Hi everyone. This week we read up to pg. 37 so we will be starting there next week. We discussed "coming to believe" in terms of a higher power and ceasing fighting "whatever war we are fighting" . I appreciated how meditation lets us see our judging mind and question if our opinions are really ours? "once we see the habitual, relative, and conditioned nature of our opinions, it becomes easier to open to new ideas" pg.36
Our contemplation question for the week is what opinions have you had to revise or let go of in recovery that you previously thought identified you? Are there any?
And where have you " mistaken the movie of (y)our mind for Truth" pg.33?
For me, I thought that if I wasn't one with the crowd, I was nothing. I did whatever I needed to do and thought whatever I needed to think to fit in so I had to discover what my own opinions even were once I was sober. Now it takes some mindful awareness and conscious thought to keep an open mind and keep "bertha" (the critical, judging voice in my head) from writing the script of my life. She often seems louder than the truth, and that's when I'm even more grateful for spiritual practices like meditation that allow me to step outside the "movie of my mind" and let go of judgment...or at least try to.
What about you?
I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences.
Hi there,
There were opinions I had to revise or let go of in recovery that I previously thought identified me. This list is long but I will focus on three core ones. First one was having low self-esteem about myself. I would often think or believe I wasn’t good enough, I wasn’t smart, lacked confidence and didn’t think I had beauty inside and out. Second one was not having purpose. I often thought and believed that I had no place or value. I didn’t know what my purpose was. Third one negative self talk. I often thought and believed my fears were winning the race, my mistakes were always highlighted and never made my successes and accomplishments something I celebrated.
For me meditation helped me realize my opinions and negative thoughts were not me. They were an illusion I created in my mind that downplayed my fullest potential. It helped me to understand and learn how to slowly let go of each of them, so I can begin to live. It helped me realize that I am in control and in order to keep on the right path of my recovery and my discovery of my higher power, I had to lighten my load so I have clarity straight through.
The movie of my mind , I like to compare it to “My reality show” that festers and creates a place I only understand and when I snap out of believing this is the truth, I realize that truth is nothing like the movie in my mind. Sometimes it’s easier to create a story that is fiction then see hard truth in front of you. It’s easier to accept then dig deep to understand what you need to change. I have had many moments like this where the movie is what I believed and truth was ignored. There are less days like this where it happens but it’s a constant thing that I have to focus on .