Some Mo' Gratitude

Pain:  An unpleasant sensation, resulting from a derangement of functions, disease, or injury by violence.
Suffering: To undergo hardship; to feel pain; to become worse.

"I have an inordinate low-grade fascination with my own suffering."

I heard this in a meeting yesterday and it really resonated with me.  And then there's this oldie but goodie . . . 

"Pain is inevitable.  Suffering is optional."

I didn't understand what that meant for the longest time.

Congratulations to Spandex for 20 years yesterday.  That's a long time.  He called to tell me that he announced this milestone at a meeting where the secretary calls on people randomly.  He was not asked to share, of course, which surprised him a little bit and amused him a great deal more.  As it should be.  Humility is earned in the most unusual ways.  It is not given to us freely with no effort on our part.  For many years in The Old City SuperK's sponsor - who attended many of the same meetings as I did - celebrated her anniversary the same week that I did.  She had 10 years more sobriety than I did, effectively deflating whatever impressiveness I felt about whatever milestone I was marking.  Humility, indeed.

Thanks to Willie for calling me up to get my opinion about whether or not he should do something he didn't want to do even though he knew that he would do it anyway.  He took a while justifying the shit out of why it would be OK not to do this thing.  I laughed and told him that of course he had to do it.  He thanked me for my honesty but I knew he was going to get to the right answer eventually without any input from me.  That's what we try to do - the right thing.  Even when we don't want to.

Thanks to LSD Boy for getting me to square up my self-righteous beliefs with my dicier behaviors. 

Thanks for all y'all.