just once to walk around with human feet to touch the ground,
but I have not two legs that swing, I haven't arms, just these two
wings."
And so we went our separate ways in wonder and surprise.
For we'd both seen God's precious gifts through someone else's eyes.

Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spiritual Experiences

I felt lifted up, as though the great clean wind of a
mountain top blew through and through.
--Bill Wilson

We each have our own spiritual experiences. Sometimes they are small,
quiet happenings that we hardly notice, but can feel deep down in our
souls.
Other times they are explosive realizations that change our lives.
All of them are miracles.

At one time, we never would have noticed these wonderful experiences.
Now we can get quiet and look into our souls
and marvel at what is happening there.
We are spiritual as well as physical beings.
Our physical side used to dominate us
and keep us from getting to know the spiritual.
Now we can learn to know and appreciate every part of our beings.
This is the miracle of our lives.

Nancy Hull-Mast

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

City Streets

I know I'll never go to heaven
cause only the chosen go
I've always got what I asked for
and only God will know
I've been freed from the flames of hell
Cause hell is where I lived
Spent most of my life roaming around
The streets of the big city
Life out there is a pity
The streets hold the sick
Junkies and drunkards too
Cause out on the city streets
There is nothing else to do
My daddy used to tell me
That I was no good
So I took to the city streets
Hung out in the neighborhood
They loved me there
I was a part of the gang
We always got along
We even got together and sang
Every man will hear the piper
One day sing his song
Then it will be what we gave
That stays with us so long
You who live on the hill
Think your above us all
But it's your children who come knocking
When they hear the call
Parents be good to your children
Teach them from the start
Teach them about drugs
And love from your heart
God had spared me many years ago
Now I got a calling to reach the low
If by chance they fall by the road side
Bring them to NA and help them abide

Daniel M Corkery
10/4/00
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Opportunity dances with those who are already on the dance floor.
H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hatred toward any human being cannot exist
in the same heart as love to God.
Dean William Inge (1860 - 1954)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Prejudice is any time we experience separation
between us and another person.
Robin Trainor Masci

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

What did Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. possess
that was capable of transforming nations?
They had "soul force"-a belief that no force can overpower love in
action.
Your soul, too, can be trained as an agent for change.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Prayer is the one thing that can make a change in your life.
If you will go direct to God in simple, affirmative prayer,
you can heal your body,
bring peace and harmony into your life,
and make well-being a reality.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Don't quit before the miracle happens.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Quitting is easy; it's staying stopped that's hard.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Surrender, don't quit.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Surrender to win.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Surrender to the high cost of low living.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
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By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
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Even if your country is listed
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Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
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For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Funny Cartoons
http://www.offthemark.com/search-results/key/drug%20addict/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"How do I deal with gossiping?
This stuff has really hurt me in the past
and I don't want to get hurt or hurt anyone else"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.

This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 12
I do not let pain or discomfort stop me from
looking at myself in a true and honest light.
I do not run away from myself
today or block or disguise my reality.
I face my life fully today to learn from its lessons.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Gossip

Evil twists like a rope-burned arm
When she and I talk old times
It�s subtle, before I sense the alarm
We�ve veered into one of their crimes

�Did I tell you what my nephew did
When left alone with his son?�
My adrenaline leaps, why was it hid
  From me, his mother, what had he done?

Not wanting to enter, yet afraid to not go
I tremble, this is not mine to know
Yet, I reason, I love him I�m not his foe
And the Pied Piper of gossip I do follow

�No, was it bad?� I speak soft and low
As though to cushion the hurtful word
�Well, his father told me today� so and so
And off we go into what she has heard

Although she is not part of my family now
Our history links us. I love her as a dear friend
But I have to remember that I cannot allow
The chaotic talk as my fences I must mend

Carol Thomas
gillygumdrop@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Things I Learned From My Relapse
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=526

A Letter From Bill W. Regarding The Lord's Prayer In A.A.
  From the A.A. Archives in New York
www.barefootsworld.net/aabwlordprayer.html

12 Step Worksheet
www.webhome.idirect.com/~avroarow/P6_c.htm

Rum, Radio and Rebellion
Pete W., Pittsburgh, PA.
(p. 317 in 2nd edition, p. 356 in 3rd editions.)
They Stopped in Time
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/petewasser.html

Any Day Was Washday
Author unknown.
(p. 369 in 3rd edition.)
They Stopped in Time
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown5.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 12                                                Being Right

"When we admit that our lives have become unmanageable,
we don't have to argue our point of view... We no longer have
to be right all the time."         Basic Text p. 56

Nothing isolates us more quickly from the warmth and
camaraderie of our fellow NA members than having to be
"right" Insecure, we pretend to be some kind of authority
figure. Suffering from low self-esteem, we try to build
ourselves up by putting others down. At best, such tactics
push others away from us; at worst, they draw attack. The
more we try to impress others with how "right" we are, the
more wrong we become.

We don't have to be "right" to be secure; we don't have to
pretend to have all the answers for others to love or respect us.
In fact, just the opposite is true. None of us have all the answers.
We depend upon one another to help bridge the gaps in our
understanding of things, and we depend upon a Power greater
than our own to make up for our personal powerlessness. We
live easily with others when we offer what we know, admit what
we don't, and seek to learn from our peers. We live securely in
ourselves when we cease relying on our own power and start
relying on the God we've come to understand in recovery.
We don't have to be "right" all the time, just recovering.

Just for today: God, I admit my powerlessness and the
unmanageability of my life. Help me live with others as an
equal, dependent upon you for direction and strength.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We Stand - or Fall - Together

.  .  . no society of men and women ever had a more urgent
need for continuous effectiveness and permanent unity.  We
alcoholics see that we must work together and hang together,
else most of us will finally die alone.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 563

Just as the Twelve Steps of A.A. are written in a specific
sequence for a reason, so it is with the Twelve Traditions.  The
First Step and the First Tradition attempt to instill in me enough
humility to allow me a chance at survival.  Together they are
the basic foundation upon which the Steps and Traditions that
follow are built.  It is a process of ego deflation which allows me
to grow as an individual through the Steps, and as a contributing
member of a group through the Traditions.  Full acceptance of
the first Tradition allows me to set aside personal ambitions, fears,
and anger when they are in conflict with the common good, thus
permitting me to work with others for our mutual survival.
Without Tradition One I stand little chance of maintaining the
unity required to work with others effectively, and I also stand
to lose the remaining Traditions, the Fellowship, and my life.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 12th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Am I still on a "free ride" in A.A.? Am I all get and no give?
Do I go to meetings and always sit in the back row and let
the others do all the work? Do I think it's enough just
because I'm sober and can rest on my laurels? If so, I
haven't gone very far in the program, nor am I getting
nearly enough of what it has to offer. I will be a weak
member until I get in there and help carry the load. I
must eventually get off the bench and get into the game.
I'm not just a spectator; I'm supposed to be one of the
team. Do I go in them and carry the ball?

Meditation for the Day

Try to be thankful for whatever vision you have. Try to
perform, in the little things, faithful service to God and
others. Do your small part every day in the spirit of service
to God. Be a doer of God's word, not a hearer only. In your
daily life try to keep faith with God. Every day brings a
new opportunity to be of some use. Even when you are
tempted to rest or let things go or to evade the issue,
make it a habit to meet the issue squarely as a challenge
and not to hold back.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may perform each task faithfully. I pray that I
may meet each issue of life squarely and not hold back.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 12

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Being Gentle with Ourselves
During Times of Grief

The process of adapting to change and loss takes energy.
Grief is draining, sometimes exhausting. Some people need
to "cocoon for transformation," in Pat Carnes's words, while
going through grief.

We may feel more tired than usual. Our ability to function
well in other areas of our life may be reduced, temporarily.
We may want to hide out in the safety of our bedroom.

Grief is heavy. It can wear us down.

It's okay to be gentle with ourselves when we're gong through
change and grief. Yes, we want to maintain the disciplines of
recovery. But we can be compassionate with ourselves. We
do not have to expect more from ourselves than we can
deliver during this time. We do not even have to expect as
much from ourselves as we would normally and reasonably
expect.

We may need more rest, more sleep, more comfort. We may
be more needy and have less to give. It is okay to accept
ourselves, and our changed needs, during times of grief,
stress, and change.

It is okay to allow ourselves to cocoon during times of
transformation. We can surrender to the process, and trust that
a new, exciting energy is being created within us.

Before long, we will take wings and fly.

God, help me accept my changed needs during times of grief,
change, and loss.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

2012
http://www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2007/October/Opinion%20_Guy_Spiro.h\
tml

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Be An Original

by Robert K. Cooper

I began my school life on the wrong foot. But at least it was my own
foot. I
have always wanted to learn how life could be and how the world really
works. Those things are not always emphasized in school curricula.

One of the unwritten codes I came to believe in was, "If everyone else
is
doing it, don't." Through the years I have learned that when using this
approach many individuals in all walks of life have been able to call
forth
more of their best.

When we suppress our originality, we lose touch with the source of our
vitality and initiative. The greatest learning and achievements come not
from standardized group work but from the unique efforts of
individuals. In
this regard, the human spirit has its own set of rules. In many ways,
it is
rebellious. The imperative to live life differently, on our own terms,
keeps
building until it breaks through the surface. It is then up to us not
to let
it fade away.

When Rosa Parks refused to do what everyone else was doing on a December
evening in 1955, American history was forever altered. She had been
returning home on the bus, at the end of a long day of working. "I was
sitting in the front seat of the colored section," as she tells it,
"and the
white people were sitting in the white section. More white people got
on,
and they filled up all the seats in the white section. When that
happened,
we black people were supposed to give up our seats to the whites. But I
didn't move. The white driver said, 'Let me have those seats.' I
didn't get
up." Her courageous refusal to accept an inhumane practice has been
hailed
as a defining moment of the American civil rights movement.

Thomas Edison is another example. On his first day of school, Edison was
brought home by his kindergarten teacher, who told his parents, "He's an
imbecile and unteachable." Edison remembers, "I was always at the foot
of
the class. I felt my teachers saw no potential in me and that my father
thought I was stupid."

Virtually deaf, fired from countless early jobs, Edison purposely
marched in
the opposite direction of conventional thinking -- and as a result he
played
a major role in inventing the twentieth century. He left us with 6,000
inventions that changed the world, three million pages of notes and
diagrams, and is credited with founding scientific teamwork.

Another person driven to go against what everyone else was doing was the
"Lone Eagle," Charles Lindbergh. Most of us know of him as the pilot
of The
Spirit of St. Louis, the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic.
Few
of us know that as a researcher at the Rockefeller Institute, he
amazed the
medical profession by inventing the blood centrifuge and the artificial
heart and lung. These life-saving devices grew from his deeply felt
desire
to do what others weren't doing. When no one else would fly a supply of
pneumonia serum from Wisconsin to Quebec to save the life of one of his
closest friends, he did it himself.

When the Cooper family council met to discuss my truancy problem, I was
firmly reminded that reading, writing, and arithmetic are important
skills,
and that a five-year-old doesn't get to make the rules. But I could tell
from a certain twinkle in my grandfather's eye that no one thought I was
entirely at fault, and from a certain sternness in my mother's look
that the
school officials would be encouraged to create a more hospitable
learning
environment for newcomers. I returned determined to make the best of
my time
in school.

As I continued asking questions and showing that I was willing to work
hard
at the things that mattered, it seemed that many of my teachers --
even Miss
Robinson -- began to go out of their way to treat me as an individual
instead of just one of this year's students on a class roster.

In fifth and sixth grade, I served on the safety patrol. I helped
protect
the other kids from strangers and cars, but I never chased down anyone
who
was running home. When I could, I talked with them or ran beside them.
An
independent spirit is never something to take lightly. Without it, no
one
stands out from the crowd.

Another of the things I learned about originality is that you can't
take it
for granted. If you want to keep your independence, good intentions or
willpower alone won't do it. It takes something rare but very
practical: a
mechanism that makes it a reality.

One Good Mechanism Beats a Hundred Plans
A distinctive, learning-filled life results from a succession of small,
specific choices made each day. There's a world of difference between
imagining such a fulfilling life and actually living it. It is through
taking new actions that we learn to awaken and apply our hidden
capacity. If
you know by doing, there is no gap between what you know and what you
do.

There's something in the way, however. A powerful part of the brain, the
amygdala, wants the world to run on routine, not change. Located
within the
limbic system, an ancient area of the mind that deals with the way you
perceive and respond to the world, the amygdala relentlessly urges us to
favor the familiar and routine. It craves control and safety, which at
times
can be vital. Yet the amygdala's instincts, which have evolved over
thousands of years, tend to spill over into every aspect of life and
promote
a perpetual reluctance to embrace anything that involves risk, change,
or
growth. Your amygdala wants you to be what you have been and stay just
the
way you are.

Unless you choose to consciously override this brain tendency, you're
consigned to repeating the past. One of the most effective ways to get
past
this limitation is to devise simple mechanisms that help you stand apart
from the crowd and reach for what you can yet become. A plan is a fine
intention or faraway vision. It may be inspiring, but by itself it
usually
doesn't amount to much. But once you have a clear sense of what you
want, a
mechanism actually brings it to fruition.

