December 31

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
"No matter what you do, I will still accept you," is a powerful message and a wonderful gift to hear from another. One might think this kind of acceptance would cause a person to act irresponsibly. Instead, this acceptance frees a person to experience what needs to be learned. Knowing someone is there who understands and cares ultimately helps one to become more honest and responsible.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
May I be reminded that being loved and valued, no matter what one does, is necessary for a person's maturing process.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
I will be accepting of those I love. I will benefit, too, for I will become more lovable.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 30

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
Often we rebel against our pain. In our painful moments we may feel much alone, and it is true that to some degree we are. Yet, isn't it the pain which we have faced which has ultimately given us compassion for ourselves and then for others? Sometimes when we are open and share our pain, someone responds, "Thanks, you have really helped me." These moments create a deeper awareness of our value and the meaning to our pain.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
May I have the courage to be open to what my pain is trying to teach me.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
Pain faced brings freedom.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 29

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
There are times in our life when we want to give up. Our pain seems to have no end. In a sense we are like the runner of a twenty-six mile marathon on the twenty-fourth mile. The runner may think it is impossible to finish the race, or maybe lose perspective. Yet, if there is a reflection on previous efforts, the decision will be made, no doubt, to continue the race or at least give it one last try. It does not matter how many people come in before or after, It matters only that there was no giving up. When the runner crosses the finish line, the pain turns quickly into jubilation.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
May I have the perseverance to continue my race.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
I will rejoice in my accomplishments. I will reward myself with something I enjoy, for I have done my best.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 28

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
To love someone is to give them something of ourselves. We risk being vulnerable; we want to share so much of ourselves. That person learns a great deal about how we feel and what we think. Our openness has given this person the power to hurt us. In sharing to this degree, we give up some of our personal power. Yet if we do not risk giving up some of our power, we will never experience what it feels like to be truly loved and cared about.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
May I be willing to take the risk to love and to be loved.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
I would rather feel someone's love than have only my power.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 27

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
Many of us continue seeking relationships where we end up feeling rejected and abandoned. Yet we resist believing we could gravitate to relationships which could cause us once again to question our worth. It is a known fact, though, that we tend to repeat what we have experienced, whatever feels familiar. The familiar may be miserable, but secure; we know what to expect. As we look honestly at our past relationships, how many times have we unconsciously been drawn toward someone who has not been able to be there emotionally over the long haul?

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
May my new awareness, plus Your guidance, help me seek relationships where I feel valued instead of rejected.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
I deserve to be valued.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 26

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
Our length of time in the program can mean a lot or very little, depending on what we do with that time. The more we open ourselves to the healing of acceptance and surrender, the more growth we will achieve. On the other hand, we can sit in meetings for years and remain as closed and fearful as the day we came to our first meeting. At each meeting we have a choice. We can be open to the warmth and acceptance which awaits us, or we can remain closed. Our Higher Power uses this time to touch us through each other.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
May I be willing to do my part and not rest on my laurels.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
The gifts of growth and healing are available for me. I only need to accept them.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 25

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
For many people throughout the world, today is a day of celebration, giving and receiving, family gatherings, sharing and love, warmth and joy. For many people, however, these occasions may bring out feelings of sadness, loneliness, depression, grief, and perhaps even a sense of hopelessness. For any and all of us, perhaps it is most important in this holiday season that we accept ourselves and our feelings, whatever they are, and that we continue to believe and trust that we are not alone today.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
Help me to try to retain and maintain love and hope today.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
Love is the most precious gift I can give and receive.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 24

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
Do I remember how it used to be a struggle to get out of bed in the morning because I just plain did not care? Do I remember how it was almost impossible to leave my home because of fear? How about pouting? It is not wise to dwell on the past, but is important to check my progress. I need to realize how much I have grown and how far I have traveled from my bottom level. Seeing the improvements gives me the necessary encouragement to carry on and certainly adds to my confidence and self-worth.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
Help me to see how much better I am than I was.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
I will occasionally reflect on the "way it was."

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 23

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
So often I have held back from risking, yet not understood why. I let fear control my life. Unless I challenge in the present my fear of losing love, control, or esteem, I will lose even more. Today is the only day I have. I will risk telling a significant person how I feel. I will also risk asking for something I have secretly been needing. And instead of losing, each time I risk I will ultimately gain.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
May I remember that to risk nothing is to gain nothing.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
If I am open, I will gain more than I will ever lose.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 22

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
I am not always kind to people I meet. Some days I have to consciously work at being agreeable. I am not necessarily unkind, I just do not make that special effort to react positively. Those are the days when I am not particularly satisfied with myself. I am ordinarily a friendly, outgoing person. When I back away from someone I meet, it is me backing away from me. Then I realize it is time to act "as if" everything is okay - with me and with other people.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
Remind me when I am being unfriendly I may be missing an opportunity to meet to best friend I could every have.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
Life is a series of meetings; give them a chance to be meaningful.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 21

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
Confusion seems to complicate my mind when I want to make decisions. My Higher Power is there to help me sort out what is most important right now, and I also have a program to help me. Am I using it? My life has been lived through other people for so long my own worth and identify are lost at times. I can take time to relax and find out who I am and accept myself today. I am a valuable person, and at times I do not recognize it.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
When I lose touch with my priorities, I know You will help me to see I must take care of myself first.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
I will choose to do the things which make me happy.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 20

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
We are used to the idea that death follows life. A less obvious progression, which is very obvious in nature, is that life follows death. Seeds must die in order to become plants. Caterpillars must die before butterflies exist. Old habits must die before new ones can be formed. In all of these cases the timing must be right. Then the old gives way to the new. As the old submits to this "death," our Higher Power supplies new life. As we work the program, we prepare the soil for the new life, and we learn to know when the time is right.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
As I submit to the death of the known patterns, I pray You will lead me to a new way of life with new patterns.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
Surrender and let God do it.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 19

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
I thought it was my responsibility in life to look for the bad. I thought I was supposed to look for everything wrong in every situation or person with whom I came in contact so I could tell them how to fix their problems. I put myself in charge. That is a tall order and a heavy burden. If I found everyone's imperfections, then they could change and would become perfect as I thought they should, I would not have any problems. This, of course, kept me from looking at me.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
Help me to allow others to take their own inventories and to ask myself, "Whose problem is it?"

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
I can find more joy in looking for the good.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 18

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
I have heard that the eagle is the only bird who will fly into a storm. I like relating to the eagle because I know the quicker I face my pain, the faster I pass through the stormy time. On the other side of the storm I always find a beautiful rainbow. In this rainbow the colors show me the strength and courage which I had not known I possessed. This strength and courage gives me hope to face whatever lies ahead.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
Grant me the spirit of the eagle so I can continue to soar and become the person You created me to be.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
Each time I face my pain I receive the gift of strength and courage.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today

December 17

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
How I expend my time and energy during the day determines how I am going to feel about myself at bedtime. If I have used my time and energy in constructive and creative ways, I feel good about myself. If I have wasted the day in procrastination and negativism, I do not care very much for myself. When I am indecisive, I tend to procrastinate. If I have spent the day worrying about the past or the future, I have wasted energy, which leaves me physically but not mentally tired. I can choose early in the morning how I am going to feel late in the evening.

MEDITATION FOR TODAY
God, help me to do first things first.

TODAY I WILL REMEMBER
When one thing gets done, it is easier to do the second and the third and more.

Emotions Anonymous (Find a meeting near you!), Order Today