Blog entry for:

Sun, Aug 30, 2015 11:34:02 AM


♠ doing good, ♠
posted: Sun, Aug 30, 2015 11:34:02 AM

 

feeling good.
so sometimes this whole idea of doing something good, because it will make me feel good, seems a bit counter-intuitive, after all, i am here still because i USED in order to change my feelings. yes as one of my peers would point out, this appears to be a loophole. when i came around, one of the most puzzling concepts for me to grasp, was behaving my way into better thinking. doing the next right thing because it will make me feel better, instead of for its own sake, seems like i am cheating the system. i could go on, but then i realize that there probably is no real altruism, except for a few of those saintly human types, of which i am not a member. i can be at peace knowing that regardless of my subconscious motive, when i choose to something good, it will make me feel good, even if no one else really knows. yes, doing the next right thing, without any expectations of return, is certainly not a bad goal to strive for, and you know what, when i look at it in that light, i can be okay with this whole notion.
the other theme this brings up, is FREEDOM from the comparison and expectations of where i “should” be, that this portion of my annual cycle takes me to. when i consider my behavior these days, i can see quite clearly that i am doing much better than when i walked into the rooms, much better than when i finally became a member and even better than i was a year ago. this reading reminds me that the yardstick is not about what i could become, but rather but what i have become today. the key for me surviving my crazy season, is looking back at what i was, and looking forward to see how far i have advanced from that point in time. yes i know, i just crapped all over the just for today of being here and now, but one cannot create an omelet without cracking a few eggs.
when i got here i was incapable of caring for anyone but me and what i though i NEEDED. even as i started this current set of steps, i had come to the conclusion that i was so broken that i had only a finite capacity to give and receive love, and was even certain that i had reached that limit. i know now, that both of those states were a symptom of the part of me i call addiction, ruling who and what i saw myself as. part of becoming whole, at least for me, is that i show who i am today, to anyone who cares to see it. what one sees is what one gets, most of the time. yes i still hide in the shadows from time to time, or blaze over everyone in some sort of conceited blinding light, that is however, part of who i am today and as i progress along the path i have been following, i am quite certain that those behaviors as well as the other less than stellar tendencies i exhibit, will be put into place or removed, by the process of recovery and the POWER that fuels my recovery.
anyhow, time to roll on out to somewhere a bit different and get the next task of my day done. it is a great day to do something good, even if it is just to feel a bit better.

∞ DT ∞

 

djtConsulting Brand
The views expressed on this page are solely the opinion of the author.
While the author is a member of a 12 Step recovery fellowship, these writings are not intended to endorse or express the published wisdom of any fellowship.
These writings are not meant to be socially or politically correct, and if you take issue with any opinions expressed, please seek the guidance of someone wiser than me.

Another Look!

doing better than i think 441 words ➥ Monday, August 30, 2004 by: donnot
α better thinking through better acting α 260 words ➥ Tuesday, August 30, 2005 by: donnot
∞ i treat others badly when i feel bad about myself? ∞ 471 words ➥ Wednesday, August 30, 2006 by: donnot
↔ the joy i inspire may lift the spirits of those around me, ↔ 429 words ➥ Thursday, August 30, 2007 by: donnot
∞ the way i treat others often reveals my own spiritual state of being ∞ 471 words ➥ Saturday, August 30, 2008 by: donnot
µ when i treat others well, i feel good about myself µ 895 words ➥ Sunday, August 30, 2009 by: donnot
• i examine my actions, reactions, and motives • 619 words ➥ Monday, August 30, 2010 by: donnot
³ a decision to be kind may nurture and sustain ³ 593 words ➥ Tuesday, August 30, 2011 by: donnot
· the fellowship has given me much more than simple abstinence — 463 words ➥ Thursday, August 30, 2012 by: donnot
µ i will remember that if i change my actions, µ 405 words ➥ Friday, August 30, 2013 by: donnot
∫ when i am feeling off center, i AM likely ∫ 472 words ➥ Saturday, August 30, 2014 by: donnot
✸ change my actions, ✸ 550 words ➥ Tuesday, August 30, 2016 by: donnot
🌎 doing better 🌏 602 words ➥ Wednesday, August 30, 2017 by: donnot
🌝 adding **positive** truths 🌚 572 words ➥ Thursday, August 30, 2018 by: donnot
🌈 treating others well 🌈 616 words ➥ Friday, August 30, 2019 by: donnot
😈 actions, 😇 487 words ➥ Sunday, August 30, 2020 by: donnot
😮 a decision 😵 365 words ➥ Monday, August 30, 2021 by: donnot
🛎 a positive truth 🛎 385 words ➥ Tuesday, August 30, 2022 by: donnot
💯 the value of 💯 617 words ➥ Wednesday, August 30, 2023 by: donnot
🌊 my past instructs me; 🌈 473 words ➥ Friday, August 30, 2024 by: donnot
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☯ The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao ☯

THE TAO TEH KING, OR THE TAO AND ITS CHARACTERISTICS
by Lao-Tse
Translated by James Legge

Book 1

1) When the intelligent and animal souls are held together in one
embrace, they can be kept from separating. When one gives undivided
attention to the (vital) breath, and brings it to the utmost degree
of pliancy, he can become as a (tender) babe. When he has cleansed
away the most mysterious sights (of his imagination), he can become
without a flaw.