Sunday, August 17, 2014

Monday
August 18, 2014


Life on Life's Terms

Back up
A young woman named Kate who had just started treatment poked her head into my office.  "Got a minute?" she asked. 
"What's up?"
"The other Ken told me I'd get my energy back if I stayed clean and sober.  Today I just wanted to hide under the covers.  I have no energy, and it takes every ounce of strength I have to get moving.  When will my energy come back?"
"Do you watch football?" I asked.  "Sometimes a player gets flattened but bounces right back up.  Other times he'll lie on the field for five minutes before he gets up and walks away."
"And sometimes they carry him off the field in a stretcher.  No offense, but you suck at cheering people up," she said.
"Listen, you didn't get carried off on a stretcher.  You're not in the hospital, and you're not in jail.  You're just getting back on your feet a little slowly.  Like it says in the Big Book, 'sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly.'"

Today I will get back up.

Maybe quickly, maybe slowly, but I will get back up.
  
Life on Life's Terms (c) 2014 by Ken Montrose


Upcoming

Burnout: Clinical, Ethical, & Supervisory Issues
September 12, 2014 at Greenbriar-New Kensington
9:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m
$30 payable in advance, at the door, or by invoice after the training

This three hour training is accredited for:
  • Addiction Counselors by the Pa. Certification Board
  • CRCs  by the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification # 11938191652 and 11938191653 (one hour Ethics portion)
  • Counselors by NAADAC #477 and NBCC #6352
  • EAPs by the Employee Assistance Certification Commission
  • Social Workers by the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work.

Other Blogs

 AArdvarks, a daily messages blog about a group of young people in recovery can be found at: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/6836931-lost-and-profound


Smart Bears, Angry Rats

To thine own self  75 years from now
     Olsen was on his way to pick up Ubutu when the phone chirped.  A transparent image of Gretchen appeared on the bottom of the windshield. "Did you know that Ubutu and his wife eloped?" Gretchen asked. "They had the blessing of both families, but they eloped."
      "Ubutu ran off to get married?" Olsen asked. "That doesn't sound like him at all."
       "Maybe eloped was the wrong word.  They started planning a big church wedding in Nairobi, but decided to get married by the local magistrate instead.  Just Ubutu, his wife, and their parents were there."
       "Why are you telling me this?"  Olsen asked, curious and hopeful.  
       "I was at my mother's house last night.  Your mother was there.  They were talking about the wedding plans."
       "And?"
       "And they were talking about the wedding plans.  I wasn't. I suddenly realized I was never really interested in a big church wedding.   People around me were."
       "So now what?" Olsen asked trying to mask his relief at not having to feign interest in wedding planning.
       "Can we get married by the magistrate?  Maybe invite our parents and a few close friends?  That's what I really want.  Do you think our folks will understand?"
      "I think they will.  And if they don't, we'll try to be polite.  We'll let them know we're sorry they feel that way, but we'll do things our way. Like Shakespeare said, to thine own self be true."

                         Today I will be considerate of others, but true to myself.


                              Smart Bears, Angry Rats (2014) by Ken Montrose

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