Those who don't believe in magic will never find it.

Roald Dahl

This quote doesn't resonate with me – that's what I think is so great about it. When I joined the program of recovery that I am in, I didn't walk into it thinking “This is going to work and everything is going to be great!” I had decades of cynicism, fear, pain, control, trust issues, and skepticism telling me how this would just be another waste of time. I went for the first time because I couldn't think of anything else to do. And then magic happened when I didn't believe in it. It shocked me when I heard other people telling my story. With every share I heard, I thought “me, too!” That was magic for me. I couldn't believe it, so I came back again and again and again. The more I came back, the more I came to trust the magic of the program. The magic happened whether or not I believed in it, so long as I did the work. That is, as long as I kept going to meetings, as long as I kept being open, honest, and willing, as long as I worked the 12 Steps. And the magic continues to happen for me. When I see a newcomer come in to a meeting, I smile because I know that, whether or not they know it,  that the same magic is happening for them the moment they walk into the doors.

A meditation for June 26, 2013.

The Perfect Space – The Avett Brothers*

*Thanks to Spencer for his song suggestion.