Must We Forever be, Chained Inextricably, to the Past for all Eternity – Step 8 begins

"When you burn a bridge sometimes -- it doesn't matter if it's a significant player on a team, especially a significant player like Kobe -- you might say let bygones be bygones, (but) there's always that underlying, 'Oh, you talked about me.' Me personally, I don't think it'll work out. But who knows? Crazier things have happened." - Robert Horry (1970 - ) U.S. Laker star basketball player   Under the Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers (4:06) Real Honesty - Miles Davis Jazz Guided Mediation (9:57)   What elements of your own past have weighed you down, lately?  …

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How We Walk with Joyful Pride without Coming Off as Vain & Unappealing – Step 7

"We want to be proud of ourselves and feel at peace with our behavior, yet we are increasingly embarrassed at what we find ourselves saying and doing. These actions, attitudes and habits do not reflect the person we are striving to become."(How Al Anon Works,p. 55) "Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves; vanity, to what we would have others think of us." - Jane Austen (1775 - 1817) English novelist and social commentator   Vogue - Madonna…

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The Tools We Use If We “want to Live in Peace and Harmony” – Step 7

"The process of the Seventh Step brings about a peace of mind that we never dreamed possible. We sense that what is present throughout our search for spiritual growth is our ability to feel our Higher Power's love for us." "It doesn't matter that  we will not attain a state of perfection or complete humility in our life-time." (It Works, How & Why, p. 53)   "Affirm divine calmness and peace, and send out only thoughts of love and goodwill if you want to live in peace and harmony. Never get angry, for anger poisons your system."  - Paramahansa Yogananda (1893…

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How We Tap Into the Ancient Wisdom of the Autumnal Season as it Unfolds – Step 7

OLD-TIMEY WISDOM  -  "Theirs is the quiet opinion, the sure knowledge and humble example that resolve a crisis."  "[T]hey lead by example. This is the experience which has led us to the conclusion that our group conscience, well-advised by its elders, will be in the long run wiser than any single leader." (12 &  12, p. 135) "Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is a nobler art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of nonessentials."  Lin Yutang (1895 - 1976) writer & inventor of the 1st Chinese typewriter   Bad Wisdom…

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“With this Faith We will be Able to Hew Out of the Mountain of Despair a Stone of Hope” – Step 7

"With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to trans- form the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. ... knowing that we will be free one day." Martin Luther King Jr. (1929 - 1968) "I Have a Dream" speech (1963)   The Edge of Glory - Lady Gaga (5:28) I Have a Dream (full speech - 17:27)   Religions of the World Meditation (7:16)   How have you contributed to the betterment of the human condition, lately?…

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This Grand, New Awareness Emboldens Us with the Sweet Breath of Everlasting Youth – Step 7

WERE YOU READY IN YOUR YOUTH?  "We have a right to expect more from life than mere survival.  [W]e are here because we are ready to heal. [W]e are ready to look at ourselves and our lives with new eyes. We are ready to become aware."  (How Al Anon Works, p. 26) "If every day is an awakening, you will never grow old.  You will just keep growing." - Gail Sheehy (1937 - ) U.S. author and Hilary Clinton biographer   Sweet Child of Mine - Guns & Roses (4:59) How to Sit Properly for Meditation or  Zazen (6:34) "Extremely…

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In a World Full of Mayhem, Maladies & Madness We May be Tempted to Ask Who or What is Really in Charge? Step 7

"The moment we catch even a glimpse of God's will, the moment we begin to see truth, justice, and love as the real and eternal things in life, we are no longer deeply disturbed by all the seeming evidence to the contrary that surrounds us in purely human affairs." (12 & 12, p. 105) "If you think you can win, you can win. Faith is necessary to victory." - William Hazlitt (1778 - 1830) English author    I Believe - Simian Mobile Disco (3:15) Creative Quotes by William Hazlitt (1:26) Taoist Verses from the Faith Mind Sutra (6:29) In what…

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It’s What Makes this Process both Beautiful and Sublime at the Same Time – Step 7

"WE ARE BEING CHANGED" - "It doesn't matter that we will not attain a state  of  perfection  or complete humility in our life- time.   The ability  to  contem- plate  this  grand  vision  and meditate  upon  it  are  rare and priceless gifts in their own right.   We are being changed."   (It Works, How &  Why, p. 53)   YOU CAN CALL IT "A PSYCHIC CHANGE" - " ... once a psychic change has occurred, the very same person who seemed doomed, who had so many problems he de- spaired of ever solving them, suddenly finds himself eas- ily able to control his…

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“I Believe in God, Only I Spell it, Nature” – Step 7

"We don't have to be religious to accept this idea." "We began to see evidence of some Power that could not be fully explained. Confronted with this evidence, we began to accept the existence of a Power greater than ourselves. We can use this Power long before we understand it." (12 & 12, p. 52)  "I believe in God, only  I spell it Nature."  - Frank Lloyd Wright (1869 - 1959) U. S. architect   God is a DJ - P!nk (3:44) The Homes of Frank Lloyd Wright (7:47) Divine Creator & Higher Self Guided Mediation (1:06:43)   In what ways…

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