12 Years!

One day at a time, we've put together 12 years. Grateful. Humbled. Happy. Hopeful. And determined to keep going.
Thank you for helping me get here. I couldn't do this alone or without God. Recovery works, and choosing it has given me a beautiful life.❤️

I held my 12 year coin this morning in front of a mural I & so many others made happen back in 2019. The first mural I pitched & fundraised for. You might say it's the one that planted the seed, even though I painted a few murals prior. I saw the community engagement, the joy, & the impact this had. It sparked something in me that became an unstoppable flame. Passion & purpose merged and continue to fuel it. 

The visual representation in this mural of people willing to extend a hand to the next person who needs it is so powerful. I look back now at my own handprint - the blue & red one I have the coin in front of - & see hope in that handprint. Not only for my fellow addicts, but society at large. There is usually a double or triple meaning behind my work, just like my logo & some of my tattoos. I chose red & blue for a few reasons, & honestly would choose the same color combo today if we were painting it for the first time.💜

I've learned a number of lessons since getting sober. One of the biggest is that life is nothing but choices. I have made a lot of good & bad choices throughout mine, both before & after finding recovery & literally meeting God that morning 12 years ago. 
He gave me a choice that day: change or die. Live or die. I should have been dead after my last drunk, & I knew the only reason I wasn't was because God was willing to give me one last chance in this lifetime. I'd run out of chances & was on the threshold of death.

But I chose life, & have ultimately chosen it each day since. I chose a life without alcohol & disordered eating. I chose to release my addictions & re-became my true self. I chose (/continue to choose) to put in the work, to do the uncomfortable stuff, & to become the messiest & most genuinely human version of me possible. 
I'm still becoming her. Still choosing her. 

And you know something? I absolutely love her. 
4,383 days & counting. Let's keep it going.🩷🧡💛💚🩵