For example, there's a simple mechanism that overcomes our natural
resistance to growth or change and helps us be our best. All that is
required is to regularly ask these two questions:

    1. What's the most exceptional thing you've done this week?

    2. What's the most exceptional thing you will do next week?

You can ask each member of a group to answer these questions or you
can do
it alone -- you can schedule a weekly meeting with yourself (every
Friday
morning in front of the bathroom mirror, for example). The word
"exceptional" is defined however you want. It simply means, "What
stood out
for you?" or "How did you go against the crowd?" or "What real
difference
did you make to the people around you or the world at large?" Perhaps
this
week it was something big. Or maybe it was a kind word or an unnoticed
task
at home or at work that made you proud. It is the intensity that counts.
Take a moment to reflect on your answer: Was this the best you could
give?
Is there any way you could have given something more?

I learned the essence of this mechanism from my grandfather Cooper. On
Saturday mornings, when I was visiting or working at odd jobs around his
house, he would ask, "What did you do this week that made you the
proudest?"
He would listen to my answer and we would talk about it. From time to
time,
he would also tell me about answers he got from asking the same
question of
recently arrived immigrants that he hired. What I heard was both
humbling
and inspiring.

"I saved a dollar this week for my little girl's first dress," one
said. "My
brother has polio and can't walk," said another. "The other night I
carried
him up to the top of the hill at the end of our street and we watched
the
stars come out." One man said, "My wife and I skipped a meal and
brought it
to our parents who have little. When they asked if we had eaten, we
said,
'Yes, of course, we have had more than enough to eat.' "

That's the other thing this simple mechanism does: It provides a
direct and
unexpected way to notice and value the unseen but important efforts of
others. Most of us never realize the number of times people lend a
helping
hand, go the extra mile, or perform some other act of kindness or
initiative
in the course of a busy week. Day after day, every one of us is
capable of
small yet exceptional acts of initiative and caring. When we live our
lives
in original ways such as these, we also come to realize that positive
behaviors are a primary driver of positive attitudes, not the other way
around.

At the end of our weekly conversation, my grandfather would say, "Next
week,
Robert, what can you do that no one else will expect from you?" He
taught me
what had taken him a lifetime to learn: Although we may dream about our
future in splendid images, we must live our lives in practical everyday
actions, one after another.

In all the times I have used this mechanism, I have never once
encountered
anyone who answered the two questions by saying that he or she had done
nothing exceptional this week and would do nothing exceptional next
week. Of
course, no one wants to look stuck or unimaginative, but it's more than
that. This mechanism stimulates a simple yet significant shift in the
way we
look at ourselves. It gets past good intentions and proclamations. It
prompts a deeper way of recognizing the times you could reach for the
exceptional.

If you ask yourself right now what you did last week that was
exceptional,
you'll probably have to think a while. When you establish the asking
of the
two questions -- what did you do last week and what will you do next
week --
as an integral part of your life, it can change your approach to
everything
you do. It steadily raises your sights about what you are capable of.

On Tuesday, you may be thinking, "But I haven't done anything really
exceptional yet this week." This may prompt an inner response, such as,
"Then I'd better think of something exceptional to do!" This heightens
curiosity about the possibilities for taking new actions. You'll be more
likely to find yourself actively seeking ways to give the world more
of your
best, instead of just hoping for them.

Although studies indicate that people who regularly think ahead tend to
experience more frequent leadership opportunities and career
advancement,
this mechanism is about something deeper than the external trappings of
success. It keeps overriding the don't-grow-or-change instincts of the
amygdala and clarifies what makes you original and sets you apart from
the
crowd. It serves as a reminder that it is up to each of us to keep
finding
practical and visible ways to leave a meaningful imprint on the world
around
us and on the lives of the people we care most about.
______________________
This article was excerpted from, The Other 90% by Robert K. Cooper.
Copyright 2001. Excerpted by permission of Crown Business, a division of
Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be
reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the
publisher.

About The Author:
Robert K. Cooper, Ph.D., is a faculty member of the "Lessons in
Leadership
Distinguished Speaker Series." Called a "national treasure" by Professor
Michael Ray of the Stanford Business School, Dr. Cooper is recognized
for
his pioneering work on excelling under pressure and the neuroscience of
trust, initiative, and commitment. He has designed and presented
leadership
development programs for many organizations, including Arthur
Andersen, 3M,
Ford, Sun Microsystems, Novartis, and Allstate.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Cat Lady

    I have lived in my neighborhood for twenty years. It
seems to me that I've spent at least ten of those years
looking for a lost pet, either mine or one I'd seen listed
in the newspaper's lost pet column.

    Recently, I was at it again, going door-to-door looking
for one of my own lost kitties, a little black cat named
Nicholas who'd slipped out the door before I could stop him.
I made my rounds, visiting with all the neighbors,
describing Nicholas.  Familiar with this routine, everyone
promised to keep an eye out and call me if they spotted him.

    Two blocks from my house I noticed a gentleman raking
leaves in the yard of a home that had recently been sold. I
introduced myself and presented my new neighbor with the
plight of the missing Nicholas, asking if he had seen him.

    "No," he replied, "I've not seen a little black kitty
around here." He thought for a moment, looked at me and
said, "But I know who you should ask.    Several of my
neighbors have told me that there's a woman in the
neighborhood that's crazy about cats. They say she knows
every cat around here, probably has dozens herself.  They
call her `The Cat Lady.' Be sure and check with her."

    "Oh, thank you," I said eagerly.    "Do you know where
she lives?"

    He pointed a finger down the street, "It's that one."
    I followed his finger and started to laugh.
    He was pointing at my house!

Patti Thompson Chicken Soup for the Dog & Cat Lover's Soul
by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Marty Becker, D.V.M.
and Carol Kline Copyright 1999 Canfield and Hansen.  All rights reserved

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"I was going to....but I didn't"

I was going to call you, but I didn't,
I was going to talk to you, but I didn't,
I was going to a meeting, but I didn't,
I was going to tell you how I feel, but I didn't
I was going to express myself, but I didn't
I was going to do it today, but I didn't
Where is my growth, I don't know because I didn't

Jenny - addict
Jenny6632@...

I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.
I've learned that people will forget what you said,
people will forget what you did,
but people will never forget how you
made them feel.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hi Scott, this is Gail D. in Syracuse, NY.  I was roaming
through my "baby boy's" room and found this poem in memory
of his friend shot down in 2002 to the gang violence in
Syracuse, NY. So this child is the son of an recovering addict
and I wanted to share his pain as he so eloquently told it.
Thanks, always in service Gail D.

IN MEMORY OF MIKE R.  "REST IN PEACE" 10/12/2002

When you are deep in the Streets
Real pain starts to happen
And boys will run, when the automatics starts to clapping

So I sit back and anticipate about my life
trying to invest in things, trying to make things right
When I look in the sky I see "my man" is in sight
So I get the pen out and start to write.

I look at the pictures on my walls, with ya smile so bright
and I know you watch me, when I sleep at night
You would be the first one to bang, when it's time to fight
and that's messed up cause now I finally see the light
When we chilled together, we were so tight........word up

This life is messed up, and why did you have to leave
This life is messed up, cause it's hard to grieve
This life is messed up, was the words that you said
This life is messed up, so many tears shed.......

It don't really seem like you slid
it just seems like you doing a long bid
but we can't forget that Becca had your kid.....
and to your kid my life I'd give
Can't nobody do quite like I can
So I'm trying hard to work out this plan
and word to me Mike, my heart goes out to you
how I cut our your pictures and news articles
and living this life is so hard to do.

But word to me Mike, I was apart of you
that's why I have a part of you because of the tattoo
on my right arm remembering you....

You may be gone now,
and all of our friends are writing songs referring to you
I'm saying my farewell in this poem to you

It was October 12th, on a Saturday night
I was getting toasted and everything was all right
Until I got a call in the middle of the night
Saying some little boy tried to take your life
They thought they stabbed you once but they stabbed you twice.

It's misery going through this pain
It's hard to sleep just trying to maintain
sometime's I feel like I'm going insane

But you play the cards you get dealt in this game
and these little boys out here still smell like sugar cane
It's hard to believe they live their lives so lame
you get no respect for being in a gang.......

HE UP IN HEAVEN, NOT DOWN WITH THE DEVIL
REST IN PEACE MIKE RONDINELLO

written by ~ Rafael S. age: 18 12th grade
mdiamond@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Your Down
When your down and feeling low
When your confused
Which way to go
Pick up
The phone
Give sponsor a call
When no ones home
To keep you from a fall
Say a prayer maybe two
Turn to God
He will help you
We all get weary somedays
Especially when we are trying
To change our old ways
Life sometimes
Is so confusing
It will not get better
If you return to using
Turn to God when
No ones home
Remember
Your
Never alone

Daniel M Corkery
4/14/2002
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature?
what compulsions drive a man,
what instincts dominate his action.
If you know these things about a person,
you can touch him at the core of his being.
William Bernbach

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Some of us treat life like a spectator sport,
never budging from the sidelines.
As children of God, we are destined for something greater.
You are the one through whom God can love and create magnificence.
Step onto the field of your own life.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The aging process has you firmly in its grasp
if you never get the urge to throw a snowball.
Doug Larson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Things do not change: we change.
Henry David Thoreau

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Learning is an upward, ever-evolving process.
We will never reach the point where we've learned all we need to know.
Every aspect of life contains lessons.
We can choose to discard them or to embrace them.
Lessons embraced lead to wisdom.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The program-it works if you work it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Take the program seriously, not yourself

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Work the program, not the problem.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It�s not easy to find happiness in ourselves....
It is impossible to find it elsewhere


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

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or go to the website and unsubscribe

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http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

E-Recovery Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/e-recovery.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"How do I deal with gossiping?
This stuff has really hurt me in the past
and I don't want to get hurt or hurt anyone else"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 11
Today I know it's okay to place myself first sometimes.
Today I'm doing something very special for myself.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Passage Paid

Ten Thousand echoes bounce and roam
One from every mile from home
With aching heart she'd pine and long
for native lands and her home

She'd left her land far behind
came round the world to search and find
release from demons and a past
in which those demons held her fast

But passage from this place requires
A change of spirit and desires
and plans for home must be delayed
For healing is the passage paid

The echoes call her to return
Tumbling in her mind they churn
The memories of a lover gone
and family members now withdrawn

At home they will all await
To find how God will guide her fate
They know the demons hold her bound
Until her true self can be found

Home calls but healing waits
The choice is made to open gates
Cleansing her soul brings life defined
By valiant faith and light divine

This cleansing, though a gift of grace
requires courage in the face
of demons that will still entice
But she'll face them all and pay the price

A transformed life with God as source
A life directed down a course
were spirit leads and demons fade
Now home awaits with passage paid

This poem was written for me in 2000 by a fellow resident in treatment.
Unfortunately, the person who wrote this poem, did not make it, and
died of
this disease a couple of weeks after writing this.  It's a beautiful
poem,
and wondering if you could use it, perhaps it will encourage someone.

James Wyman

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There Is A Rose In Each Of Us
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1223

The Third Step and Your Prayer
www.barefootsworld.net/aa3rdprayers.html

Lifesaving Words
Author unknown, Lucknow, India.
(p. 342 in 3rd edition.)
They Stopped in Time
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown4.html

A Teen-ager's Decision
Lisa, Washington State
(p. 353 in 3rd edition.)
They Stopped in Time
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/lisa.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 11                                Eyeglasses and attitudes

"Our best thinking got us into trouble.... Recovery is an active
change in our ideas and attitudes."        Basic Text p.53

   In active addiction, the world probably looked like a horrible
place. Using helped us tolerate the world we saw. Today,
however, we understand that the world's condition wasn't
really the problem. It was our ideas and attitudes about the
world that made it impossible for us to find a comfortable
place in it.

   Our attitudes and our ideas are the eyeglasses through which
we see our lives. If our "glasses" are smudged or dirty, our lives
look dim. If our attitudes aren't well focused, the whole world
appears distorted. To see the world clearly, we need to keep
our attitudes and ideas clean, free of things like resentment,
denial, self-pity, and closed-mindedness. To insure our vision
of life is in focus, we have to bring our ideas in line with reality.

   In addiction, our best thinking kept us from clearly seeing
either the world or our part in it. Recovery serves to correct
the prescriptions in our attitudinal eyewear. By stripping away
our denial and replacing it with faith, self-honesty, humility, and
responsibility, the steps help us see our lives in 3 a whole new
way. Then the steps help us keep our spiritual lenses clean,
encouraging us to regularly examine our idea' our attitudes,
and our actions.

   Today, seen through the clean lenses of faith and recover the
world looks like a warm, inviting place to live.

