It is what it is

The actual slogan would be "acceptance is the answer to all my problems today" but I have broken it down to say, "it is what it is"....and I am known to say that quite often in my everyday conversations.

"Acceptance is the answer to all my problems today" comes from the Big Book, page 449 in the 3rd addition and I believe it's page 417 in the fourth, but I could be wrong with that. It's a reading that I was told to learn and make part of my everyday life when I first got abstinent over l9 years ago... and today it is the first thing that I think of when I am feeling disturbed, frustrated or anxious about anything..."IT IS WHAT IT IS!" along with "live and let live"..."this, too, will pass" and "just for today".... All the slogans fall into place when I need them, along with the Serenity Prayer. It's all the same--accepting life on life's terms.

This weekend, my husband and I visited my son's family in PA, which is about 6-7 hours away from us by car....and my husband is not typically an easy (fun) companion on a trip of this nature, even though we both were excited to see our son, his wife and especially our two year old grandson, Caleb.

Well, this weekend was different. He was more relaxed and I could see the wheels turning in his head as he said a number of times, "IT IS WHAT IT IS!".... We got lost about ten minutes into the trip...which usually would spell disaster, but we rode it through, and we arrived in PA calm and I didn't want to run and hide!!! (half-smiling)... That's major progress for us.

I say this to share that this program has a wonderful ripple-down effect. We laughed a few times, too, when he said something negative...and I turned it around to a positive...He said to me, "Okay...there's the half-full cup..." BUT he said it in a loving, accepting way--not at all judgemental or annoyed.

IT IS WHAT IT IS!