There is a place that we have to reach when we know within us that it is time to stop a bad habit. It may be smoking, eating, drugs, or gambling. We get down to that area in our lives where it comes screaming home to us. To recover we have to choose it for ourselves, not have other people telling us that it needs to be done. Up until that point we may tend not to listen and go about our lives doing as we please. Until we finally reach that place, that low spot, do we finally stand up and climb out of this hole we have made for ourselves. When that happens it takes a lot of determination, fortitude, focus, self-love and discipline to continue along the new path we have chosen.
Then, with the sweet feeling of success, we brake through into this new world. We have accomplished a great feat and we have a clean slate to go forward with. But, what now?
We need move forward carefully and with new found purpose. The cheering from friends and family is sweet. But this is like a newly healed wound. We need to let it heal. Let this new existence pour over us like a warm morning shower. Drink it in. Slow and easy.
Fellowship with others at this time is a good idea. People who may have had similar common experiences and understand what we have been through. They make us feel comfortable to know there are others who have reached the same depths we have. In sharing we can grow and find new things about ourselves, helps us to shake loose from the past and move forward. Investing some time connecting with other people can help us to realize new truths about ourselves also. Understanding ourselves better can help us to live fuller and happier lives.
With that new knowledge about ourselves we also need to have something that sparks us to move forward. Something that helps us to keep momentum going. It excites us and gives us something new and different to think about, something to look forward to. Without this we are apt to get bored and move backward to the old activities that are easy and occupy our time. Without something that excites us and makes us think new and differently about our lives its too easy to grab a cigarette or reach for a bag of chips to fill the void. We have to have something to take its place, something that awakes something in us. It gives us a reason to go forward into that new chapter we have opened.
Redirecting our lives into a new and interesting area can open doors that will never let us go back to where we were before. The only way to do this is to explore new things. Exploring life and visiting new environments, be open to different ways of doing things, finding new outlets for things we might enjoy. Don’t be afraid to try new things. It’s like that first time on that ride at the fair. Once we get over the fear of negative possibilities we find it to be fun and exciting. Step forward and take that chance. Whether it is family, work or a hobby there is something out there for everyone.
So take some time and if you don’t already have something to focus on then visit museums, seminars, classes, sites and videos that spark some interest in us. Try new hobbies, meet new people, go to new places you haven’t ventured to before. Life is short and unless you take advantage of what may be available out there for you life it may just stay stagnated and you will not move forward at all. Your imagination is only as stunted as you let it be. Open up, take a chance and you can redirect your life.