Just for today: I will view the world and my life through the
clean spiritual lenses of my program.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A New Life

Yes, there is a substitute and it is vastly more than that.  It is a
fellowship in Alcoholics Anonymous. . . . Life will mean
something at last. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS p. 152

Life is better without alcohol.  A.A. and the presence of a Higher
Power keeps me sober, but the grace of God does even better;
it brings service into my life.  Contact with the A.A. program
teaches me a new and greater understanding of what Alcoholics
Anonymous is and what it does, but most importantly, it helps to
show me who I am: an alcoholic who needs the constant
experience of the Alcoholics Anonymous program so that I may
live a life given to me by my Higher Power.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 10th

A.A. Thought for the Day

How good a sponsor am I?  When I bring new members to
a meeting, do I feel that my responsibility has ended?  Or
do I make it my job to stay with them until they have either
become good members of A.A. or have found another
sponsor?  If they don't show up for a meeting, do I say to
myself: "Well, they've had it put up to them, so if they don't
want it, there's nothing more I can do?"  Or do I look them
up and find out whether there is a reason for their absences
or that they don't want A.A.?  Do I go out of my way to find
out if there is anything more I can do to help?  Am I a good
sponsor?

Meditation for the Day

"First be reconciled to your brother and then come and
offer your gift to God." First I must get right with other
people and then I can get right with God. If I hold a
resentment against someone, which I find it very difficult
to overcome, I should try to put something else constructive
into my mind. I should pray for the one against whom I hold
the resentment. I should put that person in God's hands
and let God show him or her the way to live. "If a man say:
'I love God' and hateth his brother, he is a liar, for he that
loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love
God whom he hath not seen?"

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may see something good in every person,
even one I dislike, and that I may let God develop the
good in that person.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 11

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Recovery

How easy it is to blame our problems on others. "Look at what
he's doing." . . . "Look how long I've waited." . . . "Why doesn't she
call?" . . . "If only he'd change then I'd be happy." . . .

Often, our accusations are justified. We probably are feeling
hurt and frustrated. In those moments, we may begin to believe
that the solution to our pain and frustration is getting the other
person to do what we want, or having the outcome we desire.
But these self-defeating illusions put the power and control of
our life in other people's hands. We call this codependency.

The solution to our pain and frustration, however valid is to
acknowledge our own feelings. We feel the anger, the grief; then
we let go of the feelings and find peace - within ourselves. We
know our happiness isn't controlled by another person, even
though we may have convinced ourselves it is. We call this
acceptance.

Then we decide that although we'd like our situation to be
different, maybe our life is happening this way for a reason.
Maybe there is a higher purpose and plan in play, one that's
better than we could have orchestrated. We call this faith.

Then we decide what we need to do, what is within our power
to do to take care of ourselves. That's called recovery.

It's easy to point our finger at another, but it's more rewarding
to gently point it at ourselves.

Today, I will live with my pain and frustration by dealing with
my own feelings.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Positive Energy:
The Missing Piece to Overeating and Why Diets Fail
http://www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2007/October/feature4.html

It's A Phase
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2003/January/opinion.htm

Don�t Sell Out To Fit In
www.inlightimes.com/archives/2005/01/alan-cohen.htm

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Yes You Can!
FIND THE PEARLS IN YOUR LIFE

A time comes when we finally awaken and start finding the
"Pearls" in our life. When in the midst of all our fears and
insanity, we stop dead in our tracks, and realize that it's time
to stop hoping and waiting for something to change, or for
happiness, safety and security to come galloping over the
next horizon. We awaken to the fact that we are not perfect,
that not everyone will always love, appreciate, or approve of
who or what we are, and that's okay. (They're entitled to their
own views and opinions.) And we learn the importance of
loving and championing ourselves; and in the process a
sense of new-found confidence is born of self-approval.

We learn that people don't always say what they mean or
mean what they say, and sometimes they don't even know
themselves. We also learn that not everyone will always be
there for us; and that it's not always about us. So, we learn
to stand on our own, and to take care of ourselves, and in
the process, a sense of safety and security is born of
self-reliance.

We stop judging and pointing fingers and we begin to accept
people as they are, and to overlook their shortcomings and
human frailties; and in the process, a sense of peace and
contentment is born. We realize that much of the way we
view ourselves and the world around us, is as a result of all
the messages and opinions that have been ingrained into
our psyche.

We begin to sift through all that we've been fed about how
we should behave, how we should look, and how much we
should weigh; what we should wear and where we should
shop, and what we should drive; how and where we should
live, and what we should do for a living; who we should sleep
with, who we should marry, and what we should expect of a
marriage; the importance of having and raising children, or
what we owe our parents. We learn to open up to new worlds
and different points of view. And we begin reassessing and
redefining who we are and what we really stand for.

We learn that we don't know everything, it's not our job to
save the world and that we can't teach a cat to sing. We
learn to distinguish between guilt, and responsibility, and
the importance of setting boundaries, and learning to say
NO. We learn that the only cross to bear is the one we
choose to carry. We learn to look at relationships as they
really are and not as we would have them be. We stop
trying to control people, situations, and outcomes.

We look in the mirror and come to terms with the fact that we
will never be a perfect size, and we stop trying to compete
with the image inside our head and agonizing over how we
"stack up." We stop working so hard at putting our feelings
aside, smoothing things over and ignoring our needs; and we
come to the realization that we deserve to be treated with love,
kindness, sensitivity, and respect.

We learn that fatigue diminishes the spirit and can create
doubt and fear. So we take more time to rest. And, just as food
fuels the body, laughter fuels our soul,and crying cleans our
hurts. Suppressing our hurt makes us weak. It's OK to cry; it's
a form of releasing our hurt, after we feel the fullness of our
hurt, we will grow strong again.

So we take more time to laugh and to play. We learn that for
the most part, in life we get what we believe we deserve and
that much of life truly is a self-fulfilling prophecy. We learn that
anything worth achieving is worth working for, and that wishing
for something to happen is different from working toward
making it happen. More importantly, we learn that in order to
achieve success we need direction, discipline, and
perseverance.

We also learn that no one can do it all alone and that it's OK to
risk asking for help. We learn that the only thing we must truly
fear is the great robber baron of all time, fear itself. We learn
to step right into and through our fears because we know that
whatever happens we can handle it, and to give in to fear is to
give away the right to live life on our terms.

And we learn to fight for our life and not to squander it living
under a cloud of impending doom. We learn that life isn't
always fair, we don't always get what we think we deserve; and
that sometimes-bad things happen to unsuspecting, good
people. On these occasions, we learn not to personalize things.

We begin to take responsibility for our actions. And we learn to
deal with evil in its most primal state � the ego. We learn
negative feelings such as anger, envy and resentment must
be understood and redirected, or they will suffocate the life out
of us, and poison the universe that surrounds us. We learn to
admit when we are wrong and to build bridges instead of walls.

We learn to be thankful and to take comfort in many of the
simple things we take for granted, things that millions of
people upon the earth can only dream about: a full
refrigerator, clean running water, a soft warm bed, a long hot
shower. Slowly, we begin to take responsibility for ourselves;
and we make ourselves a promise to never betray ourselves
and to never settle for less than our heart's desire.

And we hang a wind chime outside our window so we can
listen to the wind. And we make it a point to keep smiling,
keep trusting, and to stay open to every wonderful possibility.

Finally, with courage in our heart and with Spirit by our side,
we take a stand, for we have found one of life's most important
"Pearls"

... we take a deep breath and ...

we begin to design the life that WE want to live.

Author Unknown
Contributed by Denys in Santa Fe, New Mexico

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Rose Within

A certain man planted a rose and watered it faithfully and
before it blossomed, he examined it.

He saw the bud that would soon blossom, but noticed thorns
upon the stem and he thought, "How can any beautiful flower
come from a plant burdened with so many sharp thorns?
Saddened by this thought, he neglected to water the rose,
and just before it was ready to bloom... it died.

So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The
God-like qualities planted in us at birth, grow amid the thorns of
our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns,
the defects.

We despair, thinking that nothing good can possibly come from
us. We neglect to water the good within us, and eventually it
dies. We never realize our potential.

Some people do not see the rose within themselves; someone
else must show it to them. One of the greatest gifts a person can
possess is to be able to reach past the thorns of another, and
find the rose within them.

This is one of the characteristic of love... to look at a person, know
their true faults and accepting that person into your life... all the
while recognizing the nobility in their soul. Help others to realize
they can overcome their faults. If we show them the "rose" within
themselves, they will conquer their thorns. Only then will they
blossom many times over.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

   Look For The Lesson

    The universe tells you what you need to focus on.
It gives you little nudges.
If you've learned to recognize those signals,
then you quickly catch whatever in your life is not in balance.
But most of us don't know how to recognize the little nudges
the universe gives us, so then we get a stronger poke.
Eventually, we get slapped across the face or knocked down.
And some people have to really hit bottom before they are willing
to look at the necessity of change and the possibility of growth.
    Try to cultivate the attitude that the problems that come in your
life
really are gifts from your own soul trying
to call your attention to the things in your life that are not in
balance.
Then life is less traumatic.
You can immediately look at a problem and ask,
"What do I need to learn here?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A man's mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently
cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or
neglected, it
must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an
abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to
produce their kind.

Just as a gardener cultivates his plot, keeping it free from weeds, and
growing the flowers and fruits which he requires, so may a man tend the
garden of his mind, weeding out all the wrong, useless, and impure
thoughts,
and cultivating toward perfection the flowers and fruits of right,
useful,
and pure thoughts, By pursuing this process, a man sooner or later
discovers
that he is the master gardener of his soul, the director of his life. He
also reveals, within himself, the laws of thought, and understands with
ever-increasing accuracy, how the thought forces and mind elements
operate
in the shaping of his character, circumstances, and destiny.

   James Allen

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Change Me

Change me God,
Please change me.
Though I cringe
Kick
Resist and resent
Pay no attention to me whatever.
When I run to hide
Drag me out of my safe little shelter.
Change me totally
Whatever it takes
However long You must work at the job.
Change me-and save me
  From spiritual self-destruction.

Anonymous

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Light That Shines Inside

Listen Friend,
And you will hear,
A tale of true simplicity,

For you have looked
Your whole life through
To find the spirit
Inside of you.

Just how it happens,
We know not when,
The date's not important,
Now, as then.

We celebrate life
With each passing day,
The gifts we are given
We can all give away.

A smile, a hug,
A wink or a nod,
The joy of the moment,
It all comes from God
.
To share and be shared,
This love that's so true,
This light that shines out
  From inside of you.

The miracle was given
To all near and far
The hope that is shining
So bright, like a star,

For now and forever,
This light we shall see,
Brings peace and joy to All,
Begins with you and me.

� written by ~ Sharlett H.
Sharlette863@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Focus on the journey, not the destination.
Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.
Greg Anderson

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You never can tell
when you do an act
just what the result will be;
for with every deed
you are sowing a seed
- though its harvest
you may never see.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Whenever we give help,
we unfailingly see that the answer to all our needs
is already within the very situation we think is hurting us.
By becoming totally open and harmless,
we see that there is no one who cannot help us
and no instant when we are not surrounded by God's love
and His guiding presence.
Gerald G. Jampolsky, MD, Teach Only Love

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Abundance means living in plenty,
regardless of what your checkbook tells you,
because money is not your Source.
When we honor our Source-God-we find channels in unexpected places.
Discover prosperity through giving.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The longer I'm in the program,
the lower my bottom seems to get.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

This program is for those who want it.
If it were for people who need it
we would have meetings in Yankee Stadium
3 times a night and it would be standing room only.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Some people say there are no musts,
there are plenty of musts
You must abstain from ALL drugs in order to recover.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

This disease has met it's master,
Love turns dead-ends into endless highways.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
are included:

To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
that you belong to
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/




~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
are included:

To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
that you belong to
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Men's Rap Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/men'srap.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"How do I deal with gossiping?
This stuff has really hurt me in the past
and I don't want to get hurt or hurt anyone else"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 10
Today I will do something very special just for me.
I will treat myself to something I want to have
or do and feel good about myself while I do it.
My life is very important to me and
I have the right to be happy.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You Ain�t Alone

Ever get the feeling you�re all alone in life
When all your little secrets, seem safe with you, inside
Trying to keep up an image, that all are accustomed to
Only to find when you lie in bed, the only fool is you
You worry and you fret inside but keep that mask on your face
But sooner or later it comes back around, you feel so out of place

You go throughout your day, admiring people that you meet
And pretend you are normal avoiding NA where there�s a seat
Your secrets tear you up, as much as you try and pretend
That you don�t have any secrets, your mind says let the games begin

There comes a time however, when you just cant take no more
And that�s the time you need to drive and open up that door
Open up and go inside to a room with ones like you
And get it out, let it flow, you�ll leave feeling less blue

If you continue to do this, they say that you will grow
Isn't Patience is the virtue that arrives within too slow?
Some days its hard to take the time  to listen and absorb what's said
But they tell me that if I don�t do this, I might just end up dead

So take this poem for what its worth, I wrote it just today
At times when I get inspired, I tend to have a lot to say
These words come from an addict, an addict just like you
Its nice to know I am not alone, when I share and speak the truth

Victoria Dishner 10/9/01
Foxondarun@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There Are No Condoms For The Heart
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1220

Spirituality, Prayer, The Twelve Steps and Judaism
www.barefootsworld.net/aaspiritualityjudaism.html

A B C To Recovery
(taken from the big book of A A )
www.essence-of-recovery.com/Stories/abctorecovery.html

I Took Step One
www.essence-of-recovery.com/Stories/itookstepone.html

Those Golden Years
Cecil (Teet) C.
(p. 327, in 3rd edition.)
They Stopped in Time
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/cecilcarle.html

The Housewife Who Drank at Home
Author unknown.
(p. 375 in 2nd edition, p. 335 in 3rd edition.)
They Stopped in Time
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown3.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 10                                              Consequences

"Before we got clean, most of our actions were guided by impulse.
Today, we are not locked into this type of thinking."
Basic Text p. 87


   Ever been tempted to do something even when you knew the
results would be disastrous? Ever thought about how much it
was going to hurt to do what you were tempted to do, then
proceed to do it anyway?

   It is said that there are consequences to every action. Before
we got clean, many of us simply didn't believe this. But now we
know exactly what it means. When we act, we know there will
be consequences to pay. No longer can we decide to do
something in ignorance when we know full well that we won't
like the price we'll have to pay.

   There's a prize and a price. It's okay to act despite the
consequences if we're willing to pay the price, but there's
always one to pay.

Just for today: I will think about the consequences of my actions
before I take them.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Peace of Mind
Do we lay the matter before our sponsor or spiritual adviser,
earnestly asking God's help and guidance -- meanwhile
resolving to do the right thing when it becomes clear, cost
what it may?
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS pp.86-87

My belief in a Higher Power is an essential part of my work on
Step Nine; forgiveness, timing, and right motives are the other
ingredients.  My willingness to do the Step is a growing
experience that opens the door for new and honest
relationships with the people I have harmed.  My responsible
action brings me closer to the spiritual principles of the
program -- love and service.  Peace of mind, serenity, and a
stronger faith are sure to follow.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 10th

A.A. Thought for the Day

When new members come into my A.A. group, do I make a
special effort to make them feel at home? Do I put myself
out to listen to them, even if their ideas of A.A. are vague?
Do I make it a habit to talk to all new members myself, or do
I often leave that to someone else? I may not be able to
help them, but then again it may be something that I might
say that would put them on the right track. When I see any
members sitting alone, do I put myself out to be nice to them,
or do I stay among my own special group of friends and leave
them out in the cold? Are all new AA.'s my responsibility?

Meditation for the Day

You are God's servant. Serve Him cheerfully and readily.
Nobody likes a servant who avoids extra work, who complains
about being called from one task to do one less enjoyable.
A master would feel ill served by such a servant. But is that
not how you so often serve God? View your day's work in this
light. Try to do your day's work the way you believe God
wants you to do it, never shirking any responsibility and often
going out of your way to be of service.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may be a good servant. I pray that I may be
willing to go out of my way to be of service.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 10, 2005

You are reading from the book  The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Payoffs from Destructive Relationships

Sometimes it helps to understand that we may be receiving a
payoff from relationships that cause us distress.

The relationship may be feeding into our helplessness or our
martyr role.

Maybe the relationships feeds our need to be needed,
enhancing our self-esteem by allowing us to feel in control
or morally superior to the other person.

Some of us feel alleviated from financial or other kinds of
responsibility by staying in a particular relationship.

"My father sexually abused me when I was a child," said one
woman. "I went on to spend the next twenty years blackmailing
him emotionally and financially on this. I could get money from
him whenever I wanted, and I never had to take financial
responsibility for myself."

Realizing that we may have gotten a codependent payoff from
a relationship is not a cause for shame. It means we are
searching out the blocks in ourselves that may be stopping
our growth.

We can take responsibility for the part we may have played
in keeping ourselves victimized. When we are willing to look
honestly and fearlessly at the payoff and let it go, we will find
the healing we've been seeking. We'll also be ready to receive
the positive, healthy payoffs available in relationships, the
payoffs we really want and need.

Today, I will be open to looking at the payoffs I may have
received from staying in unhealthy relationships, or from
keeping destructive systems operating. I will become ready to
   let go of my need to stay in unhealthy systems; I am ready to
face myself.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Laws of Thinking: 20 Secrets to Using the
Divine Power of Your Mind to Manifest Prosperity
http://www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2007/October/feature3.html

Connections
www.spiritualityhealth.com/newsh/items/blank/item_182.html

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Every Warrior of the Light
   has felt afraid of going into battle.

   Every Warrior of the Light
   has, at some time in the past, lied or betrayed someone.

   Every Warrior of the Light
   has trodden a path that was not his.

   Every Warrior of the Light
   has suffered for the most trivial of reasons.

   Every Warrior of the Light
   has, at least once, believed he was not a Warrior of the Light.

   Every Warrior of the Light
   has failed in his spiritual duties.

   Every Warrior of the Light
   has said 'yes' when he wanted to say 'no.'

   Every Warrior of the Light
   has hurt someone he loved.

   That is why he is a Warrior of the Light,
   Because he has been through all this
   and yet has never lost hope of being better than he is."

   -- Paulo Coelho, Brazilian Author
   From his book: 'Warrior Of The Light'

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

My Garden

Entering the garden of my soul,
I visit oftentimes each day.
Peaceful place of beauty and love,
  From here never too far do I stray.

Trees and flowers so colorful and lush,
Their scent perfumes the air ~ deep breaths I take.
What delight I have as I walk through...
This place so special, so beautiful.
The joy it gives is equal to the efforts that I make.
Long ago and far away, I planted many thoughts.
And over time, as all things work, a garden came alive.
It first looked like a jungle ~ of flowers and trees entwined...
With weeds and brush mixed in because of
Miseries and sadness that occupied my heart and mind.
I went about the business of clearing up my tract.
I carefully removed the weeds,
Replacing them with loving seeds.
Into fertile soil went all my heartfelt thoughts...
And watered well with tears of life,
This beauty and tranquility is what I've now brought forth.
Tended with great loving care, my garden is unique...
My special place, a sacred space...
A gift, a treat, a place to play, to get away.
It's where I am - it's who I am - it's all I am - it's me.

Virginia Santoro - April 1999  � 1999
MorningMusings@...
www.myspace.com/morningmusings
www.hometown.aol.com/morningmusings

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Imperturbability

I think Charles Allen said it first.  "When faced with problems
which threaten to steal your peace of mind, learn the meaning
of the word imperturbability. *(pronounced - �mprt�rbblee )

I heard of two artists who were asked to illustrate peace.
Each was assigned the task of depicting a peaceful scene on
canvas.

The first artist drew a beautiful picture of a countryside on a
warm, spring day.  A soft sun illumines green grass and bathes
a picturesque farm-house and grazing cattle in its warmth.  A
farmer walks contentedly behind strong plow horses pre-paring
his field for spring planting.  The picture is one of beauty and
quiet tranquility.

The other artist took a different approach.  He drew a majestic,
rugged cliff.  Gnarled trees, twisted by years of violent winds,
jut from the craggy mountainside.  Dark clouds hang low and
fierce while jagged streaks of lightening slash across an angry
sky.  The picture is one of violence, chaos and rage.

But as one looks closely, something else becomes visible.
There in one of the crevices of the rocky mountain, tucked
back just out of reach of the wind and rain -- a nest with two
small birds.  Apparently unconcerned about the impending storm,
they appear calm, cozy and peaceful as they patiently wait for
the turbulence to pass.

And isn't that the way it so often is?  We may want to be
surrounded by peace, but storms rage.  Problems and
pressures without, threaten to steal peace of mind within.

The answer is imperturbability: inner peace that doesn't leave
when circumstances change.  It's a peace that is greater than
the problems of life, built on assurance that the tempest will
finally pass, that we will survive the storm, that we may grow
stronger because of it and, in the meantime, we will not endure
it alone.

Imperturbability -- it's the result of a peace that passes
understanding. For serenity is not freedom from the storm,
but peace amid the storm.

Steve Goodier

* imperturbability - (im�per�turb�a�bly)
consistently calm: not easily worried, distressed, or agitated

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Deep at the center of my being,
there is an infinite well of love.

I now allow this love to flow to the surface.
it fills my heart, my body, my mind,
my consciousness, my very being.
It radiates out from me in all directions
and returns to me multiplied.

The more love I use and give,
the more I have to give,
The supply is endless.

Louise Hay, You Can Heal Your Life

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Natural Life

Forty years I altered my natural state
Carried on a family trait
Party hard today
Who knows about tomorrow
So sad to waste my natural life
I was a slick talker
My tongue was a double edged knife
Started drinking around the time I started to walk
I remember my mother and aunt had a talk
Mom said do not give him anything to drink
You got him drunk last night
What a sorry fate it was not right
I started sniffing glue when I was eleven
Thought I was in heaven
I rose above all my friends
So sad for a child to go to these ends
Raised in a big city I had to fight to win
Oh God forgive me for that sin
At the tender age of 14
I had my first blackout
That started the confusion and the doubt
No wonder I had a problem with honesty
I was so caught up in insecurity
So went my life and destiny
For this addict never knew love
Just one more of anything
I was wearing rebellions golden ring
I left home before I was 16
Angry and so low down mean
The addicts needs out weight the cost
So go the lonely and the lost
I have love today because of God
He offered me life in my front yard
I got down on my knees to pray one day
He sent a helper along my way
This is what the angel had to say
Drop it all and come this way
My heart almost stopped beating
An I cried
I need you God for I've been to proud
I killed my best friends natural life
The pain brought tears of sorrow
For this man years have passed on by
I was taught it was wrong for a man to cry
But those tears purged my spirit
God was not going to burn me in a pit
He had a job for Daniel if he would only quit
Many die on that train I saved you from
You must carry the message
There is hope for the hopeless
There is freedom from the bonds of addiction
All you have to do is work the steps
Half as hard as you worked for dope
Tell them I'll be there to give them hope

10/3/00
Daniel M Corkery
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The soul is dyed the color of its thoughts. Think only on those things
that
are in line with your principles and can bear the light of day. The
content
of your character is your choice. Day by day, what you do is who you
become.
Your integrity is your destiny - it is the light that guides your way.
Heraclitus (c.540-c.475 BC)
Greek philosopher

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Pray that success will not come any faster
than you are able to endure it.
Elbert Hubbard

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Life is playing a violin solo in public
and learning the instrument as one goes on.
Samuel Butler

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Divine love is given to everyone,
just as the sun shines on everyone.
John-Roger

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Purpose is about giving yourself unconditionally,
and accepting what comes back with love, even if
what comes back is not what you had anticipated.
Wayne Dyer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We don't pray to change things; we pray to change us.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today is a gift; that's why it's called the present.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You can't get indigestion from swallowing your pride.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I was a problem drinker;
every time I drank, I had a problem.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
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New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Funny Cartoons
http://www.offthemarkcartoons.com/search-results/key/drug/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"How do I deal with gossiping?
This stuff has really hurt me in the past
and I don't want to get hurt or hurt anyone else"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 9
Today I'm willing to trust
that no matter what is going on in my life,
I am in the process of growth.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Tidal Waves

In your daily parade of tirades, tempests and tidal waves
may you discover the peaceful eye of the storm.
When all around you feels bitter and cold
may you find His love, so gentle and warm.

When confusion rules the order of the day
may focus guide your steps,
and may you find that you're not alone
when you feel like the only one left.

All of us share these feelings,
and that's an important thing to know,
for when I feel lost,
I also feel scared, and afraid to let it show.

Afraid that if I reveal my weakness,
your laughter will flood my ears
when really, you might be terrified too,
just too afraid to show your tears.

But through all of our frights-our storm-tossed nights,
there's a force upon which we can draw.
It's the power of God's undying love,
that overlooks all our flaws.

So if you're caught in a tidal wave,
or freezing from man's bitterness
look to His love that can comfort and save,
and bring you through all of this!!

Much love, John
johnh94@...

I LOVE YOU John !!!!!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Wemmicks
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1217

20 Questions That Only You Can Answer
Are You A Recovering Alcoholic?
www.barefootsworld.net/aarecoveringalcoholic.html

Too Young?
Author unknown.
(p. 317 in 3rd edition.)
They Stopped in Time
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/authorunknown2.html

Fear of Fear
Ceil F. (Ceil M.?), New York City.
(p. 330 in the 2nd edition, p. 321 in the 3rd edition.)
They Stopped in Time
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/ceilf.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 9                                                      Order

"We emphasize setting our house in order because it brings
us relief."   Basic Text p. 93

   Focusing on what others are doing can provide momentary
relief from having to take a look at ourselves. But one of the
secrets of success in Narcotics Anonymous is making sure
our own house is in order. So what does "setting our house in
order" mean, anyway?

   It means we work the steps, allowing us to look at our role
in our relationships with others. When we have a problem
with someone, we can take our own inventory to find out
what our part in the problem has been. With the help of our
sponsor, we strive to set it right. Then, each day, we continue
taking our inventory to avoid repeating the same mistakes in
the future.

   It's pretty simple. We treat others as we would like others to
treat us. We promptly make amends when we owe them. And
when we turn our lives over to the care of our Higher Power
on a daily basis, we can start to avoid running on the self-will
so characteristic of our active addiction. Guided by a Power
that seeks the best for everyone, our relationships with others
will surely improve.

