24 Hours At A Time

Last Thursday was the best Thanksgiving of my life. Much better than last year. We had 17 family members here for dinner. That's a lot of people! As dinner time approached, 4 of us were all cooking in the kitchen at once. My mother, step-father, and step-sister were running around like they were on fire. They were very caught up in the last minute food preparations; full of anxiety and very worried about whether or not everything would be done on time. I was making green bean casserole, and I hadn't a care in the world. I was in a house full of people that I loved and who loved me. I was consumed with gratitude like I have never felt before. My last Thanksgiving dinner was in a homeless shelter with strangers. After I ate, I spent the evening drinking warm beer, then I slept in my car. I prayed that I wouldn't wake up. But I did, and here I am.
Although I don't want to dwell on my pre-recovery memories, they do provide wonderful points of reference. You see, I could have made the worst green bean casserole I've ever made this year, and my Thanksgiving was still gonna be just fine. Because I've been through a REAL bad Thanksgiving, and I'm never going back. I'm 10 and 1/2 months sober, and I owe it to God, AA, and my family. If you read this and your'e still out there, get to a meeting today. And keep going back. I am very grateful to be sober today. Oh, and my green bean casserole turned out very well, judging by how much of it my daughter Megan ate.-Frosty