Did you ever have a day when your mind just wouldn’t stop racing? When it is racing, are these thoughts mostly sad, or uncomfortable, or remorseful, or angry, resentful thoughts? How about all of the above? If you are sick and tired of these thoughts ruining varying amounts of your day, you have come to the right place! As alone as you may feel in these depressions or as apart you may feel from others because of them, we have had them and are today truly blessed to be Happy, Joyous, and Free. I now feel too blessed to be stressed! YOU CAN TOO! The answer is pretty simple. Not always easy but simple. I was not raised with religion and, when I was introduced to Spirituality, I liked what I was learning. The more that I learned, the more that I wanted to dig deeper and get more. One of the first things that I saw was the teachings of Emmet Fox, one of the founders of the New Thought movement, where we learned that there was hope for people like me. His book, The Sermon on the Mount, was actually used by the earliest members of Alcoholics Anonymous, AA, as their first Big Book. I read it and wanted what it had to offer and thought so much of it that I gave it as a gift to many people, both in and out of the program of AA. It started me on the Spiritual route to Peace and Serenity and Recovery. Of the 12 Steps of the AA Program, only the 1st Step mentions Alcohol. The 1st Step says “We admitted we were powerless over alcohol and that our lives had become unmanageable.” I easily admitted that my life had become unmanageable and this is what led to my racing mind in the first place. “Help me, I’m stuck in this hole and can’t get out.” The other 11 Steps are all about our thinking. Our perception, our thinking, is our reality. If I perceive something I believe it. If I believe it, I have conceived it so then I achieve it, either good or bad. So, if I think someone “done me wrong” I put up my defenses and dig in even deeper, without ever trying to make it right so that I could feel good. I was so far into the hole of unmanageability that I wasn’t able to believe that there was a way out. Steps 2-12 can become a wonderful way of living that everyone could benefit from, whether or not in a recovery program. Step 2 doesn’t even say that I have to have the same God as anyone else, because there is only one Higher Power and It is called by many names – God, Allah, Buddha, Lord, Father. Even non-believers must believe that there is a Higher Power because how else could planets orbiting, seasons changing, birth, distant stars with their own orbiting planets be explained without a Power of some kind creating it all and then keeping it in order? Step 2 states “God, as we understood Him”. So, when I started to learn about Septs 2-12, I wanted more, much more. I soon discovered that, when I worked my life the way that these Steps suggested, my life immediately slowed down and was more manageable. This means it is more enjoyable. I worked my way through the Steps one by one, asking questions all the way, and today, 45 years later, am truly Happy, Joyous, and Free. When I work this program 24/7/365, I am Happy, Joyous, and Free 24/7/365. This does not mean that I like everything that is going on around me but the only thing that I can change is me. ALL THE REST is out of my control so that is where I leave everything else. I say a prayer for the situation or person involved for peace, comfort, healing, recovery, whatever needs assistance, and move on. Is it simple – Yes. Is it easy – No, but very doable IF I LET IT BE!