Just for today: I will set my own house in order. Today, I will
examine my part in the problems in my life. If I owe amends,
I will make them.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Repairing The Damage

Good judgement, a careful sense of timing, courage and
prudence -- these are the qualities we shall need when we
take Step Nine.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 83

To make amends can be viewed two ways: first, that of
repairing damage, for if I have damaged my neighbor's fence,
I "make a  mend", and that is a direct amend; the second way
is by modifying my behavior, for if my actions have harmed
someone, I make a daily effort to cause no further harm.  I "mend
my ways," and that is an indirect amend.  Which is the best
approach, provided that I am causing no further harm in so
doing, is to do both.  If harm is done, then I simply "mend my
ways."  To take action in this manner assures me of making
honest amends.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 9th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Am I willing to be bored sometimes at meetings? Am I willing
to listen to much repetition of A.A. principles? Am I willing to
hear the same thing over and over again? Am I willing to listen
to a long blow-by-blow personal story, because it might help
some new member? Am I willing to sit quietly and listen to
long-winded members go into every detail of their past? Am
I willing to take it, because it is doing them good to get it off
their chest? My feelings are not too important. The good of
A.A. comes first, even if it is not always comfortable for me.
Have I learned to take it?

Meditation for the Day

God would draw us all closer to Him in the bonds of the spirit.
He would have all people drawn closer to each other in the
bonds of the spirit. God, the great Spirit of the universe, of
which each of our own spirits is a small part, must want unity
between Himself and all His children. "Unity of the spirit in
the bonds of peace." Each experience of our life, of joy, of
sorrow, of danger, of safety, of difficulty, of success, of
hardship, of ease, each should be accepted as part of our
common lot, in the bonds of the spirit.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may welcome the bonds of true fellowship. I pray
that I may be brought closer to unity with God and other people.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 09

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go
Melody Beattie �

Self-Disclosure

Learning to gently reveal who we are is how we open ourselves
up to love and intimacy in our relationships.

Many of us have hidden under a protective shell, a casing that
prevents others from seeing or hurting us. We do not want to
be that vulnerable. We do not want to expose our thoughts,
feelings, fears, weaknesses, and sometimes our strengths, to
others.

We do not want others to see who we really are.

We may be afraid they might judge us, go away, or not like us.
We may be uncertain that who we are is okay or exactly how we
should reveal ourselves to others.

Being vulnerable can be frightening, especially if we have lived
with people who abused, mistreated, manipulated, or did not
appreciate us.

Little by little, we learn to take the risk of revealing ourselves.
We disclose the real person within to others. We pick safe
people, and we begin to disclose bits and pieces about
ourselves.

Sometimes, out of fear, we may withhold, thinking that will help
the relationship or will help others like us more. That is an
illusion. Withholding who we are does not help the other
person, the relationship, or us. Withholding is behavior that
backfires. For true intimacy and closeness to exist, for us to
love ourselves and be content in a relationship, we need
to disclose who we are.

That does not mean we tell all to everyone at once. That can
be a self-defeating behavior too. We can learn to trust
ourselves, about who to tell, when to tell, where to tell,
and how much to tell.

To trust that people will love and like us if we are exactly who
we are is frightening. But it is the only way we can achieve
what we want in relationships. To let go of our need to control
others - their opinions, their feelings about us, or the course of
the relationship - is the key.

Gently, like a flower, we can learn to open up. Like a flower, we
will do that when the sun shines and there is warmth.

Today, I will begin to take the risk of disclosing who I am to
someone with whom I feel safe. I will let go of some of my
protective devices and risk being vulnerable - even though
I may have been taught differently, even though I may have
taught myself differently. I will disclose who I am in a way that
reflects self-responsibility, self-love, directness, and honesty.
God, help me let go of my fears about disclosing who I am to
people. Help me accept who I am, and help me let go of my
need to be who people want me to be.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Four Pathways to Your Authentic Self
http://www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2007/October/feature2.html

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

How to Goof Off

   Recently I signed up with a new trash removal service which
requires each rural customer to mark their address on their
garbage cans. I bought a can of white spray paint, etched my
street number on the plastic can, and drove it to the end of my
road where I left the garbage. When I got home I was irked to
notice that some of the white paint had rubbed off on the back
of my seat; apparently it had not fully dried. I tried to remove
the paint, but could not, it was stuck fast.

   Over the next weeks and months every time I noticed the
paint marks on the back of the seat, I felt foolish; the voice of
judgment chided me, "If you had paid closer attention and left
more time for the paint to dry, this wouldn't have happened.
Now you have ruined your car seat, and every time you look
at it, you are to be reminded of your carelessness." (Do you
know this voice?)

Then one day I was in a hardware store with a friend who was
looking for some paint. On a shelf I noticed a small can called
"Goof Off", a remover of paint and other hard-to-get-out stains.
I grabbed a can, took it home, and applied it to the defiant
stain. To my delight, it worked. I now see this product - especially
its name - as symbolic of forgiveness. The name acknowledges
that you made a mistake ("goof") - but it also acknowledges that
it can be undone ("off"). If you have been subject to the tyranny
of guilt, this offers an especially important lesson. A Course in
Miracles distinguishes between a sin and an error: a sin
requires punishment, but an error simply requires correction.
The Course goes on to tell us that we have made many errors,
but we have never sinned. All of our sins ("Self-Inflicted
Nonsense") are undone the moment we step into the healing
light of love.

   The story is told about a woman named Josephine who claimed
to have daily conversations with Jesus. A cynical priest heard
about this woman and sought to debunk her. He went to
Josephine and asked her, "Is it true that you talk to Jesus
every day?" "Yes, I do," she answered affirmatively.

   "Then the next time you talk to Jesus, would you ask him what
was the sin I committed when I was in the seminary?" The priest
left smugly, certain that he had cornered the charlatan into
exposure. A week later the priest returned and asked Josephine,
"Did you ask Jesus what was my sin?"

"Yes, I did," she answered.
"And what did he say?" asked the priest.
"He said, He forgot."

   There is no sin so heinous that it cannot be undone by
regarding it through the eyes of compassion. Love has no
consciousness of our sins; God sees us only as pure and
innocent souls. It is we who have fabricated the concept of
sin and crushed our life force under it. A Course in Miracles
tells us that "God does not forgive because He never has
condemned." In the inspiring movie Brother Sun, Sister
Moon, the Pope tells St. Francis, "In our obsession with Original
Sin, we have overlooked Original Innocence."

   All self-judgment can be undone by recognizing that we deserve
only love. I met a man who, during his senior year in college,
was walking past the college bookstore where he saw a large
display of yearbooks just outside the store. As this fellow had
no money, he grabbed a book and kept walking. Over the next
few days he began to feel guilty about his theft, and he decided
to return the book and confess. He went to the bookstore manager
and guiltily admitted, "I stole this book." The manager smiled
and told him, "Come with me." The manager led the student to
the display where there was a sign that the young man had not
seen: "Free - please take one."

   I am not suggesting that you go out and steal anything or hurt
anyone. This true story serves as a metaphor: for every sin you
can find about your life, God can find a way to forgive it. For every
way you have separated yourself from love, higher consciousness
reminds you that you have never for a moment been outside of
love's embrace. And for every paint stain that you berate yourself
for leaving, there is a can of Goof Off to remove it.

� Alan Cohen, June, 2000

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

To Love Enough

    My mother isn't speaking to my father.  She hasn't spoken to
him in five years, and for that, my father is truly grateful.

    I was crying the last time she did speak to him.  I saw the
exchange through I could not hear the words.  His whisperings,
her whisperings.

     The two of them silhouetted against the window light at the
end of the long hall.  My father leaning over my mother's gurney
pressed forehead to forehead.  The word "Surgery" on the doors
behind them from a caption for the picture they made.  Hands
clasped together as if believing they held each other's heart.
As longingly as the first time they had reached for each other,
as desperately as two lovers being forces apart. Being forced
to part on this day of life and death. They had made the decision
together, to do or to die. To do and die.  These two had lived
for and in each other's dreams for the past forty years.
My mother with a disease that was cutting the blood flow to
her brain. It was deteriorating her life and it would take it in
three years. Her life could be prolonged if the surgery was done
now.  Twelve brave hearts had gone before her but only three
of them had walked away. I watched their process of decision
making, both prayerful in the face of death.  My mother wanting
to live, wanting to try.  The churning and turning until there was
peace.

    How brave we knew she was, we three sisters gathered around
her hospital bed feeling time pushing us toward her fate the next
day. We were quick to smile; slow to leave; hoping our "Good
Nights"  were not our good-byes.

    Our father was left to keep his prayerful, loving vigil. It was
painful
to leave him that night, too painful to think of him alone.  But he
reminded us that he would not be alone, at least for this night, he
had his love And morning came.  We gathered and prayed.  We
kissed our mother, hugged our father and then followed her
gurney until we were told that only one of us could go further.

    My father continued to walk alongside her as he always had.
Two people who had stood together against all odds.  My mother
orphaned at a young age and moved from place to place.  My
father the youngest of nine in a family hurting with poverty.

    They who had found their home in each other. We children were
loved in their home.    Given by these two what they had not been
given in their own childhood's: safety, nurturing, moral guidance.
We knew that we were created from their love but that their love
was an entity separate from us, a circle complete with itself.

    I see the kiss, the parting.  My mother wheeled through the door,
alone.  My father, his back to me, placing his hand on that door,
praying love and strength and hope to the women on the other
side. He turned and walked slowly toward me.  The sunrise lit his
face and I glimpsed the depth of this man's love.

    This love of great self-sacrificing.  A love so great that he is
willing to bear the pain of being the one to walk alone.

    And though surrounded by our love, my father walked alone
while we waited out her coma, the months of doubt and
rehabilitation.

    In the end, my mother had lost her speech but she had won her
fight to live.

    She has not spoken to my father for five years, and for that,
he is truly grateful.

Cynthia

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Service

Blessed be the service workers,
for they carry the burden of others.
Their humble, loving provision grows this fellowship,
helps it along into the flourishing, welcome center
of care and support for the newcomers and old timers alike.
There are many types of service needed;
coffee makers, greeters, sponsors,
(those that send these wonderful mailers!)
the guy that walks over after a newcomer shares
and gives him a hug, tells him it will be ok;
speakers at meetings, conferences and conventions,
to the coordinators that are the hub of this international,
multi-cultural society of recovery.
Sadly, what is never learned, or is often ignored,
is that service is not only an honor,
but it is an obligation, a requirement for continued recovery,
not only for the fellowship, but for the individual as well.
How can you grow in love and humility, honesty and caring,
if you never practice it in your life?
Working with others, on service committees or panels,
helps individuals with their relationships at home, at work,
in their community and the world.
Fulfilling commitments teaches responsibility,
and helps rebuild self-esteems knocked low
from the throes of addiction.
Most importantly, service makes one feel
they're a part of, instead of apart from,
something that all of us have felt too often in our lives.
When a position becomes open,
or a commitment needs to be filled,
don't hang in the background,
or worse, turn your back completely, get involved.
Not only will you be helping the fellowship,
but you'll be amazed at the growth
that results in your own life as well.

In loving service,
johnh94
johnh94@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Friend I Once Knew

Another message left the fold
God's messenger for a time
Having found the outer world once craved
The loss is yours and mine

We sometimes get it goin' on
Forgetting from where we came
The insidious nature of the call
We end up playing game

Thinking that we know whats best
We sometimes slip and fall
Not knowing what awaits and lurks
Willing to settle after standing tall

Isolating, shutting down with judgment
Bias and confusion untold
Never connecting at the spiritual level
Everything new quickly growing old

To wish one well on paths now foreign
Is what I'm left to do
My lesson to stay true within
Not to leave the 12-step rooms

Giving back from all received
The formula tested, tried and true
To shift from Love to self again
We run the risk to lose

God grant me strength to stay the course
To never turn away
Continued growth in all pursuits
A part of, grateful "Just for Today"

Don't keep comin' back, STAY!
AJ ~ 1/3/97
aj4how@...
Written; 10/9/04

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Inmate

How describe or show the way it feels inside my skin?
What graphic, emblem, arcane sign, what stroke of brush or pen;
What numbered list or lettered verse could chart the moving trend
Of mind and memory's changing web, the gyroscopic spin
Of senses and impressions:  the orienting wheel?
Sensations and perceptions, the conclusions that congeal,
And the subsequent convictions that determine what is real,
Defy elucidation like the flint defies the steel:
Though sparks there from the tinder catch and I the blaze contain,
How hot or high the tongues may leap, but ashes will remain.
No symbol for my ecstasy, no tally of my pain,
No eloquence or fluency of language could explain
The singular condition of the being here within.
On steel cell-bar the Inmate taps in code with cup of tin,
Anxiously repeating, resolution wearing thin,
"Are you listening? ...can you hear me? ...
are you there, at all, my friend?"

