Sunday Morning

It's a beautiful clear sunny morning.
Yesterday, my sponsee came over and helped me collect sap and put it on to boil. I told her she is an official "sap sucker." A title my husband and I have been affectionately using towards each other.
While we were waiting for the sap to boil, we sat near the fire and read the Big Book together. We are on page 13 in "Bill's Story." That page is just chocked full of steps, and it was fun going over each sentence and paragraph and picking them out and discussing them. Bill's willingness,preceded by his complete hopelessness is such an inspiration to me. While we were discussing all this my sponsor called to see what I was up to, and she ended up coming over too, and we had a awesome discussion. (While my sponsor cannot assume the title of "sap sucker", she is an official sap stirrer.LOL.)

We continued on to page 14,and we talked what is one of my most favorite passages in the second paragraph:

"These were revolutionary and drastic proposals, but the moment I finally accepted them, the effect was electric. There was a sense of victory, followed by such a peace and serenity as I had ever known. There was utter confidence. I felt lifted up, as though the great clean wind of a mountain top blew through and through. God comes to most men gradually, but His impact on me was sudden and profound."
(Big Book, pg.14, 2nd par.)

I am so grateful to have known this feeling so many times in my recovery, usually when I work a step, with my sponsor, someone else, or alone. Many times when I am listening to someone tell their story, or during my silent prayer and meditation.

We capped off the day with a delicious meal of pirogi, kielbasa and edamame beans.
Today I will finish boiling off the sap on the stove and seal it in mason jars. I will be setting aside two special jars for my helpers.

Better get busy, have a great Sunday everyone!

Syrupin'

This spring my husband and I have been making maple syrup. It has been a labor of love! The first few days of tapping trees and collecting sap were about 12-14 hours of non-stop work, but well worth it. Did you know that it takes 30-40 gallons of maple sap to make one gallon of syrup? You boil it down in a special "cooker" outside (fabricated by my hubby). When it gets boiled down all the way you pour it off and bring it in the house, filter it, and finish the boiling until it reaches 219 degrees. What is left is pure sweet maple syrup. Now that the trees are about to stop running, we have really gotten the process down. Both of us are really looking forward to next year, it won't be such a learning process. But it has been nice to be outside doing a project after a long cold winter. During the boiling, which takes a few hours, we managed to get the spring yard clean-up done and I got my peas planted on St.Patty's day. Also threw in some lettuce and cilantro for for the heck of it.

I thank God every day for the life that He has given me. To receive so much joy in the simplest of things. Just getting outside and working along side my husband. Being sober. There was a time when the thought of doing anything like this without a beer in my hand was un-thinkable! I can remember many times when we would start a project like this and my husband would always end up on his own because once I started drinking, well, that was it, I was drinking now so screw everything else, and screw you if you have a problem with it. I can't help it if you are one of those weirdos who can work outside and sip on two beers all day! So many times my disease sucked all the fun out of any situation. I am so grateful I do not live like that anymore. Grateful that I can appreciate times like these. Sitting by the fire, stirring the syrup, planning the garden, being close, relaxing without a mind altering substance in my body. Living life and enjoying gifts from mother nature. Enjoying my husbands company!

Our friends are in awe of us. We spend our winters pretty much joined at the hip, as our work is seasonal, and we are off in the winters. Making the syrup is one of many projects we have done together in the last couple of months. Have there been blow-ups? Hell yeah! But nothing major. Nothing an "I'm sorry, I did not realize you felt that way." Could not mend. It has been a good winter, some ups and downs. We had a little health scare here, but all is well now, all the tests came back OK. For that I am truly grateful as well.

Hello!

After being gone for a few weeks, it is good to be back, but it took me a while to miss blogging. I have been stopping by here and there, but not spending near as much time as I was on my computer. It has been a good thing. But I miss the feedback, and sharing. Mostly I miss it for ME. I miss my outlet, and I miss you people. Still blogging without obligation.

So what's new? Well, I am still clean and sober and working the steps. Still have a sponsor, and I am still sponsoring.

I have been keeping up with Pam and Mary Christine mostly. Some of the comments on Pam's posts have really made me want to start blogging again. I am a Big Book thumper too, and hope to be until the day I die. What some people seem to fail to realize is that this is a matter of life and death for us folks. And while you might not hurt me with your watered down version of what you THINK this program is, you may be killing someone else with your bullshit that has kept you from picking up a drink somehow up to this point. Some people may want to call us natzis or the AA police....have at it! I know that I am a REAL alcoholic, and I need to find a power greater than myself, an unhuman power to restore me to sanity. I need to work the steps with another alcoholic, some call that sponsorship, although the actual word sponsor does not appear anywhere in the first 164 pages, it is talked about over and over.

Ah, that feels much better!