Monday Thoughts 9.9.24

“You did the best you could with the knowledge you had in that moment.  It’s easier to look back at an event and see a better choice or pathway because we already learned from our experience.  Hindsight happens after the lesson, so we can’t condemn ourselves for not knowing the lesson before we learned it.”  –Emily Maroutian

“When you’ve exhausted yourself trying to figure something out, stop trying.  Get out of your mind and into your body.  Everything looks clearer when you take time to clear your head.”  –Lori Deschene

“One of the biggest keys to success at anything hard is believing that

YOU CAN FIGURE IT OUT AS YOU GO

along.  A lot of people won’t start until there is no uncertainty.  Because most hard things can’t be figured out in advance, they never start.”  –Shane Parrish

#12 I am a competent woman, and I have much to give life.

This is what I am, and I shall know it always.

Karen’s Thoughts

One of the things I love about the WFS New Life Statements is that each Statement is like a bridge to feelings of freedom.  The words encourage without dominating or impossible doctrine, all the while supporting individuality.  This is especially accurate for Statement #12 much like it states in our WFS Program booklet “This is true, but perhaps you are afraid to believe it.  Each of us is unique and has something very special to give.”
 

WFS founder, Jean Kirkpatrick, PhD was the perfect living example of Statement #12 in action.  Imagine life without WFS, a dedicated and empowering recovery program for women.  The world suddenly felt smaller and less vibrant when considering this.  Gratefully, WFS is growing and thriving and is available to women 24/7, especially during Recovery Month 2024.  Yet Jean started creating WFS in bits and pieces.  Jotting down thoughts while recognizing what was working for her and what wasn’t became the outline for where WFS is today.  Sobriety offered Jean clarity and she began building her life and WFS without a blueprint, all the while making adjustments then becoming an expert in the field of women and addiction.
 

This week as co-author Dee competently continues her healing journey, ask yourself what patterns do you recognize in your New Life?  What was once difficult yet now feels almost routine?  Lastly, list as many of your strengths as you can.  Place it where you can read it each day.  Add to it as you recognize your growing abilities.  Embrace and acknowledge your 4C self!
 

Hugzzz

Karen

The Creative Crew is celebrating Recovery Month with a special Pop-Up Market filled with Fall and Halloween items for sale!  

The catalog is now available to browse at https://auctria.events/2024CCFallMarket.  Be sure to register if you want to be able to bid or purchase an item. There are auction items and “Buy It Now” selections at a set price. Excellent purchases to decorate your home for the fall or special gifts for the little gremlins in your family. Warning, our “Buy It Now” items tend to sell out quickly, so set your alarm for Friday, September 20 at 11:00 AM Eastern.

If you would like to donate an item to the Creative Crew Holiday Sale, follow these instructions by October 1, 2024.

Have you ever heard the term “third home”? For many of us, we are lucky enough to have one home, a dwelling where we live and retreat to after the end of a long day. Our office or place of business is often a second home, the place where we spend eight hours a day and try to carve out a place for ourselves to feel some semblance of peace.

So then, what is a third home?

Sociologist Ran Oldenburg defines it as “[the] place is where you relax in public, where you encounter familiar faces and make new acquaintances.”

For many people, the WFS Online forums and private Facebook group is their third home. It is perhaps the only place where they can be open about who they are: a sober woman, ready to conquer recovery and the rest of the world. Some sisters may look at it as a place to learn, to conversate, or to engage socially only to realize they’ve made lifelong friends. Above all, these third places nourish sobriety, feed into evolution, and exchange doubt for development. 

If you are passionate about the compassion you find in this third home, consider making a monthly donation to Women for Sobriety. By investing in WFS, you are sprucing up your home, keeping it safe, and opening the doors for new friends. You are demonstrating that you care about the recovery of others just as much as your own, which is the best way to embrace and live the work of Dr. Jean Kirkpatrick.

No matter your individual situation, Women for Sobriety will be here to provide a refuge for you. Whether you can devote a monthly donation, some time to volunteer, or just be a sister to another that needs you, we thank you for your participation in the mission of recovery.