Thursday, April 14, 2022
Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:
You see the one that I am, not the one that I was. But the one that I was is also still part of myself. — Jean Améry
Our stories are central to our recovery. We tell them because they remind us where we came from. We live in the present moment, but our history is part of our identity. It isn’t the total of our identity, but it informs our healing. It’s the mine where we dig for the nuggets of wisdom for living today, and it gives us the drive and encouragement to continue our progress. We don’t tell our stories to wallow in the shame and guilt we felt or to gain sympathy for our suffering. And we don’t tell them to revel in the euphoria of the highs we experienced.
In telling our stories, others get to know us better because our history is part of our very selves. In that process, we cannot help but listen to ourselves speak the truth, and we thereby put together the puzzle pieces of our selves. Taking the risk of saying where we came from provides the rewards of feeling accepted by others.
I am grateful for telling my story and knowing that I am more than the man I once was.
Hazelden Foundation
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