There are times when life is super amazing. And there are times when it’s devastating. Sometimes there are things we can do to make life easier. Pilots change the altitude when things get choppy. If they can.
At some point every single person in the world attempts to circumnavigate the turbulence life brings their way. If they can.
But sometimes we can’t change things in life. The adjustments we make may give us the illusion that we’re in control but like it or not there are times when the turbulence is there no matter what changes in altitude we try to make.
Alcohol and other drugs give us another illusion. A strong, deceptive, and short-sighted illusion. It’s the illusion that life’s not that bad — even when everything’s crumbling all around us. We seem to be able to stand in the rubble with impunity, without a scratch, we think.
But while we’re numbing ourselves from the full brunt of the reality that’s around us, something’s happening. We are making matters much, much worse. Frighteningly worse. We’re losing our edge. We’re losing opportunities. We’re losing loved ones. We’re losing money. We’re losing respect. We’re losing trust. We’re losing our health. We’re losing our minds.
Instead of flying away from the turbulence of this life, we find ourselves flying up to a much, much bumpier altitude. And the end for some is a fatal crash.
Living life on life’s terms means learning to deal with it. Admitting that there are things we simply cannot change, we find serenity in sobriety and acceptance. It’s in the peace of recovery that we find strength. We face our challenges and we take them on with quiet confidence. We find the things we lost — our edge, our loved ones, our money, our respect, our trust, our health, our minds.
When people encourage us to live life on life’s terms it’s because life’s just better that way. We let go of our need to control and we embrace existence with all it’s summits and valleys.
Source: Impact Recovery
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