For Today: December 10th

There’s no limit to how complicated things can get, on account of one thing always leading to another.

E.B. White

One thing can lead to another only if I allow it.  Celebrations needn’t be the same from one year to the next.  Festivities can be simpler, there can be a switch in emphasis, a change of values.  Who says holiday meals must be heavy and elaborate?  Why not a simple, satisfying dinner with only the company of those I care about?  If I stop and think about what is important, I can put aside the useless, the heavy, the habit.  I can plan the holidays so as to be closer to my OA family as well as my own.

For Today:  The true spirit of giving to myself and to others is in keeping it simple: to let nothing complicate my abstinence and my OA way of life.

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If I allow something or someone to complicate my abstinence & OA way of life, then one thing WILL lead to another & I'll be eating compulsively for God knows HOW long.

Once I open the door to trigger foods, THEY rule me instead of my program.

As a compulsive overeater, there is no such thing as 'just this once'............if I make an elaborate meal on Christmas day (or any other day for that matter), then I will feel compelled to eat that meal.  I'll tell myself, of course, that it's a 'special occasion' and I'll overeat 'just this once.'  When I wake up the next morning, I'll feel bloated, hung over and HUNGRY...........true stomach hunger (from eating so much more than I normally do).  

The cycle will begin AGAIN........where I am obsessing about food........what to eat/when to eat/how much to eat, etc etc.  I've woken up the sleeping giant by making an exception to my plain & boring food plan and voila, I'm in deep trouble.

Again.

This year I choose to stay strictly abstinent during the holidays, No. Matter. What.  I've lived through the past 3 holiday seasons without overeating, and I shall live through THIS holiday season without overeating.

There is no food on earth I "must" eat.  There is, however, a program I "must" adhere to if I am to preserve my sanity, my health, and my new lifestyle which I've grown to cherish.