Sunday Feb 2

Groundhog Day

Superbowl Sunday

... and the day Phillip Seymour Hoffman died. 

Every. Single. Time an entertainer/actor/someone dies of addiction related causes, I get all caught up in a deep sadness. It settles on me and sticks around for a long while. It started with Heath Ledger; I was in Puerto Vallarta with friends when I heard the news, and it just did me in. So tragic. More recently is was Cory Monteith. (I was at the lake when I read about it on Twitter. And it sucker-punched me.)

And now, PSH. Heard about it while at the lake, getting ready for a trip to PV. Feels like deja-vu, but not really.

All day long I kept thinking of Phillip Seymour Hoffman.
All day long I kept thanking God that Max was clean. That he asked for help and then did the work. And I'm so thankful that Every Single Day he decides again, to live without drugs. Thank you, God. thankyouthankyouthankyou. Thank you for providing him with friends who are living a life of recovery with him. Thank you for The Door, thank you for NA, thank you for the recovery community in New West, thank you for sponsors, and meetings, and events, and the laughter and love in their lives. Thank you that they are happy and living purpose-filled lives with meaning and relationships. Thank you that they have each other.

And all day long I kept praying for those who are still struggling with drug and alcohol addictions. Praying that they'd have the strength to quit. The courage to ask for help. The humility to admit they can't do it alone. Praying that God would provide them with a place to go to detox and rehab. Praying that God would provide them with friends who will come alongside. Friends who will rack up clean/sober time with them. Praying that they won't got at it alone. Praying that they would go to AA or NA meetings daily, and get involved. Praying that they would stop beating themselves up. Praying that they'd feel peace. And hope. 

And praying for the families. The wives. The husbands. The girlfriends and boyfriends.The kids. The brothers. The sisters. The moms and dads. Praying for the whole lot of them who are heart-broken because someone they love is struggling with a drug or alcohol addiction. God give them peace. And hope. And give them wisdom as to what to do.

If you're reading this, and it's you that I've been praying for, please get help. 

Addiction is a decease. You haven't done anything wrong. You just need some help. Your chance of success is 1,000 times greater if you journey this with friends. So be prepared to find some new ones. They're Just Like You. NOT losers. But folks with a decease.

In our experience, The Door was an amazing place for Max to recover. 

And the NA meetings in New West are positive, loud, hope-filled places to hear stories of victory. Go. 

It takes courage. 

And you've got it. 

I'm praying for you. 

And God is holding you in the palm of His hand.

Three things I'm thankful for:

1. I love driving west at the end of the day. Homeward bound into a sunset ...

2. A home to come home to. Yeah, sure, it's not mine. But I'm comfortable here. Way comfortable.

3. See all those houses on the hills beneath the mountains? There are thousands of them over there. During the day the view is all about the mountains - but at night, when the mountains disappear in the darkness? Those lit-up homes sparkle like jewels on a distant shore.

So. Fricken. Pretty. 

Someday I'll figure out how to take a picture of it. Tonight, as I was coming down the hill after my walk, (yes, the clear skies make everything stunning and not-wet, but Holy Hannah I had 4 freezing cheeks after an hour) I just paused and looked. And felt like a #luckygirl.

Wishing you peace,

xo

ojane@shaw.ca