Here’s some amazing news to learn about addiction.  And it is only 18 seconds long.

A young Hindu man decided to go and visit his uncle, who lived in another village. His uncle’s village was on the other side of the valley, and was known for its abundance of snakes. The young man had not made the trip alone before, and was somewhat nervous about the snakes. He walked all through the day, reaching his uncle’s home just as night was falling. After his uncle greeted him, tired and dusty, the young man was invited to clean himself in the outdoor shower. As our friend leaned back his head into the stream of water, he stepped backwards onto a thick rope lying on the ground.

Yes, that is the whole story. People often look at me expectantly waiting for explanation. I love this little story, because it calls into challenge things we ‘know to be true’. How many times have we been so absolutely sure about something, because we ‘feel it in our bones’? This story illustrates how easily we can be deceived by our senses, and by our physical reactions. Imagine what would happen to your heart rate if you were the young man stepping on the rope? The true meaning of this story is that it is a Zen Koan, which means that there is no meaning. I hope this story stays with you, and that you share it with your friends.

Humility means being teachable. Listen to Jane Derry’s 22 second video.  Learn how to recover from gambling addiction.

Here’s the story:

When the Chinese invaded Tibet many Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns were held captive. These peace-loving contempletive men and women were systematically tortured, abused and murdered. One monk, a prisoner for several years narrowly escaped through the mountains into India.  Soon after he gained freedom, the monk was interviewed  regarding his ordeal. One of the questions asked of him was this: “What was your greatest fear during your captivity?” His response, “I was afraid that I would stop loving my captors”.

Who are you choosing to not forgive today?

Swallowtail on a butterflybush at A Home Away.

Take 23 seconds, and see what happens to the alcoholic.

Get the help you need for your unhappiness at A Home Away Retreat.

Jane has a short little video here about recovery. Check it out.

There were a lot of hugs and tears, and  reminiscing. The kids took full advantage of the pool and the sunshine, splashing and laughing endlessly. Everyone else took advantage of the opportunity to reconnect, make new friends, and enjoy Chef Rene’s iced cappuchinos and fruit punch. After a few hours when we got to the actual BBQ, the meal, as expected, was amazing. People are still talking about Chef David’s chocolate cake masterpiece. I don’t know how he does it!

After we were all full, we moved down to the lower level of the patio. We put our chairs in a big circle, surrounded by blossoms and birdsong, and had a ’round of gratefuls’. Each person present (about 25 of us), had an opportunity to express what they were grateful for. There was overwhelming love surging through the circle as alumni shared about moving from the depair and death of addiction, to hope, light and peace.

Jim Copeman, our music director brought his drums and assortment of percussion instruments. Along with AHA’s own drums there was a music maker for everyone. Jim lead us in a few pointers, then in a melodic and hypnotic series of drumming sessions. It was an incredible experience, sitting into the late evening,  the magnificant moon rising up to shine off the lake, and being a part of a drumming circle of miracles. Everyone had indeed moved from the discord of their lives to harmony with the universe. Thanks be to God.

And not to forget our beloved friend Cocoa, who seemed to enjoy the day almost more than we did. Thanks be to Cocoa!

The Spiritual Lesson I Learned from a Skunk

When I first came to Al-Anon, I had little faith. Very slowly, I came to a spiritual awakening and accepted nature as my Higher Power.

I believe every person I meet—in every situation—has a lesson for me. More often than not, I find I need to ask my Higher Power for clarification as to what I am supposed to learn. Eventually, I catch on.

In January of last year, my brother was diagnosed with lung cancer. He died four months later. I had already lost a sister some years before. I struggled to accept the loss of another sibling. What I was supposed to learn from his death? I lost faith and felt sorry for myself. I wondered: why me?

I kept going to Al-Anon meetings and reading the literature. I came to understand: “Why not me?” Why should I be spared the pain of losing someone? Yet I still couldn’t figure out how to accept his death or what I was supposed to learn from it.

One day, while I was praying for clarification on the lesson I was supposed to learn, a squirrel got caught in my “catch and release” trap. (We have a squirrel problem at our farm.) As soon as the trap door closed, the squirrel forgot the food that had lured him in.

He scurried around the cage looking for an escape. He chattered and ran back and forth, leaped from wall to wall, hung from the top, sniffed, and bit desperately at the cage wires. He dug at the ground and tried to stick his paws through the mesh. He was literally going nuts.

I drove him to the relocation site and wondered if my Higher Power was trying to tell me that I was acting as nutty as that squirrel.

I went to a meeting and heard that same member say, “If I don’t get results from prayer, I ask again.” So I went home and asked for absolute and clear understanding of the lesson I was supposed to learn.

I set the trap again and decided to test my Higher Power. If the message was that I was acting nutty, then my Higher Power would simply send another squirrel to be caught in the trap.

Very early the next morning, I was outside and heard the door of the trap click shut. I expected to see a squirrel, but instead there was a skunk in the trap. Okay, the lesson was what? That I stunk? That I only saw things in black and white?

I decided to sit and watch the skunk, and pray for clarity. To my surprise, the skunk did not spray. He walked slowly around the entire inside of the cage, carefully sniffed up as high as he could, then as low as he could.

He slowly and methodically checked out every inch of the trap, then turned back to the bait and proceeded to eat it. He then groomed his paws and face. Then, he began reaching through the wires on the cage floor and pulled in grass and roots. He meticulously piled and pushed and formed the grass and roots into a nest. He then reached through the sides of the cage and drew in more grass and roots and added them to his nest. After working for about half an hour, he curled up in a ball, and went to sleep.

Clearly the skunk was making the most of the situation. He accepted his present state of capture.

I finally learned the lesson. I should be like the skunk, not the squirrel. My brother is gone, but I still have other family members and my Al-Anon family. I can make the most of it, get on with life, and do the best I can with the ones left.

By Audrey, Saskatchewan
The Forum, June 2010

Al-Anon’s monthly magazine, The Forum, contains many personal stories of inspiration, some of which are made available each month on the Internet.  This sharing was reprinted with permission of The Forum, Al-Anon Family Group Headquarters, Inc., Virginia Beach, VA.

Don’t just sit there, do nothing!