Last weekend, many celebrated the sacred Easter and Passover holidays. These holidays are representative of rebirth and new life - just a quick glance out any window shows that even the world is beginning to wake up from winter and burst into bloom. And yet, it all feels a little surreal, because we’re simultaneously experiencing a collective sense of confinement from the isolation we’re enduring during the COVID-19 pandemic. We know our efforts are necessary to slow the spread of the virus, but it chafes our spirits, nonetheless.
In his homily in Chit Chat this past Sunday, Reverend Jack touched on the idea of contagion (you can watch his short video below). It’s an unpleasant word to our ears right now – it evokes thoughts of illness and disease. Like any disease, addiction is contagious, and the ill-effects of addiction seep through individuals and families in sneaky and unsuspected ways that can be hard to contain and eliminate.
But today, I am asking you to consider this word from another perspective: Recovery can be contagious too.
Our actions, our behaviors, and our moods can spread to others. As I’ve been reminding you, people in recovery are uniquely equipped to deal with crisis situations. We have a toolbox full of tools to help us stay present, grounded, and connected to ourselves and others and to safeguard our sobriety. We can use these tools to keep ourselves healthy, and ultimately, help those around us stay healthy as well.
You have been so brave. I am continually amazed at the ways you have risen above the chaos to offer support and encouragement to each other, to those newly in recovery, and to Caron’s staff members who continue to battle addiction, working both behind the scenes and on the front lines to make treatment accessible to those who desperately need it right now.
I encourage you to keep hanging in there, keep working your program, and keep spreading your light and positivity to the world. Rev. Jack echoes this sentiment in his message – he challenges us to allow the contagion of recovery to flow through us; to dive deep daily and resist the urge to merely put a cautious toe in the water.
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