From Courage to Change of Jul 31:
A source of friction between my alcoholic loved one and myself has always been housekeeping. I usually feel so overwhelmed by all the things that need doing that I am not able to get organized. So when he drinks, he rages about whatever needs dusting, scrubbing, or picking up.
Recently we were cleaning up the kitchen after a big breakfast. Without thinking, I moved the containers on one refrigerator shelf and wiped u a spill. No big deal, but one part of the refrigerator was now clean. I thought, “Maybe that’s all there is to cleaning house. If I’d do one small task at a time, I’d get something accomplished.” Then the light went on inside my head. That’s what “One Day at a Time” is all about! When I take one day, one moment, one task at a time and really concentrate on it, a lot more gets done.
Today’s Reminder
“Remembering that we can only live one day at a time removes the burdens of the past, keeps our attention on the present, and keeps us from fearing the future.” ~ This Is Al-Anon
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Housekeeping has never just been about mess. It has always been laced with something heavier—shame, powerlessness, old arguments, and the volatile dance of trying to maintain control in a house where chaos walks in on two legs and smells like alcohol.
When that alcoholic or addictive spirit takes on human form, the house becomes a war zone of dust and blame. I see the crumbs on the counter, but I also see the accusation behind blurry eyes. And I feel the overwhelm rise like a tide—everything out of place, everything needing me, and me… too tired to know where to begin.
But recovery has taught me to look for grace in the smallest places.
One spill. One shelf. One act I didn’t plan but allowed. And in that moment, I wasn’t fixing the house or calming the storm. I was simply responding to what was in front of me—not the ghosts of yesterday’s rage or the mountain of tomorrow’s tasks. Just one human moment of tending.
Maybe this is all recovery is: one shelf at a time. One breath at a time. One sacred pause between panic and presence.
Because that’s the real mess I’m trying to clean: not just the counters, but the inner world cluttered with fear and guilt. When I try to clean it all at once, I break. But when I let myself live “One Day at a Time,” I come back to myself. Not perfect. Not done. But present.
That slogan isn’t just about staying sober—it’s about staying available to life. It frees me from the tyranny of “never enough” and places me into the holiness of just this. This task. This breath. This moment.
And strangely, when I stop trying to clean up the whole world, I actually start to see progress. The kitchen shines. My heart softens. My spirit steadies.
I don’t need to fear the future or relive the past. I just need to wipe the shelf in front of me—and bless it as enough.
Daily Reprieve 
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