If you knew nothing else about her, you knew she was an addict. A self-proclaimed train wreck whose talent was too often overshadowed by a tabloid-fueled persona that turned her public life into a frustrating spectacle. Amy Winehouse's addiction had become a pop culture punch line. According to media accounts, I was in good company| The Phoenix Spirit
Just after takeoff from Minneapolis-Saint Paul airport (MSP), a seatmate asked my destination. I was visiting a cousin in Germany. He was on his way home from an Oregon vacation. We were both relaxed and free of the scowls on the faces of business class passengers. Finding common ground with friendly people is a bonus| The Phoenix Spirit
“Being empty is a lot like knowing the words to a song but not knowing the music. Feeling full is just the opposite. You know both the words and the music to the song and are able to sing them aloud with your whole heart.” *** “I don’t know why I’m I so unhappy. I’m| The Phoenix Spirit
“Life can only be understood backwards but it must be lived forwards.” Soren Kierkegaard Here at The Phoenix Spirit, we take time each spring to reflect on and explore the practice of retreating. Retreats, like most rituals, come with a familiarity and a structure that can mask the magic of the experience. Whether you take a retreat| The Phoenix Spirit
Most of us are aware of those sublime experiences of life we call love. We may feel uplifted in being more than we already are through the continued tenderness of a loved one. It’s as good as it gets. We may also have magnificent moments when we have transported a dear one to be a| The Phoenix Spirit
When all is said and done, it's the time we spend with friends that gives life meaning. —Abraham Lincoln Finding and keeping an authentic friend is hard for all of us. Sometimes a true friend may feel impossible to find. In fact there are no perfect friends out there for us to have. Some people| The Phoenix Spirit
The word “service” doesn’t appear anywhere in the Twelve Steps. Yet, it is a highly respected hallmark of this widespread approach to recovery. Hang around where Twelve Steppers gather, and you’ll likely hear “Thank you for your service” buzzing in the air. Service looks different for each person in a Twelve Step program, ranging from| The Phoenix Spirit
"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." —Egyptian proverb, 2400BC Life is a blur. There's never enough time. Myra and I work ten hour days at least five days a week. Sometimes weekends. She teaches middle school with larger and larger class sizes. I'm a software engineer who's expected to do the| The Phoenix Spirit
I'll never forget the day my friend Martin told me he just got diagnosed with cancer. As I sat sad and stupefied across from him over coffee I silently mused over the possibility that this charming old wise man may leave us way too soon. His erudition and idiosyncratic views of life are legendary. He| The Phoenix Spirit
Occasionally in life there are those moments of unutterable fulfillment which cannot be explained by those symbols called words. Their meaning can only be articulated by the inaudible language of the heart. —Martin Luther King, Jr. As I reflect on my life, I realize there are critical life lessons that make me into the person| The Phoenix Spirit
There are many aspects that can be helpful in moving us from addictive thinking and behavior to recovery. In this article, I would like to focus on two aspects that have become important in my recovery journey as well as in those of a number of people I know. They are: making choices and being| The Phoenix Spirit
As a veteran of the 12 Step groups, I continue to be amazed by the wisdom contained within the 12 Steps. I am struck by the new awarenesses that emerge in my Wednesday night group as we share reflections and experiences week after week. Such discussions never get old. Each Step is like a seed| The Phoenix Spirit
In seeking to address the topic of hope today, I feel especially challenged as there seems to be so much frustration, hopelessness and powerlessness swirling around these days. These feelings are related to the continuing effects of Covid and now the flu; the rising costs of everyday items such as food and gasoline along with| The Phoenix Spirit
“Hope is passion for what is possible”. Søren Kierkegaard I am looking into the New Year with a hopeful gaze. As a glass-half-full person, I grab for ribbons of hope rather than entangle myself in webs of despair. Moving into a new year and a new decade I ask myself, what gives me hope? Greta Thunburg,| The Phoenix Spirit
At times, I have come to see recovery – both discovering and maintaining – as a kind of a 3-legged table. If we lose one of the legs, the table topples. In this article, I want to reflect on the 3 legs that I see as important elements of recovery. I am not saying that| The Phoenix Spirit
A closer look at 10 common phrases used in recovery Addicts and alkies are often skeptical about the brief, pithy sayings we throw around in 12-step programs. The slogans seem to dilute the complicated issues of recovery down to stock, almost clichéd phrases. Yet, if you spend any time in Alano Club rooms, or even| The Phoenix Spirit
This might sound like a strange question to raise for consideration in a newspaper dedicated to recovery issues. It is a question, however, that I hear being asked by people as we speak about issues like the impact of COVID-19 and what lies ahead, the many unsettled and turbulent situations around the world, and concerns| The Phoenix Spirit
The following testimonials are from Minnesota Adult & Teen Challenge in Minneapolis. Some edits have been made for length. Tiffany's story I struggled with a 15-year addiction to meth, opiates and alcohol prior to coming into Minnesota Adult & Teen Challenge (MnTC). My physical health was in shambles and my mental health was unstable. I| The Phoenix Spirit
The reward for living a good, clean, and sober life is…a good, clean, and sober life. I read that in a recent article in the Grapevine, AA’s monthly magazine, and it really resonated with me. Simple yet wise. I don’t give myself enough credit—and I suspect many of my fellow recovering alkies and addicts don’t| The Phoenix Spirit
Step 7 as part of the 12 Steps reads: Humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings. At first glance, this seems to be a simple statement about what to do to remove the shortcomings we all have in one form or another. Why? Because none of us is perfect. Right? As I have been reflecting| The Phoenix Spirit
We feature an expert in the mental health and substance use disorder field to answer questions. This issue we talk to Ed Treat of The Center of Addiction and Faith about finding hope while in recovery / dealing with mental health issues. Q: How does having a sense of hope impact someone's overall mental health| The Phoenix Spirit
Most of us don’t think much about what type of person we are. We have a hard enough time attending to the practical details of daily living—staying virus-free, caring for children, paying the bills, having enough food in the house, and knowing what our next project is at home. Few of us would choose having| The Phoenix Spirit
I have been in recovery for almost thirty years and have been part of a 12 Step group for the same amount of time. In this article, I would like to share some struggles I have had with the idea of Higher Power – an important concept in recovery through the lenses of the 12| The Phoenix Spirit
I learned a lesson about grace when I experienced its flipside a number of years ago, after I was laid off from a corporate communications job in health care. Seeking employment, I dutifully worked my network, including a breakfast meeting with a woman I had recently worked with. She had just started a new job| The Phoenix Spirit