Firsts

Fall in Vermont.

Fall sets the stage for new beginnings. School starts. Anticipation of new adventures. Absorbing the colors on hikes. Feeling the chill on bike rides.

Summer camp for the plants is over and they come inside to keep the house green through the cold winter ahead. The wood is stacked. Pots of soup begin.

More than this, I feel the deep gratitude for life as it is now: free from the fog of alcohol.

It was a slippery slope for me.

Years of regular glasses of wine when off call.

After retirement, during covid, there seemed no excuse to not drink more. I wasn't going out. I wasn't driving anywhere.

But that nagging voice: "this really isn't good for me"

That fog in the morning "I shouldn't have had that last glass"

And that recycling bin!!! Embarrassing!

And then I found the compassion of This Naked Mind by Annie Grace. I found a community of people from all over the world looking honestly at their relationship with alcohol. With compassion. With curiosity. With studies that changed my beliefs about this substance that wove its way into my habits.

And now I feel free of its tentacles. I drink as much as I want, whenever I want. I simply don't want it any more. We still have the ritual of evening beverages: mocktails in a fancy glass. All the fun and none of the other.

Come explore with me. Its an amazing journey towards your inner voice of wholeness.