I’ve been camping this weekend away from the traditional fourth of July celebrations that I’m used to. It’s been a somewhat peaceful, but very hot get-away. We’ve went boating on the beautiful clear waters of Strawberry reservoir, picnicking on the sandy driftwood beach and four-wheeling to a beautiful mountain vista with wildflowers galore.
The Fourth of July always makes me miss my parents and especially my dad. when I see Smokey the bear in the parades it reminds me of my dad’s last days working for the forest service as a part of the forest service senior citizen program. How many parades I watched him march in as a part of the National Guard. He took his role seriously & loved his jobs. He was in the Korean war as a young man them went to both desert storm wars as the oldest member of the states National Guard. He believed in freedom by following the laws that helped us obtain that. He wanted to do the right thing, but sometimes he fell short like all of us.
Most of us have never fought in a war, but we all enjoy the benefits of freedom.
I’m extremely grateful for free agency & personal choice & those who made that possible for us all & all who continue to make it possible. Lately it seems a lot of those freedoms have been questioned and turned upside down. Our freedom to question those AND and turn them upside down is also a freedom. Respecting all choices seems to resonate most with me.
This weekend has been a much needed break from the last week of my emotional roller coaster. I think there was one day I didn’t break down & cry over my son’s release from jail and all his legal problems related directly to his addiction.
As I made my strawberry cream cheese French toast today (pic to follow when I get better service); I was thinking how many times in the past I’ve felt restricted & chained to something that limits my freedom -(pre-addiction). At the time, I thought they were such inconveniences, but I’ve never felt the powerlessness of being chained to loving an addict.
We are sometimes told to:
Walk away, detach with love, let go and let God.
These things seem like great phrases to repeat but not so easy to implement; and also may not be appropriate for all situations all the time.
We do have The Freedom to handle our unique cases any way we feel is necessary, and we also have the power to find our own peace with those decisions – despite what any one or any group tells us.
My freedom thoughts this week are to lovingly accept my son’s freedom to choose. To lovingly maintain a connection with him with boundaries, so I can feel at peace if it’s our last interaction. Also I am working hard on accepting my other family member’s freedom to choose their thoughts and actions (or non- action) toward him. It’s not my job to tell them “You’ll be sorry if something happens to him”. It’s not my job to thwart their pain or their coping mechanisms for this devastating attack on our family. My job is me.
As I’ve stated in previous posts, it’s so incredibly important to at least try to decompress when going through anything difficult AND even for “normal” life’s daily stressors, to help ‘prevent addiction from starting. It’s a balance in all things & keeping priorities always in check.
Hope you enjoy your holiday weekend reflecting on what’s important to you. Even if you don’t have those things presently, having them in your heart is enough.
Here are a few pictures from my small-town America Fourth of July in the past and my current trip to the mountain lakes of Utah. Enjoy🇺🇸🚀🇺🇸🚀🇺🇸🚀🇺🇸🚀🇺🇸🚀🇺🇸🚀