Joel Ruteldge
jjvarmint@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Busload in My Brain

You know how people say they have a committee in their head?
With most its just a couple of voices, arguing periodically for control.
With me, I've got a busload of defects, driving clown-style,
willy-nilly down the road of life! All of them; pride, impatience,
arrogance, apathy, prejudice, deceit, fear, self-centeredness,
self-righteousness, self-loathing, possessiveness, close-mindedness,
hatred, control, egotism, rage, lust, paranoia and insecurity,
just to name a few, each of them constantly clamoring
to be in the driver's seat! Its a constant struggle, full of chaos,
with me screaming every now and then, "I'll turn this bus right around!"
In a seat by himself sits addiction. And while all of the others scream
and carry on, addiction sits quietly, patiently, because he knows
that as soon as any of these others wins a temporary victory,
he'll be the one really driving.

Much love,
Johnh94
johnh94@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Everything is a gift of the universe --
even joy, anger, jealously, frustration, or separateness.
Everything is perfect
either for our growth or our enjoyment.
Ken Keyes Jr.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Life is like a butterfly...
The harder we chase it the more it eludes us...
The more we cling and hold on, the more we stifle
her beauty and splendor... True freedom is only
seen through the release of what we hold so tightly.
Inspired by the writings of Mark Nepo

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Somehow I can't believe that there are any heights
that can't be scaled by a man
who knows the secrets of making dreams come true.
This special secret -curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy,
and the greatest of all is confidence.
When you believe in a thing,
believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable.
Walt Disney

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Remember--nothing will happen
that you and God can't handle together.
Author Unknown

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When you point a finger at someone,
there are three pointing back at you.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

You spot it,
You got it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Pray as if everything depended on God;
work as if everything depends on ourselves.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ask God not for things to enjoy life,
but rather life that you may enjoy all things.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
are included:

To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
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or
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or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Slogans Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/slogans.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
"How do I deal with gossiping?
This stuff has really hurt me in the past
and I don't want to get hurt or hurt anyone else"

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 8
Today I'm stretching myself and taking new risks.
Today the faith is working to replace
the fear that has held me back.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Seeking the Truth

If you think the truth you're seeking
when on acid you are peaking
and with alcohol you're wreaking
you are wrong

For the truth is in the knowing
when to meetings you are going
and to others you are showing
you belong

seeking truth is what we do here
where true love will cast out all fear
If you only will but draw near
just for today

We will fill your heart with hope
you'll no longer need your dope
you will finally learn to cope
a whole new way

please come along with us friend
for true love your way we do send
a helping hand we will lend
it's a gift

You don't have to be alone
just pick up that telephone
and the love that you are shown
will give a lift

on this journey we're together
there is nothing we can't weather
burdens seem light as a feather
no more fear

So we pray you come with haste
not another minute waste
true contentment you will taste
because you're here

� 2002
Rebecca Bowlin
rbowlin14@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Tattooed Stranger
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=1212

The Dawn of Truth - The Awakening
www.barefootsworld.net/aadawntruth.html

A Daughters Pain
www.geocities.com/alaura1942/ADaughtersPain.html

Annie the Cop Fighter
Annie C., New York City.
(p. 514 in 2nd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/anniecollohouse.html

The Independent Blonde
Nancy F., New York City.
(p. 532 in 2nd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/nancyf.html

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 8                                         A new pattern of
living

"We suspect that if we do not use what we have, we will lose
   what we have."         Basic Text p. 75

Addiction gave a pattern to our lives, and with it a meaning-a
dark, diseased meaning, to be sure, but a meaning nonetheless.
The Narcotics Anonymous recovery program gives us a new
pattern of living to replace our old routines. And with that new
pattern comes a new meaning to our lives, one of light and
hope.

What is this new pattern of living? Instead of isolation, we find
fellowship. Instead of living blindly, repeating the same mistakes
again and again, we regularly examine ourselves, free to keep
what helps us grow and discard what doesn't. Rather than
constantly trying to get by on our own limited power, we
develop a conscious contact with a loving Power greater than
ourselves.

Our life must have a pattern. To maintain our recovery, we must
maintain the new patterns our program has taught us. By giving
regular attention to these patterns, we will maintain the freedom
we've found from the deadly disease of addiction, and keep hold
of the meaning recovery has brought to our lives.

Just for today: I will begin a new pattern in my life: the regular
maintenance of my recovery.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I Am Responsible

For the readiness to take the full consequences of our past acts,
and to take responsibility for the well-being of others at the same
time, is the very spirit of Step Nine.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 87

In recovery, and through the help of Alcoholics Anonymous, I
learn that the very thing I fear is my freedom.  It comes from
my tendency to recoil from taking responsibility for anything:
I deny, I ignore, I blame, I avoid.  Then one day, I look, I admit,
I accept.  The freedom, the healing and the recovery I experience
is in the looking, admitting and accepting.  I learn to say, "Yes,
I am responsible."  When I can speak those words with honesty
and sincerity, then I am free.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 8th

A.A. Thought for the Day

There is such a thing as being too loyal to any one group. Do
I feel put out when another group starts and some members
of my group leave it and branch out into new territory Or do
I send them out with my blessing? Do I visit that new offshoot
group and help it alone. Or do I sulk in my own tent? A.A.
grows by the starting of new groups all the time. I must
realize that ifs a good thing for a large group to split up into
smaller ones, even if it means that the large group -my own
group- becomes smaller. Am I always ready to help new
groups?

Meditation for the Day

Pray and keep praying until it brings peace and serenity and
a feeling of communion with One who is near and ready to help.
The thought of God is balm for our hates and fears. In
praying to God, we find healing for hurt feelings and
resentments. In thinking of God, doubts and fears leave us.
Instead of those doubts and fears, there will flow into our
hearts such faith and love as is beyond the power of material
things to give, and such peace as the world can neither give
nor take away. And with God, we can have the tolerance to
live and let live.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may have true tolerance and understanding. I
pray that I may keep striving for these difficult things.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Today's Thought
OCTOBER 08

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Melody Beattie �

Learning to Wait

      I've started to realize that waiting is an art, that waiting
achieves things. Waiting can be very, very powerful. Time is
a valuable thing.  If you can wait two years, you can
sometimes achieve something that you could not achieve
today, however hard you worked, however much money
you threw up in the air, however many times you banged
your head against the wall. . .
      --The Courage to Change by Dennis Wholey

The people who are most successful at living and loving are
those who can learn to wait successfully. Not many people
enjoy waiting or learning patience. Yet, waiting can be a
powerful tool that will help us accomplish much good.

We cannot always have what we want when we want it. For
different reasons, what we want to do, have, be, or accomplish
is not available to us now. But there are things we could not do
or have today, no matter what, that we can have in the future.
Today, we would make ourselves crazy trying to accomplish
what will come naturally and with ease later.

We can trust that all is on schedule. Waiting time is not wasted
time. Something is being worked out - in us, in someone else,
in the Universe.

We don't have to put our life on hold while we wait. We can
direct our attention elsewhere; we can practice acceptance and
gratitude in the interim; we can trust that we do have a life to live
while we are waiting - then we go about living it.

Deal with your frustration and impatience, but learn how to wait.
The old saying, "You can't always get what you want" isn't entirely
true. Often, in life, we can get what we want - especially the desires
of our heart - if we can learn to wait.

Today, I am willing to learn the art of patience. If I am feeling
powerless because I am waiting for something to happen and
I am not in control of timing, I will focus on the power available
to me by learning to wait.

�1990, Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Managing People ...
What�s personality got to do with it?
http://www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2007/October/feature1.html

Make Watcha Want
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2003/February/cohen.htm

Compassion
www.spiritualityhealth.com/newsh/items/blank/item_181.html

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Smile

Many Americans are familiar with The Little Prince, a
wonderful book by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. This is a
whimsical and fabulous book and works as a children's
story as well as a thought-provoking adult fable. Far
fewer are aware of Saint-Exupery's other writings,
novels and short stories.

Saint-Exupery was a fighter pilot who fought against
the Nazis and was killed in action. Before World War II,
he fought in the Spanish Civil War against the fascists.
He wrote a fascinating story based on that experience
entitled The Smile (Le Sourire). It is this story which
I'd like to share with you now. It isn't clear whether or
not he meant this to be autobiographical or fiction. I choose
to believe it to be the former.

He said that he was captured by the enemy and thrown
into a jail cell. He was sure that from the contemptuous
looks and rough treatment he received from his jailers
he would be executed the next day. From here, I'll tell
the story as I remember it in my own words.

"I was sure that I was to be killed. I became terribly
nervous and distraught. I fumbled in my pockets to see
if there were any cigarettes which had escaped their
search. I found one and because of my shaking hands, I
could barely get it to my lips. But I had no matches, they
had taken those.

"I looked through the bars at my jailer. He did not make
eye contact with me. After all, one does not make eye
contact with a thing, a corpse. I called out to him 'Have
you got a light, por favor?' He looked at me, shrugged and
came over to light my cigarette.

"As he came close and lit the match, his eyes inadvertently
locked with mine. At that moment, I smiled. I don't know
why I did that. Perhaps it was nervousness, perhaps it was
because, when you get very close, one to another, it is very
hard not to smile. In any case, I smiled. In that instant, it
was as though a spark jumped across the gap between our
two hearts, our two human souls. I know he didn't want to,
but my smile leaped through the bars and generated a smile
on his lips, too. He lit my cigarette but stayed near, looking
at me directly in the eyes and continuing to smile.

"I kept smiling at him, now aware of him as a person and
not just a jailer. And his looking at me seemed to have a
new dimension, too. 'Do you have kids?' he asked.

" 'Yes, here, here.' I took out my wallet and nervously
fumbled for the pictures of my family. He, too, took out
the pictures of his ninos and began to talk about his plans
and hopes for them. My eyes filled with tears. I said that
I feared that I'd never see my family again, never have
the chance to see them grow up. Tears came to his eyes, too.

"Suddenly, without another word, he unlocked my cell and
silently led me out. Out of the jail, quietly and by back
routes, out of the town. There, at the edge of town, he
released me. And without another word, he turned back
toward the town.

"My life was saved by a smile."

Yes, the smile - the unaffected, unplanned natural
connection between people. I tell this story in my work
because I'd like people to consider that underneath all
the layers we construct to protect ourselves, our dignity,
our titles, our degrees, our status and our need to be
seen in certain ways - underneath all that, remains
the authentic, essential self. I'm not afraid to call it
the soul. I really believe that if that part of you and
that part of me could recognize each other, we wouldn't
be enemies. We couldn't have hate or envy or fear. I
sadly conclude that all those other layers, which we
so carefully construct through our lives, distance and
insulate us from truly contacting others. Saint-Exupery's
story speaks of that magic moment when two souls
recognize each other.

I've had just a few moments like that. Falling in love is
one example. And looking at a baby. Why do we smile
when we see a baby? Perhaps it's because we see someone
without all the defensive layers, someone whose smile for
us we know to be fully genuine and without guile. And that
baby-soul inside us smiles wistfully in recognition.

Copyright 1992, 1993, 2001, Hanoch McCarty, all rights reserved.
Reprinted by permission of the author.
Dr. McCarty can be contacted at Hanoch McCarty

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Creation:  A Sioux Story

"The Creator gathered all of Creation and said,
"I want to hide something from the humans
until they are ready for it.
It is the realization that
they create their own reality."

The eagle said, "Give it to me, I will take it to the moon."
The Creator said, "No. One day they will go there and find it."

The salmon said, "I will bury it on the bottom of the ocean."
"No. They will go there too."

The buffalo said, "I will bury it on the Great Plains."
he Creator said, "They will cut into the skin of the Earth
and find it even there."

Grandmother Mole, who lives in the breast of Mother Earth,
and who has no physical eyes but sees with spiritual eyes,
said, "Put it inside of them."

And the Creator said, "It is done."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A man's mind may be likened to a garden, which may be
intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether
cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no
useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless
weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce
their kind.

Just as a gardener cultivates his plot, keeping it free from
weeds, and growing the flowers and fruits which he requires,
so may a man tend the garden of his mind, weeding out all the
wrong, useless, and impure thoughts,and cultivating toward
'perfection the flowers and fruits of right, useful, and pure
thoughts, By pursuing this process, a man sooner or later
discovers that he is the master gardener of his soul, the
director of his life. He also reveals, within himself, the laws
of thought, and understands with ever-increasing accuracy,
how the thought forces and mind elements operate
in the shaping of his character, circumstances, and destiny.

James Allen

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Easy Does It*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Metamorphic
(dedicated to Foster Parsons)

My disease is an illness
that shackles my mind
with psychological handcuffs.
It drives me weary
from the destruction
that plagues my soul.
I never even knew
how sick I really was,
and would've been
disgusted at the sight of me.
I was raw evil,
like a hurricane inflicting pain
to all those who crossed my path.
I was physically afflicted with an allergy
to more of what ever I liked,
booze, drugs...
My only emotions were
guilt, shame, anger
fear and resentments.
My spirit was lacking
the wisdom to know the difference.
My disease took me places
I never wanted to be in,
spiraling downward to my bottom.
All doors were closed,
either I got sober,
or I went behind the wall,
wet brained, burnt to the flight deck.
The hand of the Twelve Steps
reached for me, showing me love
when I couldn't face the face in the mirror.
I learned it was one day at a time,
and how to live life on life's term.
Today I have been freed
of those manacles that bound me.
Today I have a life,
a new found peace.
"The Promises"
I heard came true,
life is beautiful.

