Posted in: certified addiction counselors, happiness through sobriety, modern addiction recovery, recreational addiction therapy
We lovingly called it…Purplepalooza. It was a psychedelic recovery experience; a music festival with an experiential twist. Designed by Ashley Kilpatrick, Purplepalooza embodied sounds, sights, and evoked emotions that tickled the recovery palette. Purple, Inc. clients, alumni, and staff all participated. Even though the rain stopped us from going on at 9 pm like we’d planned, once it got started, everyone soon realized it was well worth the wait. We all knew it would be good for the clients; inspiration through music, a sense of belonging and accomplishment-we never expected to be so inspired ourselves. It was an evening to be remembered!
Let a joy keep you. Reach out your hands and take it when it runs by.
—Carl Sandburg
There is a song that says joy is like the rain. It comes across our windowpane and then goes away again. When joy comes knocking at our window we can reach out and let it in. Joy comes to us in many ways - through deep laughter, through games played together in a spirit of fun and sharing. Singing together, skating, and being around a campfire are all ways we share joy. Yet joy can also be felt alone.
Each moment of joy we reach for strengthens our spirits. Joyful memories can sustain us through days of long hard work. Like rain, joy comes and goes; yet its nourishment keeps our spirits alive.
How can I share my joy today?
From Today’s Gift: Daily Meditations for Families ©1985, 1991 by Hazelden Foundation.
Posted in: addiction recovery meditations, happiness through sobriety, today's gift, touchstones daily meditations
The most valuable thing we can do for the psyche, occasionally, is to let it rest, wander, live in the changing light of a room, not to try to do or be anything whatsoever.
—May Sarton
A whole world can be seen through even the smallest window. Knowing this can help us slow down and enjoy everyday events. We can listen to the regular rhythms of letter carriers and school children, dogs and delivery trucks, city buses and song birds playing out a piece of their daily lives outside the window.
We can greet the letter carrier who comes up the walk, feed the robin who lands on the sill, wave to the kids who’ve found a shortcut through our backyards on their way home from school.
It is not necessary, today, for us to fill our lives with important meetings, gala parties, expensive treats, toys, or outings to be happy. There is a whole world to be discovered just outside the nearest window.
What worlds lie on the other side of my window today?
From Today’s Gift: Daily Meditations for Families ©1985, 1991 by Hazelden Foundation.
Posted in: happiness through sobriety, live life drug free, overcoming obstacles to recovery, today's gift, touchstones daily meditations
As long as you keep a person down, some part of you has to be down there to hold him down, so it means you cannot soar as you otherwise might.
—Marion Anderson
Because of our resentments we sometimes get tense. We say we aren’t going to have contact with our parents until they do something we expect of them. Or we hold out on a friend because we want an apology for an injury or injustice.
Sadly, we become more tense, more limited in our own joy, by holding someone else to our expectations. Our lives can be much richer and more fulfilled when we let go of these expectations. We can let go of manipulating or drawing forth the responses we want. Our manipulations and pouting make life too boring and limited. No one else need stand in the way of our pleasure of being adult men.
Today, I will let go of my claims on others so I can be free to soar.
From Touchstones: A Book of Daily Meditations for Men ©1986, 1991 by Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved.
We have finally unveiled Purple 2.0! First let me explain what Purple 2.0 really is: it is a mulit-faceted, multi-layered conglomeration of ideas, principles, program components, and tangibles. Looking back, its difficult to say when we really began working our way towards the new version of Purple, but it seems like its been a little over a year. The staff has met weekly for the past year for the sole purpose of developing this. Along the way, we’ve redefined our mission statement, incorporated new programs like exercise and guided meditation, and made a journey back to what we feel are indispensable services to offer.
All of these changes are, of course, rewarding, but none quite as rewarding as the tangibles: new furniture (still a work in progress), the new website, business cards, brochures, and a keynote presentation that will eventually be on the website and available as a DVD. In the Fall of last year, we started working with Luckyfish Studios, a creative strategy and design company. They helped us develop a new brand, a new mission, and a new image altogether. To put the finishing touches on it all, we enlisted the help of Solar Velocity, a web development firm. It all finally came together as we presented our new image to the public at SECAD earlier this month.
In essence…”we are committed to helping addicted men and their families create new, happier lives through sobriety. Our recovery methods are based on personal, real experience, our staff members are engaging and genuine, and our success is tied directly to our clients’ success combating addiction”…THIS is Purple 2.0.