Happy St Patrick’s Day.

Good heavens. It has been a month since I wrote. And I had been certain I was going to be more consistent. Can I blame old age? Well, not really, (even though on my next birthday I will be 77), but I can blame the fact that my life is full of rich and rewarding activities.

I had a new book deadline that was March 1. I sent the book to the publisher on February 29th. Just under the wire. It’s a book of 51 essays I wrote about living the principles of A Course in Miracles, which is another very important spiritual pathway to me, one that I believe is very compatible with the Twelve Steps of AA and Al-Anon. I have been committed to “the course” for about thirty years. In fact, I published a book titled, Daily Meditations For Practicing The Course in 1995. If you might be interested in it, it’s available on amazon, of course, and through Hazelden too. Any bookstore will happily order it too.

Finishing this course book was followed by a writing workshop on March 3 and 4th, a workshop that was absolutely fabulous. Not only was the writing terrific, but the participants were exceptional listeners and supporters of everyone’s extremely intimate sharing. How lucky I feel to be in the position of bringing women and men together to share who they really are in a very safe setting. If you are ever in the Naples, FL area in the winter months, watch for my workshop in the event section of my website. For the last 4 years it has been in March.

Now this weekend, tomorrow morning, in fact, I leave for northern Florida, with a friend, to lead an AA women’s conference. My life is filled with wonderful opportunities, coupled with interactions with truly lovely people. I know this weekend will be a wonderful experience for me. It’s my hope it will be a wonderful experience for all the women who are attending too. The topic is about healing our relationships through using the tools of the program. There is no shortage of those tools.

To name just a few of them, the steps of AA come first to mind. Everyone of them, if worked sincerely and completely, will enhance every relationship we have. Developing emotional sobriety will make each relationship cleaner too. We simply can’t confuse our journey with someone else’s journey if we want both of us to walk in peace.

Some other tools come to mind, of course. embracing change is one of them. A must if we want to move forward in our lives, regardless of how healthy our relationships are. The practice of forgiveness is an absolute necessity too. Forgiveness of ourselves, first of all, and forgiveness of everything we “imagined” that others did to us. And then there is detachment, perhaps for some of us the most important of all the tools.

How embedded I was in the lives of others, from childhood into womanhood. Your moves determined mine. For way too long. Finally understanding the insidiousness of my attachment to the behaviors and opinions of others offered me such freedom. I hope to help others celebrate this freedom also this weekend.

Having a reason to get up every morning is such fun. With my writing and workshops and 12 step meetings, and hanging out with friends; every day is filled to capacity. I consider myself one very lucky woman. I hope each of you feels lucky too.