One of the joys of my daughter’s recovery is that she can be with us at home. This is a big deal because when she was active in her addiction not only could she not stay at our house overnight but she was not welcome to come over at all. It was part of the vigilance that we needed to keep in order to hold her accountable and set boundaries of what was acceptable life style in our home. Now that she is in recovery we can have holidays and time together as a family, a whole family. This was something that I took for granted before we entered into this challenging situation.

At a recent gathering, we were in the kitchen where families always seem to congregate. We were celebrating some birthdays and having a large gathering. It is always fun with the kids running around and dogs barking and general ruckus going on. These are the moments that I’ve learned to just sit with and know that life is moving forward. I’ve learned that while I know things can always change, for this moment they are good and I can enjoy it. It was a sweet moment when during the midst of the family congregating some comment was made about how great it was to have my daughter home and she said, ‘I sure am glad all that is behind me…’ with a smile and a dip of her chip in the salsa. My husband gave her a hug and said with a big smile, ‘So are we…!’ I’m not sure she knows the magnitude of how sweet that moment was, but for me, it was a feeling that just for today, I will let the joy of this feeling wash over me.