Rituals ground me in my own day. My morning tea, my walk through the park, dinner with my family; these are the daily rituals that give my life a sense of continuity and solidity. They hold me, they bond me with those I love. Recovery is full of rituals. Meetings, daily reading, sharing with friends and quiet moments of self reflection; these are sustaining and healing rituals that deepen my sense of life and remind me of what’s really important. They are part of what gives my life its symmetry. I need these rituals to help me remember what to value. And they join me with life, with the feeling of what we’re all really made of under the skin. Rituals speak in their own voice and today, I am listening.

I respect the importance of rituals in my life

The holiest of holidays are those
Kept by ourselves in silence and apart;
The secret anniversaries of the heart.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow