Writings of Recovery

They All Go Down

Without Program, When One Domino Drops, They All Go Down

The world record for the most dominoes toppled was by a group of 89 people in the Netherlands in 2009. A total of 4,491,863 dominoes were toppled. It took them 180 work hours to complete and was arranged in a way that it took about ten minutes to fall. If one person had set it up, it would have taken 16,020 work hours or about 7 years to complete. If set up in a single line, it would take about 24 hours to drop. 7 years to set up…24 hours to drop.

Twelve simple steps. Simple, but not easy. One step leading to the next, building one onto the other. The creation of a spiritual and emotional scaffold, leading me out of chaos and addiction, into serenity and freedom. This structure provides the foundation for navigating life on life’s terms. Here, I learn how to incorporate the spiritual dominoes: honesty, hope, faith, courage, integrity, willingness, humility, love, discipline, patience/perseverance, awareness, and service into my conscious and unconscious thoughts and actions. One, then another, placed mindfully and intentionally.  This is the fragile interconnection of a life in recovery, all weaving together to strengthen the fabric of my life. How long this takes to set up. How fast it can fall.

Skip a meeting. Then three. Let outreach calls go to voicemail. What’s the 10th step, again? Resentments pile. Old patterns re-emerge. The dominoes, the ones set up with such determination and optimism, and yes, fear, start getting shuffled about a bit. Something starts working up each tile, making the base porous and mushy. And, then, one domino falls. Then another and another. Get into a meeting! Get into prayer! Make a call!! Together we get better. A fellow props up a domino. A meeting sets up a few more. Whatever it takes. WHATEVER IT TAKES.

This isn’t just about avoiding relapse, although that is a part. It is about transformation. The daily consistent mini actions that build resilience, wisdom, and clarity. Every. Single. Day. The disease does not take a break. Why should recovery? Re-set. Re-focus. Those domino tiles will always be there. I must decide whether I want to set them up or let them lie.