One of the biggest slogans in recovery from addiction is “Keep It Simple.” So how do I do this? By practicing three main principles.
One, I make sure I spend time alone with my Higher Power on a daily basis. Because without that, I tend to complicate my life, never really knowing what direction to head in. How I spend time alone is through prayer, meditation, reading, doing puzzles, coloring, sitting by the water, gardening, or just chilling out in my backyard and observing nature.
Two, I maintain a boundary when it comes to my home. Basically, I don’t allow people I sponsor, newcomers, or anyone that’s new to sobriety into my house. Too often nowadays people are being robbed when they allow a person new to recovery into their home, even by people close to them. I don’t desire to ever experience that type of stress. But that doesn’t mean I won’t help a newcomer because I still do. I simply choose to meet with them somewhere else.
And three, I make sure that those who I spend time around are those who are doing their best to live a healthy life and are seeking to follow something greater then themselves. This third principle also includes not surrounding myself with tons of people all the time either. The saying is true that we are who we hang around and anytime I’ve hung around those who are still in their addictions and living in total ego has only driven me into a very complicated life with undue stress. And when I spend time constantly around groups of people, I start finding myself gossiping, exaggerating, and living a lot more in self-will and none of those things lead to keeping it simple.
So there you have it. That’s how I keep my life simple in recovery these days. Three basic principles I follow every single day. Of course there are many other ways I keep it simple as well, but these are the foundation and thank God, they really do work for me…
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson