Chicken Soup for the Recovering Soul Daily Inspirations (Chicken Soup for the Soul) (53 page)

Today, I have the privilege of looking that same, trusting son in the eye as I have every day since that night of reckoning. I have earned credibility. I am responsible. I will reassure him and he will hug me tightly! This time, I will say, “It’s been twenty years, son! It’s going to last.”

Janell H.

There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. That will be the beginning.

Louis L’Amour

Footnotes for Life

D
ECEMBER
22

W
hen traumatic events shake the foundations of your life, get out into the natural world–God will speak to you through his handiwork. Walk in solitude, drink in the regenerating air, open your senses to creation and take a lesson from nature. The healing in my life began when I came upon a field of fireweed while hiking. This magnificent wildflower shoots forth in splendor after an area is ravaged by fire; its magenta plumes wave proudly in stark contrast to its burned-out surroundings. The image opened my eyes, and I took what I learned from that moment to rise up from the ashes and go forth stronger and more alive than ever.

Linda Mehus-Barber

And hark! How blithe the throstle sings! He, too, is no mean preacher. Come forth into the light of things, let nature be your teacher.

William Wordsworth

Footnotes for Life

D
ECEMBER
23

F
eelings flirt with our desires while faith nurtures our needs. Feelings focus on the moment while faith concentrates on the future. Feelings flourish in immediate gratification while faith is willing to wait for what’s better. Feelings react without thinking while faith takes the time and the thought to respond. Feelings are fickle and fleeting while faith considers the long run. Feelings want only to receive while faith decides to believe. What feelings do I still allow to control me? What can I choose to place my faith in today to better serve my true needs tomorrow?

Anne Calodich Fone

Faith can take us farther than any of our feelings.

Anne Calodich Fone

Footnotes for Life

D
ECEMBER
24

I
suffered much from the effects of my loved one’s addiction. Disappointments, manipulation, emotional abuse and betrayal dimmed my will to live. It was hard just to keep going. After all this, surely I am not expected to forgive! I let go of my old definition of forgiveness. I consider this–forgiveness is not about letting someone who hurt me off the hook. It is about letting me off the hook. I can feel, heal, express and live in the joy of this moment. I know I have forgiven when the cloud of past hurt no longer blocks today’s sun. In what part of my life do I welcome more sunshine today?

Anna Joy Grace

It is easier to forgive an enemy than to forgive a friend.

William Blake

Footnotes for Life

D
ECEMBER
25

T
he Christmas tree was destroyed; presents were smashed; our father was drunk, but for a moment, one brief moment, none of it mattered. My nine-year-old brother shot up out of bed like a rocket, took in a sharp breath and said, “Listen, reindeer!” So I listened silently to the scraping on the roof, something more magical than the familiar sound of squirrels. Staring at my brother, I saw something amazing–a smile. When belief and awe sparkled in his aqua eyes, for that moment in time, I, too, believed in the miracle of Christmas. Those heart-wrenching holidays are a distant nightmare, but I remember the gift I received that Christmas–a gift of hope.

Raquel M.Strand

Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.

Theodore Roosevelt

Footnotes for Life

D
ECEMBER
26

I
am on a journey of spirit. Spirit calls to me within and without. In a still, small voice I sense spirit whispering in my inner ear. My body feels an increasing sense of aliveness as I invite spirit to make itself known. Spirit breathes in each pore within me. It fills the numbness with energy. It fills the emptiness and causes my inner being to overflow with its presence. Whenever I become still and allow spirit to enter my world, it is always there waiting for me to discover it, to remember it, to invite it in.

Tian Dayton

On a long journey of human life, faith is the best of companions; it is the best refreshment on the journey; and it is the greatest property.

Buddha

Footnotes for Life

D
ECEMBER
27

T
he door through the darkness is human touch. We do not need to see the light if we can hold a hand. A hug speaks languages that have no letters and need no translators. A gentle embrace can acknowledge sorrows too deep to speak aloud. When loneliness builds an island far away from hope it is not a land alone. The touch of one caring soul can build a bridge of hope, healing and a sense of belonging. We need not be eloquent or brilliant or even totally whole. We just need to care enough to reach out and touch another soul.

Renee Hixson

To touch the soul of another human being is to walk on holy ground.

Stephen Covey

Footnotes for Life