Monday Thoughts 6/15/2020

“If you want to go fast, go alone.  If you want to go far, go together.”  ~~African Proverb

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” ~~Helen Keller

“Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.”  ~~Amy Poehler

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

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

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WE DID IT!  The 2020 WFS Annual Conference may officially be over, but the connection and love remains.  From shore to shore, women across the world came together in the only way that we could this year: virtually.  Imagine, in about 10 weeks’ time, YOU dear competent women, put your strengths together and assembled the first ever WFS Virtual Conference.  What a shining example of Statement #12 in action!

Doubt and uncertainty did not have a chance this weekend as 4C women everywhere came together to bring this event to life  What we were able to experience the past 3 days was the culmination of determination, passion and of course, love!  From our Opening Ceremony on Friday night, the exceptional breakout sessions, and keynote speakers to our Closing ceremony on Sunday afternoon, every Statement was in full action this weekend.  We experienced laughter, we experienced enthusiasm and we experienced connection and love!

Aside from a few minor technical hiccups, Envision It 2020 was a smashing success!  A record number of women signed up this year and while we are still working on gathering all the final numbers, our total amount raised has reached $95K!! WOWWOWWOWWOW!!!! The open-house sessions last week helped us learn how to use the software beforehand, and there were activities all weekend long to keep us connected while we eagerly awaited each session.  Women connected in our virtual dorm area, while you shared your thoughts for the future vision of WFS on our virtual vision board.  You donated your time, your talent and shared in making this weekend exceedingly beautiful. Remember, the recordings will be available the rest of this week!

We are capable, competent, caring, and compassionate!  WE ARE 4C!

If you were able to attend this year, what was your greatest takeaway?  If you were not able to attend, it is a great time to start planning for next year!

Hugzzz

Karen

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Hi 4C Women,

My greatest takeaway was the reinforcement of why I value and treasure the WFS Program.  I became sober in 1988 and what drew me to the program and continues to keep me sober and wanting to share this with women everywhere are several things:

· Building self-esteem – I am a competent woman. I am empowered.   I had a problem that once had me.  I am no longer stuck in the past feeling guilt and shame over my past mistakes and choices.  I have learned from them and built a phenomenal toolbox of coping skills.   My goal, through WFS, has always been to heal and part of that is letting go of labels and forgiving myself.  I do not deny that my past has made me who I was, yet I have worked hard on healing and forgiving myself for what I cannot change.   I continue to move forward in the process of healing.  As Jean said, this is not a competition.  We have diverse backgrounds and what matters is that our substance use created a problem in our lives and a big part of the process for me was in learning to love myself, to develop healthy relationships beginning with myself and extending to others.

· If any woman relapses, WFS is a safe place to share.  There will be encouragement and support.  Hopefully, there will be a learning process for each individual to understand what happened and to gain new coping tools.   I also appreciate greatly that while we do not count days in WFS, we honor and celebrate the positive emotional and personal growth changes women make on their recovery journey.  Our philosophy is that no matter how long you have been sober and if you relapse, there is much you have learned about yourself.    You are not the same person and that is important to remember.  You are not starting over but continuing on your personal path.   We are happy to celebrate milestones if a woman chooses to do so. What I have done is ask the woman what positive changes she has made during this time.  It is the inside changes, the new coping tools and healing that makes the difference in building self-esteem and personal growth.

· Our guidelines are all about showing compassion, respect and sharing of our personal experiences that may help a woman seeking input.

This is all about learning to be responsible for our own decisions, actions, and healing yet we are not alone.  We are bonded together in overcoming our addictions.  TOGETHER is the key word!  Am I fired up after this virtual conference?  You bet I am!  It was amazing and the incredible women who put all this together are beyond description.

Competent women bonded together in overcoming our addictions, Dee