Frank B.
FBERESHEIM@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Live And Let Live*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Elusive Butterfly

I chased the elusive butterfly from early youth
Long before I even had the choice
Long before I had even heard that inner voice
I burned my bridges on every road I traveled
The day to day my life became raveled
All tied up like a ball of string
I used most everything
To fill the void inside my soul
I was always empty never quite whole
The elusive butterfly was always out of reach
I had never heard the teacher teach
  From just before my early teens
I was at the drug scene
I always knew that God was above
Several times I had even felt His love
A shooting star with no direction
A young child who had no correction
Chasing that elusive butterfly
Alone and lonely I would cry
If you asked I would deny
Than one day came recovery
A time to heal a time for discovery
Now it did not last for very long
Soon I lost the words to the victory song
Through many years I stumbled about
Filled with confusion and doubt
The elusive butterfly was always ahead of me
I stumbled in darkness I could not see
The heavy chains that bound my soul
Kept me empty and never quite whole
Than one day I found AA
Stayed for awhile listened to people share
Listen to them say they cared
But never really quite sure I could make it
Now it took many tries
I had to dig deep to the base of my lies
The folks there loved me
Until the day I could see
That elusive butterfly always got away from me
Now I put the light on him and his ways
Now victory is my song today
Thanks to God above
For His grace and love

Daniel M Corkery
9/27/2000
DMCDREAMER1@...
DMCDREAMER's Page of Poetry
www.geocities.com/dmcdreamer

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep The Focus On You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Nine-tenths of wisdom is appreciation.
Go find somebody's hand and squeeze it, while there's time.
Dale Dauten

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Let God and Let Go*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ideas without action are worthless.
Harvey Mackay

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There is a magnificent artist in you just waiting to be brought forth.
You can reproduce your parent's story, leave the canvas blank,
or you can recognize your true identity and create a masterpiece.
The life you hold is in your hands.
Mary Manin Morrissey

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

For me, the different religions are
beautiful flowers from the same garden,
or they are branches of the same majestic tree.
Therefore, they are equally true,
though being received and interpreted
through human instruments equally imperfect.
Mahatma Gandhi

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Come To Believe*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Patience: Everything in God's time
(and God doesn't wear a watch.)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Look For The Beauty*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

God give me patience--now!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Today Is A Gift*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When I ask for patience, God gives me a traffic jam.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep Stepping*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Possessions: Everything we have is on loan from God.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Stay In The Light*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

N.A. and A.A. Bumperstickers belong on dashboards :)


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Take A Moment To GIVE (NO COST)*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

FREE Rice
http://www.freerice.com/

Click to GIVE @ the STOP HIV Site
http://www.thestophivsite.com/

Click to GIVE @ the Hunger Site
http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1

Click to GIVE @ the Breast Cancer Site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

Click to GIVE @ the Rain Forest Site
http://www.therainforestsite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=4

Click to GIVE @ the Animal Rescue Site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3

Track Your Impact in GIVING
http://www.care2.com/click2donate/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Promise, Many Gifts*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adult Children of Alcoholics
www.AdultChildren.org

Al-Anon/Alateen
www.al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org

Alcoholics Anonymous Deaf and Hard of Hearing
www.dhh12s.com/

Artists Recovering through the Twelve Steps
www.artsanonymous.org

Clutterer�s Anonymous
www.clutterersanonymous.net

Cocaine Anonymous World Services
www.ca.org

Co-Dependents Anonymous Home Page
www.codependents.org

Crystal Meth Anonymous
www.crystalmeth.org

Criminal and Gangs Anonymous
www.angelfire.com/id/CGAnonymous

Debtors Anonymous: A Twelve Step Fellowship for�
www.debtorsanonymous.org

Depressed Anonymous
www.depressedanon.com

Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step program
www.draonline.org

Eating Disorders Anonymous
www.eatingdisordersanonymous.org

Emotions Anonymous
www.emotionsanonymous.org

Families Anonymous
www.familiesanonymous.org

Gamblers Anonymous Official Home Page
www.gamblersanonymous.org

Hepatitis C Anonymous
www.hcvanonymous.com

HIV Anonymous
www.hivanonymous.com

The Marijuana Anonymous
www.marijuana-anonymous.org

Methadone Anonymous
www.afirmfwc.org/methanon.htm

Narcotics Anonymous Official  Homepage
www.na.org

Earth Group N.A. online meetings
www.earthgroupna.org

Nar-Anon is a family support group
www.naranon.com

Nicotine Anonymous (WWW Home Page) NA Home Page
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

Overeaters Anonymous
www.oa.org

Parents Anonymous
www.parentsanonymous.org/paIndex1.htm

Rape Survivors Anonymous
www.rsaws.org

Recovering Couples Anonymous
www.recovering-couples.org

Sexaholics Anonymous
www.sa.org

Sex Addicts Anonymous
www.saa-recovery.org

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous
www.slaafws.org/

Shoplifters Anonymous
www.shopliftersanonymous.org

Spenders Anonymous
www.spenders.org/home.html

Survivors Of Incest Anonymous
www.siawso.org

Workaholics Anonymous
www.workaholics-anonymous.org

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*@�@*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit does not endorse any of the
advertisements that may appear in this daily mailing.
Advertising is the price that we pay for a free list server
that yahoo groups and google groups provides.

Putting together these Daily Recovery Emails has been such
a blessing for me, Thanks for your support and contributions,
"What I can't do alone we can do together." If you have any
original poetry or submissions that you would like to send to
me you can email me at
YOUnMEnHP@...

Created in 1997 , "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit" is intended to give
readers , inspiring and thoughtful messages. To help fulfill our primary
purpose which is to carry the message to the alcoholic/addict
who still suffers. A spiritual adventure, a journey inwards this
has a vision of opening and touching, each and everyone,
with the Loving Power and Presence of the Spirit within."
We invite you to share the writings by forwarding today's
message to others. Share "12 Step Soul Food for the Spirit"
with friends and loved ones: Please keep passing this along to
online recovery friends  "We can only keep what we have by
giving it away."

Anyone can subscribe to this free daily  e-zine by sending an
Email message to:

twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and write subscribe in the subject line.

Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III passed by the 105th U.S. Congress
this letter cannot be considered spam as long as the following words
are included:

To unsubscribe to to this list send an Email message to the group
that you belong to
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
or just email me YOUnMEnHP@...
and write unsubscribe in the subject line
or go to the website and unsubscribe

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
http://www.groups.google.com/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit

By the grace of God and through your efforts of passing on this
email, we are reaching many recovering people in different areas of
the world. If you are receiving this, from a country outside of the
USA please send me an email and tell me where you are receiving this.
So far we reaching over 6000 recovering people in 66 countries
including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados,
Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada , Columbia, Costa Rica, China ,
Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Guatemala,
Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia,
Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Korea,
Lithuania, Mali West Africa, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia , Saudi Arabia,
Scotland, Singapore, South Africa , Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Thailand, Trinidad, Turkey, United Arab Emirates,
U.S.A., Venezuela, Wales, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
Even if your country is listed
please email me, and let me know where you are from.
12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit-owner@yahoogroups.com
Stay in the Light,

In loving service,
Scott H. from N.Y. ~ cleandate 10/27/88
YOUnMEnHP@...

         ==  ==      "we are each of us angels
    <^\()/\()/^>       with but one wing,
        \/  \/  \/       and can only fly by
         /  \/  \        embracing each other"
         `""``""`

Scott�s Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp
http://younmenhp.multiply.com/

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://groups.google.tt/group/12-Step-Soul-Food-for-the-Spirit?hl=en

For the daily recovery email please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/12StepSoulFoodForTheSpirit/

For the weekly topic meeting please visit me at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Anonymity Cartoon
www.recoverycartoons.com/anonymity.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LAUGHTER Is HEALING*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The weekly meeting topic is:
Each month we will share on a step and spiritual principles of the step.
Since it is October the 10th month, PLEASE share on the 10th step
If you haven�t done the 10th step with your sponsor
Please share on Perseverance, Integrity and Serenity...

This is a DIFFERENT Yahoo Club you MUST join this club in order to
participate otherwise your emails will bounce

to share please visit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/
or email
twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit@yahoogroups.com

Yahoo! Clubs Twelve Step Soul Food 4 the Spirit
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/twelvestepsoulfood4thespirit/

A Safe Place to Share , Discover and Recover.
This is a SLAMMING, STRONG support group with
a whole lot of EXPERIENCE, LOVE and HOPE that is available to you.
This a message bulletin board meeting, where people post on the
weekly topic. It takes only 1 minute to enter a password and
username. Please go this page on the upper right hand corner and click
the join club link, sign in and go to the left hand side and click
messages to read what others have shared and click on the post link,
now you can share on the topic of the week or whatever you would like.
There is a lot of good experience, strength and hope in here as well
as newcomers who need our support and love, PLEASE stop by,
we will leave the light on in the room and there is coffee in the
back :)
Thanks for your participation and support !!!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Please Be There For The Newcomers*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

October 7
I no longer decide what I should feel.
That is very limiting.
If I limit my negative feelings,
I limit my positive feelings as well.
Today I am opening myself to all my feelings.
That gives me great joy.
written by ~ Ruth Fishel
"Time for Joy"
Check out Ruth's collection of
light, nourishing and nurturing Books and Tapes
& some touching and embracing Greeting Cards
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm
for inspirational messages email
spirithaven@...

I am very excited to let you know about a new book just coming out by
author Ruth Fishel titled PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD.

THIS BOOK CAN BE A LIFE-CHANGING, WORLD-CHANGING BOOK!

We can all be a part of this movement for world peace.
PLEASE SEND THIS OUT TO EVERYONE ON YOUR EMAIL LIST. ASK FOR THIS BOOK
IN YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORES AND GIFT SHOPS. AND BE SURE TO BUY IT!

PEACE IN OUR HEARTS, PEACE IN THE WORLD MAKES A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT!

Imagine many thousands of people reading the same page, the same
message, each day and the lasting effect that it would have on each of
them as well as on the people with whom they come in contact.
When enough people join in taking just a few moments a day to meditate
for peace, in time there will be peace in this world . . . forever. We
actually do have the power to make that happen. This might sound like
a grandiose, overenthusiastic, exaggerated claim, but I truly believe
that I was inspired to write this book and you are an important part
of it.

KNOW YOU CAN MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF EVERYONE WHO READS
THIS BOOK. KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICIPATION HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A
DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Thank you for joining me and all the others who are passing on the
power of thought, prayer, and meditation so that the horrors of war
can cease and there can be peace for all human beings!
It is time for Peace in Our Hearts, Peace in the World.

Sincerely,

Scott H.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Just for Today*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

No Regrets

Been a few long years since you made the vow
Not to drink, but wasn't sure how
They took your hand and wiped your tears
Showed you the steps, to conquer your fears

You now had a choice of what to do
Getting rid of the garbage would
you ever get through?
Times have been tough, but the promises true
"Life is worth living if you do what we do"

I'm sure you've changed, it must
show in your ways
I know you forgive, more loving today
Places to go, things to do a friend to help
So simple it's true,

Taking each step a day at a time, talking
to God, in rain or shine,
Thanking Him daily for this great gift
Is something I know you'll never forget.
Barbara F.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Don't Use*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If anyone has any original recovery poetry that they
would like to share with us please copy and paste it into the body
of an email and send it to me, Thanks for your support and
contributions.
What I can't do alone, We do together.
In loving service, Scott ~  YOUnMEnHP@...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*No Matter What*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Things I Learned From My Relapse
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-FQWlRA0odLMC0svu1ovT3Tc-?cq=1&p=526

Understanding Anonymity
www.barefootsworld.net/aaanonymity.html

Grapevine Magazine Archive Index Page
www.aagrapevine.org/da/index.php

Joe's Woes
Joe M., the Bronx, NY.
(p. 445 in 2nd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/joemina.html

There's Nothing the Matter With Me!
Bill G., New Jersey.
(p. 499 in 2nd edition.)
www.silkworth.net/aabiography/billgreen

My Blog YOUnMEnHP Scott's Daily Blog
http://360.yahoo.com/younmenhp

Tommy D. GREAT MUSIC (one of my sponsees)
http://www.bluesbuddha.com/home.html

Recovery Gifts, Bracelets, T-Shirts, Mugs and other GREAT gifts
http://www.serenityquest.org/60.html

CHECK out Ruth Fishel's new book
Peace in our Hearts, Peace in the World
http://www.peaceinourhearts.net/

Spiritual Greeting Cards, Bookmarks & Spirit Stones
http://www.spirithaven.com/greeting_cards.htm

Ruth Fishel Books and Tapes
http://www.spirithaven.com/booksandtapes.htm

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Make A Meeting*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Just For Today
October 7                                Depending on our Higher Power

"As recovering addicts, we find that we are still dependent, but
our dependence has shifted from the things around us to a
loving God and the inner strength we get in our relationship
with Him."
Basic Text pp.67-68

   For many addicts, rebelliousness is second nature. We didn't
want to depend on anyone or anything, and especially not on
God. The beauty of using, we thought, was that it gave us the
power to be and feel anything we wanted, all by ourselves.
But the price we paid for this illusory freedom was a
dependence beyond our worst nightmares. Rather than freeing
us, using enslaved us.

