Ok, I’m sober. So?! Meditation

For many of us, initially, the concept of living sober on an ongoing, daily basis can be very anticlimactic and downright boring to the point of being unsettling! We have lived on an emotional rollercoaster (the extreme highs to the lowest of lows) for so long that calm and cool and plain OK might not be a very comfortable fit inour skin. The sooner we can admit we lived, or existed, in chaos, the sooner we can understand what entering into a peaceful and calm life is all about.

Ok, about the Title, Ok, I’m sober. So?! I think, if we are honest, we have all felt, at least once, that exact, exasperating feeling. I’ve heard it from a newcomer falling off the Pink Cloud, from a guy with as much time as myself struggling with an issue, and even an “Old Timer”… and the one common thread? None of us were practicing our Program to the best of our abilities at that moment. So, and I am being very serious and literal, if you find yourself thinking these thoughts, call your Sponsor and tell him or her that you aren’t liking the results you are getting. Yes, he or she will probably laugh, but that should tell you it’s no big deal and you are about to change course.

Now we are practicing Step 11 in the AA Program by learning to meditate: bringing our physical bodies into a state of relaxation, calm and serene the emotions, a relaxed but alert and one-pointed focus in our mental body. Can you feel the subtle difference? For a lot of people, the answer is “No….” or “Yes, DULL” and there is nothing wrong with that, don’t be discouraged. This is our old way of thinking, and when this changes we won’t be asking, “Ok, I’m sober, so?” These are our old patterns still wanting the adrenalin rush from chaos. NOW we are training these patterns to seek calm and quietude. Once we understand and embody this shift in our Consciousness, our old ways of thinking will become so outdated that we won’t even want to recognize them, and these new feelings will become that which we seek and yearn for from within. This becomes our new “path of least resistance,” our New Normal.

There is still another component to our restlessness. I can remember being in a room packed with people and the music was blaring…and I could have been on a deserted island. I felt so alone, and in that loneliness I was lost. I was the extra puzzle piece in the box that didn’t fit anything or anywhere. I had no idea what I was supposed to be or do! Surely in this huge, infinite, Ordered Cosmos there was a place for me…but I had no idea where that was or even how to start looking.

When we manage to cut through the illusions (also known as fighting our way out of a paper bag) we find that this place does exist, and not only right now, but it is right here. When we finally open our eyes and are receptive to the fact that we are exactly where we are supposed to be at any given moment, then we can take our role in Life as a Child of God. Then we experience Peace, and we do this, eventually, because we realize that our spot, our place in this huge cosmos is right here; and it and you are an integral part of Infinity. Contemplate this concept and you will be amazed!

Let’s get started on this journey! Prepare for meditation…

Length: 16 Minutes
Facilitator: Jeff Ramsey
Categories: Addiction Recovery