You always speak truth and I always appreciate it
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A mouse was placed at the top of a jar filled with grains. It was so happy to find so much food around him that no longer he felt the need to run around searching for food. Now he could happily live his life. After a few days of enjoying the grains, he reached the bottom of the jar.
Suddenly, he realize that he was trapped and he couldn’t get out. He now has to fully depend on someone to put grains in the jar for him to survive.
He now has no choice but to eat what he’s given. A slave to his situation.
A few lessons to learn from this:
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Short term pleasures can lead to long-term traps.
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If things come easy and you get comfortable, you are getting TRAPPED into dependency.
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When you are not using your skills, you will lose more than your skills. You lose your CHOICES and FREEDOM.
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Freedom does not come easy but can be lost quickly. NOTHING comes easily in life and if it comes easily, maybe it is not worth it…
Don’t curse your struggles, embrace them. They are your blessings in disguise.
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I love this 
Thanks Hollz!
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Yes I can imagine making the proactive choice to quit makes it easier to be grateful for the challenges we face and appreciate they make us stronger in the end! No pressure, no diamonds 
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I guess maybe I was a little judgmental or idk inconsiderate in my post I’m sorry if I offended anyone or hurt anyone’s feelings. I surely didn’t mean to. I do wish that everyone was happy as I am but I do understand that not everyone is getting to make a willing choice to stop and that’s changes things
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We are here to learn though correct? And that was just a learning moment for me. I remember judged family the world telling me to stop and telling them to lol well I’m sure you can imagine where I told them to &$@! Off to. I am just so grateful for my own life and happiness I wish others were able to experience that but I know it’s in everyone’s time and every person has to hit there own bottom
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I didn’t think it was judgemental - it’s totally fair to say that different people react differently. I know I go through phases myself - sometimes depression just kicks my arse but that’s just another thing to learn how to get through. It does mean being positive comes and goes in waves, so personally I appreciate hearing from others on the forum (either new to sobriety or with more time under their belts) who are struggling with life on life’s terms, to remind me I’m not the only one! But it’s also great to read about people who are feeling super positive, it can be contagious 
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I mean I’ve been struggling with so much pain with hurting my shoulder but staying positive may be the only thing that’s kept me from my way back into old habits because I was a very pessimistic person when I drank and for years that pessimism was like a looming cloud that followed me around
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I love that, thank you
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Hey you guys we have 200 comments 
hmmm who would’ve thought 
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Mommy pride is well deserved here. She looks like she’s full of life. That’s wonderful
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She is. She’s funny, beautiful, caring, outgoing and doesn’t want to be anything like me so she’s on the right path
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I find gratitude is almost magical in helping get through each day. Whether I’m feeling ok or it’s a more difficult day, or situation, I can find something to be grateful for - and it’s like that lifts a weight off my heart. It’s like a superpower
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It truly is. It’s like a weight is lifted and it’s freeing
Hey - don’t be too hard on yourself Hollz. Lemme tell you what you are, when you take away the cloud of addiction:
- Grateful. You are grateful. Of course she needs to learn to be grateful - and she learns it from you.
- Determined. You are determined. She learns that from you.
- Humble. Do you know how much humility it takes to acknowledge you have a problem, and ask, sincerely, for help?
- Wise. Help isn’t always easy to find, and you have to have the wisdom to recognize help when you see it. You’re doing that here and now.
And these are just the positive qualities I though of in the last minute. You have more - we could make a long list. Your daughter inherits all of those from you. The fact that these qualities were clouded under addiction for so long doesn’t mean they disappeared, or that they were never there. They are your birthright - they are part of who you are. You are discovering them today in a way you never have before - but they have always been there.
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You truly are so amazing @Matt. It is still awkward for me to hear good things about myself because I’ve heard the bad for so many years but I know there is good in me and slowly I’m acknowledging that. It’s something I need to work on
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It’s an exploration. You are walking paths in yourself that you’ve forgotten are there. Maybe you never learned they were there? Think of it as learning to walk. Stick with it and it will feel more familiar over time
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Well I’m not going anywhere I’m here to stay so with time I’ll learn all kinds of new things about myself
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So I’m definitely having a rough day. I’m angry and I want to lash out so badly I can taste it. I’m trying to use what I have learned so far but honestly I feel my temper growing too a point that I may do something I regret I JUST NEED HELP RIGHT NOW
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