   When we came to Narcotics Anonymous, we learned that
dependence on God didn't have to mean what we may have
thought it meant. Yes, if we wanted to be restored to sanity, we
would need to tap "a Power greater than ourselves". However,
we could choose our own concept of this Higher Power-we
could even make one up. Dependence on a Higher Power
would not limit us, we discovered; it would free us.

   The Power we find in recovery is the power we lacked on our
own. It is the love we were afraid to depend on others for. It is
the sense of personal direction we never had, the guidance
we couldn't humble ourselves to ask for or trust others to give.
It is all these things, and it is our own. Today, we are grateful
to have a Higher Power to depend on.

Just for today: I will depend on the love and inner strength I
draw from the God of my own understanding.

Just For Today Daily Meditation is the property of Narcotics Anonymous �
1991 by World Service Office Inc.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get Involved In Service*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

If you are enjoying this daily recovery email,
Please pass on 12 Step Soul Food For The Spirit to your online friends,
"We can only keep what we have by giving it away."
If you have received this as a forward
and  would like to subscribe please email
me at YOUnMEnHP@...
Thanks, In loving service, Scott :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Get A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Food For Thought Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_food

Each Day a New Beginning (Women) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_eachday

Touchtones (Men) Meditation
http://www.hazelden.org/web/go/thought_touchstone

Meditation of the Day
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/thought.view

Viking Thought of the Day
http://www.gorm.com/cgi-local/daily.pl

Elder's Meditation of the Day
http://www.whitebison.org/meditation/index.php

Dr. Twerski's Sober Thought of the Day
http://www.gatewayrehab.org/October.html

Daily Zen
http://www.dailyzen.com/

Grapevine Story Today
http://www.aagrapevine.org/da/storyoday.php

Daily Motivator
http://www.greatday.com/

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Use Your Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Making Amends

Above all, we should try to be absolutely sure that we are not
delaying because we are afraid.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS,  p. 87

To have courage, to be unafraid, are gifts of my recovery.
They empower me to ask for help and to go forth in making
my amends with a sense of dignity and humility.  Making
amends may require a certain amount of honesty that I feel
I lack, yet with the  help of God and the wisdom of others, I
can reach within and find the strength to act.  My amends
may be accepted, or they may not, but after they are
completed I can walk with a sense of freedom and know
that, for today, I am responsible.

Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
Daily Reflection In Loving Memory Of Scott Reeves

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Be A Sponsor*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Twenty-Four Hours A Day by Hazelden/ October 7th

A.A. Thought for the Day

Do I put too much reliance on any one member of the group?
That is, do I make a tin god out of some one person? Do I set
that person on a pedestal? if I do, I am building my house on
sand. All A.A. members have "clay feet." They are all only one
drink away from a drunk, no matter how long they have been
in A.A. This has been proved to be true more than once. It's
not fair to any member to be singled out as a leader in A.A.
and to always quote that member on the A.A. program. If that
person should fail, where would I be? Can I afford to be tipped
over by the failure of my ideal?

Meditation for the Day

You must always remember that you are weak but that God is
strong. God knows all about your weakness. He hears every cry
for mercy, every sign of weakness, every plea for help, every
sorrow over failure, every weakness felt and expressed. We
only fail when we trust too much to our own strength. Do not
feel bad about your weakness. When you are weak, that is when
God is strong to help you. Trust God enough, and your weakness
will not matter. God is always strong to save.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may learn to lean on God's strength. I pray that I
may know that my weakness is God's opportunity.

"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" is a � Copyrighted book of
Hazelden Foundation.  No portion of this publication may
be reproduced in any manner without the written
permission of Hazelden.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Work The Steps*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sunday, October 7, 2007

You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go

Letting Go of Naivete

We can be loving, trusting people and still not allow ourselves to
be used or abused. We don't have to let people do whatever
they want to us. Not all requests are legitimate! Not all requests
require a yes!

Life may test us. People may seek out our weak spots. We may
see a common denominator to the limits that are being tested in
our life. If we have a weak spot in one area, we may find
ourselves tested repeatedly in that area by family, friends,
co-workers, and neighbors. Life, people, our Higher Power, and
the universe may be trying to teach us something specific.

When we learn that lesson, we will find that problems with that
area dwindle. The boundary has been set, the power has been
owned. For now, the lesson has been learned. We may need to
be angry with certain people for a while, people who have
pushed our tolerance over the edge. That's okay. Soon, we
can let go of the anger and exchange it for gratitude. These
people have been here to help us learn about what we don't
want, what we won't tolerate, and how to own our power.

We can thank them for what we have learned.

How much are we willing to tolerate? How far shall we let others
go with us? How much of our anger and intuition shall we
discount? Where are our limits? Do we have any? If we don't,
we're in trouble.

There are times to not trust others, but instead trust ourselves
and set boundaries with those around us.

Today, I will be open to new awareness about the areas where I
need healthier boundaries. I will forego my naive assumption that
the other person is always right. I will exchange that view for trusting
myself, listening to myself, and having and setting healthy
boundaries.

  From The Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie �1990,
Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved. No portion of this
publication may be reproduced in any manner without the
written permission of the publisher.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*You Are A Miracle*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spirit In Work
www.lightworks.com/MonthlyAspectarian/2003/February/feature4.htm

Beauty
www.spiritualityhealth.com/newsh/items/blank/item_179.html

Being Present
www.spiritualityhealth.com/newsh/items/blank/item_180.html

At The Heart Of Peace
http://www.heartmath.com/peace/

We Are The Same
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=431

Remember The Child Within
http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=258

Finding Joy
http://www.findingjoymovie.com/

Inspirational movie, about 3 minutes long
http://www.lightmovie.com/

Inspirational Spiritual Flash Movies
http://www.inspiringthots.net/m-all.htm

Has Anyone Told You
http://www.hasanyonetoldyou.com/

Meditationroom
http://www.lime.com/meditation_room

Native American 10 Commandments
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DY3ZEvOfD1w

The Secret
http://www.thesecret.tv

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Keep It Simple*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Pharaoh Chewed Juicy Fruit

   While visiting Egypt, Gloria, a member of our tour group
named found an unusual stone at the base of a sacred
pyramid. The pink, round stone glowed with a mystical
light, and as she held it in her hand she could feel a
special energy about it. She wondered if it had been
used by ancient priests for healing, or perhaps even
adorned the headdress of a pharaoh.

   Immediately Gloria stole off to a private place and began to
meditate, stone in hand. Psychically she asked for images
of the sacred ceremonies the stone may have once been
used for. After a few minutes she was amazed to feel that
the stone was getting softer. Visions of alchemy flooded
her consciousness; perhaps this stone was magic, a
shape-shifter, transforming with prayer. As Gloria
continued to meditate, the stone became even softer, to
the point of being slightly gooey. Gloria could wait no longer;
she looked down to see what the stone had become, only
to find long pink strands stretching across her hand. The
stone was a wad of chewing gum.

   Our minds are powerful indeed, powerful enough to connect
with God through a wad of chewing gum. What, then, is sacred,
but that which we use to focalize our sacred thoughts?
Everything is potentially sacred or profane, depending on
how we think about it. As Shakespeare said, "thinking makes
it so." True alchemy takes place in our minds. We transform
lead into gold, devils into gods, and fear into triumph, by
choosing vision that matches our intentions. A mystic finds
God in the strangest places: As Blake penned, "To see a World
in a Grain of Sand, And a Heaven in a Wild Flower, Hold Infinity
in the palm of your hand, And Eternity in an hour."

   You and I might be in heaven right now and not even know it
because we are paying attention to hell. We may be in the
midst of great love, caring, and healing light. God may be in the
person sitting next to us on the bus or the presidential candidate
we didn't vote for or even the security guard who tickets cars at
the airport. God might even be in you just as you are.

   The mind is capable of creating vast yet contradictory realities,
demonstrable by our experience. A woman with multiple
personalities was severely allergic to citrus in one personality
(she would break out in profuse hives), yet utterly unaffected by
citrus in another personality. A man had diabetes in one
personality, requiring him to take insulin supplements; in another
personality he was perfectly healthy; if he took insulin in that
personality, it would have killed him. Perhaps this man is
symbolic of all of us, who are healthy by nature, but via societal
training, have taken on belief systems that make us feel and
act smaller than we are.

   The game of life is won by finding beauty and good wherever
we go, no matter what opinion or appearances would indicate.
Free will means that we may choose our viewing point on the
universe and live in the world our view has generated. God
has decided to explore creation through billions of different
vantage points (called you and me) for the fun of infinite
self-discovery. One poet said, "God is a flower that grew
a nose to smell itself."

   The story is told about a man who went to India to find a
certain saint he had heard about. The man traveled far and
wide, putting together bits and pieces of information. Finally
he found his way to an obscure village where a shopkeeper
told him that indeed the saint lived in that town, where he sat
by a certain tree. Eagerly the pilgrim rushed to the tree and
found a man who fit the description. When he tried to converse
with the man, however, the "saint" was disheveled and drunk.
Put off by the erroneous information he had been given, the
pilgrim returned to the shopkeeper and complained

"Oh, that was the saint, alright," the shopkeeper insisted.
"But the man was drunk!" the pilgrim protested.

   "Yes, he does drink a lot. But if you had stayed with him for
a while, you would have heard great wisdom. You see, he is
an enlightened soul who had but one more lesson to learn,
compassion for those who drink. So he took that experience
on to complete all of his earthly lessons. Besides that one
habit, he is an utter genius. If you could see beyond that one
trait, you would have found your saint."

     And so it is with all of us. As we set out on our new year, we
recognize that everyone's garden has both weeds and flowers.
We all have things about us that could be used for
condemnation or redemption. Nothing is any one way, and
everything is a matter of viewing point. We make or break our
lives with our thoughts. Yet God is in everything, and we find
God if we look. Who knows, maybe the Pharaoh chewed Juicy
Fruit?

"Beyond your ideas of right and wrong, there is a field. Meet
me there."
Rumi

written by ~ Alan Cohn �

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*One Day At A Time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Drop A Pebble In The Water

Drop a pebble in the water, just a splash, and it�s gone;
But there�s half a hundred ripples circling on and on and on,
Spreading, spreading from the center, flowing on out to sea.
And there is no way of telling where the end is going to be.

Drop a pebble in the water; in a minute you will forget,
But there�s little waves a-flowing and there�s ripples circling yet,
And those little waves a-flowing to a great big wave have grown;
You�ve disturbed a mighty river just by dropping in a stone.

Drop an unkind word, or careless: in a minute it is gone;
But there�s half a hundred ripples circling on and on and on,
They keep spreading, spreading, spreading from the center
	 as they go,
And there is no way to stop them, once you�ve started the flow.

Drop an unkind word, or careless: in a minute you forget;
But there�s little waves a-flowing, and there�s ripples circling yet.
And perhaps in some sad heart a mighty wave of tears you�ve
	 stirred,
And disturbed a life that was happy where you dropped that
	 unkind word.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness: just a flash and it is gone;
But there is half a hundred ripples circling on and on and on,
Bearing hope and joy and comfort on each splashing, dashing
	 wave,
Till you wouldn�t believe the volume of the one kind word you
	 gave.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness: in a minute you will forget;
But there�s gladness still a �swelling, and there�s joy circling yet.
And you�ve rolled a wave of comfort whose sweet music can be
	 heard,
Over miles and miles of water just by dropping one kind word.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*First Things First*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Of Dogs and Angels

     During my years in animal welfare work - I served as
the president of the American Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals - I have heard wonderful stories about
the power of the human-animal bond.  One of my favorites is
about a girl and her very special dog.

     When the girl was born, her parents were stationed with
the U.S. Army overseas.  The tiny baby spiked a fever of 106
degrees and when they couldn't help her at the military
base, the baby and her family were flown home to the United
States where she could receive the proper medical care.

     The alarming fever kept recurring, but the baby
survived.  When the episode was over, the child was left
with 13 different seizure causes, including epilepsy.    She
had what was called Multiple Seizure Syndrome and had
several seizures every day.  Sometimes she stopped
breathing.

     As a result, the little girl could never be left alone.
She grew to be a teenager and if her mother had to go out,
her father or brothers had to accompany her everywhere,
including to the bathroom, which was awkward for everyone
involved. But the risk of leaving her alone was too great
and so, for lack of a better solution, things went on in
this way for years.

     The girl and her family lived near a town where there
was a penitentiary for women. One of the programs there was
a dog-training program.  The inmates were taught how to
train dogs to 1) foster a sense of competence and 2) as a
job skill for the time when they left the prison. Although
most of the women had serious criminal backgrounds, many
made excellent dog trainers and often trained service dogs
for the handicapped while serving their time.

     The girl's mother read about this program and contacted
the penitentiary to see if there was anything they could do
for her daughter.  They had no idea how to train a dog to
help a person in the girl's condition, but her family
decided that a companion animal would be good for the girl,
as she had limited social opportunities and they felt she
would enjoy a dog's company.

     The girl chose a random-bred dog named Queenie and,
together with the women at the prison, trained her to be an
obedient pet.

     But Queenie had other plans.