I Started Recovery to Add Days to My Life. That’s Not Why I Stay In Recovery, Though.

I saw an interesting cycling quote a while back that had to do with quality of life on two wheels. I loved the quote and started tinkering with it to relate it to recovery but it didn’t work in its original form. It was a little off. A little short of the mark. Here’s the quote:

I don’t ride a bicycle to add days to my life. I ride to add life to my days.

Now, if we apply that same quote to recovery; I didn’t find recovery to add days to my life, I found recovery to add life to my days, it doesn’t quite work. Adding days to my life was exactly what I was aiming for when I quit drinking and doing drugs and started working a program of recovery. I also wanted to add days to my life outside of a jail cell, but let’s not get too lost in the weeds, here! Moving on…

There’s more to recovery than just adding days, though. Adding days to life changed over time. As I got more out of my life in recovery, my gratitude increased exponentially and I found a peace and contentment, happiness really, I didn’t know was achievable. As I grew in the program from noob to yearling, yearling to long-timer, and long-timer to old-timer, I’ve come to the understanding that I keep coming back because I want to see just how good life can be – to see just how “happy” happy really is. Applied correctly to recovery, this is how the quote has to read:

I got into recovery to add days to my life. I stay in recovery to add life to my days.

Anybody can quit drinking without working at it if they’re desperate enough. I work at recovery so I can have the best, most enjoyable life possible. You can call me a fool for working a program if you wish. I’ll live. What you can’t do is argue results. Mine are fabulous, and that’s why I keep coming back.

Recover hard, my friends. That light at the end of the tunnel is sweet, glorious sunshine when we do.