Get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, go to work. Come home, cook dinner, do chores, go to bed. It’s easy to get stuck on autopilot in this life. If you’re caught in the sticky trap of drinking, your life is likely a recurring nightmare of numbing, regret, broken promises and feeling like crap (physically, mentally Read More
Author: gr8ful_collette
Creating Sober Associations
Today is my birthday….I’m celebrating the midpoint between 40 and 50. Celebrating Independence Day, and my personal freedom from alcohol. I’m with my family at Mammoth Lakes, also where I celebrated my 40th Birthday. That birthday trip was filled with booze and its sidekick, regret. At 15 months sober, I still have a lot of Read More
Coffee Talk: Trying to connect with sanitized relationships
Yesterday, I went out to coffee with two dear friends who I haven’t seen since March. We’ve shared virtual interactions–sanitized relationships–but I hadn’t actually seen them in person for months. We shared stories about our kids and spouses, concerns about our jobs and the economy, dismay over the state of our nation, frustrations over our Read More
Disconnected
A week after my husband’s return, we took my daughter in our RV on a camping trip in the woods. Rest and relaxation. A beautiful spot with mountain air, a meandering river and a cathedral of trees. I knew in advance that this location had no Wifi or cell reception; I just didn’t realize until Read More
This One’s For You
Hi There, I’m writing this for you. The one who feels stuck. Like a bird in a building, or a mouse on a sticky trap, Knowing that things won’t end well. I’m writing this as the voice of experience. One who has been there before, But managed to break free. And now wishes she had Read More
The Sun Returns
Late Sunday night, my husband walked through our front door for the first time in seven months. My daughter cried, and cried, jumping into his arms. The dog danced circles around him, full of puppy elation. My boys–his stepsons–stood around with the happy aloofness of teenagerhood. And I felt like the missing piece of me Read More
Holding On, Letting Go
Ah, Rumi…your words are an arrow that so often find their target at the center of my heart. These two concepts, Holding On and Letting Go, can be beneficial or brutal, depending on the degree and contents. If we hold on too much, or to the wrong things, we will surely encounter disappointment or pain. Read More
The Antidote for Wanting
My daughter really wants two things these days: her dad to come home and a Happy Napper. After seven months on a deployment that was supposed to last four, I am thrilled to report my husband is in fact coming home! This Sunday. So yes, Amelia, your daddy will be here soon. The Happy Napper Read More
My Own Outfit
One of the most significant choices we commit to in a life of sobriety is choosing ourselves over “the crowd.” Choosing our own wellbeing over fitting in. In my last few years of drinking, I tried sobriety on like an outfit I thought didn’t suit me. One of the big reasons I felt this way Read More
We Can Do Better
I published this article on Medium a few days ago and I thought I’d share it here. It is in response to America’s efforts to move forward out of this pandemic, and the shameful events that have come to pass since the cold-blooded murder of a black man by a white police officer. My heart Read More