Bill W. Plant Blooms and Thrives – Just Like Recovery

Focus On Today

Hi A Home Away, I have a Bill W plant I got from the Seattle Intergroup. It is four years old now and I was tending to it the other day and noticed that it had Bloomed flowers! almost like an orchid. beautifull but was wondering if you have any suggestions for me on being able to make sprouts and pass it on. It is getting so big it’s trying to grow up my wall!

Thanks for any assistance,

Katrina

Thanks for your question Katrina, and congratulations on keeping your Bill W. plant, and your recovery, alive!  The Bill W. Plant is spreading across the recovery world just like sobriety. And like sobriety, the best way to keep your plant healthy and fresh is to share it.  It is super easy to propagate,  just take some clippings and put them in a glass of water. They will almost immediately begin sprouting roots. After a few weeks, put the cuttings in some soil and pass them on.

This summer I was surprised and excited to see blooms on our Bill W. Plant too. I’d never seen it bloom, and like Katrina says, they are beautiful, delicate, and orchid-like. I took a few pictures to share. I hope you enjoy them.

See my full article on the Bill W. Plant.  http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jane_Derry

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Bill W. Plant - Pass It On

The Bill W. Plant

If you are in recovery, you may have heard of, or seen a certain little green plant making its way around the rooms of your twelve step program. Maybe you have seen a little plant being given as a gift at a sobriety anniversary. Maybe your sponsor has one, or your sponsor’s sponsor. Maybe you even have one, and have shared it with your sponsors.

When I arrived in the community fourteen years ago, I didn’t notice or see any of these plants. Six years ago I first saw one given away at a 12 Step social function. This little plant then began to show up, in my awareness, here and there, being passed from member to member, or given as a gift to celebrate an anniversary cake. When I met my husband, he had a small struggling plant that his sponsor had given him.

I assumed the care of this little plant with delight, and began propagating it. Over the next couple of years, I had nurtured 10 healthy plants. These plants love and thrive on attention, just like most people in recovery! My intention was to have this little green plant in each of the 8 private bedrooms of A Home Away Retreat. Below is a copy of the card placed beside each flourishing symbol of recovery.

The Bill W. Plant

Also known as Swedish Ivy, the plant in your bedroom comes with a great story to share. That is what recovery is all about, one alcoholic sharing with another.

Bill W. passed away on January 24, 1971 in Miami, Florida. When his wife, Lois, returned to their home in New York, now known as Stepping Stones, she brought home the plant that had been in Bill’s Florida hospital room. Lois cared for the plant until the mid 1980′s, when she passed it on to Harriet Sevarino, beloved cook and companion of Bill and Lois for 35 years. Harriet passed the plant on to Michael M., a member of AA from Atlanta, Georgia. Lois asked Michael to pass it on to members of AA in Bill’s memory. Michael did just that, sharing cuttings and offshoots of this plant with AA members all around the world.

The plant in your room comes from a slender shoot that John D. brought from Ontario, a descendent of the original. The plant was passed on to John by Dave P. in 2005. Through tender care and propagation of cuttings, this plant is here today for you to care for and enjoy. It loves sun, and likes to dry out completely between waterings.

If you like, please take a small cutting home with you, share it with your new friends in recovery, and pass it on too. Cuttings root easily in water. Like the fellowship, when a piece of the plant is passed on, the plant grows stronger, and with care, and sharing, it spreads to homes and communities around the world.

I hope that one day every member who wants a plant shall have one.

If you can’t find one in your community, email us, and I’ll do my best to share with you. Jane Derry, Focus on Today  Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jane_Derry

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The Cave of Truth

Once upon a time, there were a few friends that hung out together. Quite by accident, one of them found a tattered old map to a place called The Cave of Truth. A couple of them had heard a vague story about the cave before, but brushed the idea off, thinking it an Urban Legend. One of them checked the Snopes website, couldn't find it there, and the group decided to go. They felt ready for a change, and headed out. It was a pretty long journey.
They had rivers to cross, and hill country to traverse. There was a dessert, lakes, pine forests, even a glacier! They worked hard - all the while carefully following the map to get to the Cave of Truth. After a really long time they made it to base of the mountain which held the cave. They were very, very excited; they were tired of travel. This last mountain to climb was very steep, but finally, they made it to the top. The friends were so happy, high-fiving each other and dancing about. At the mouth of a large cave, a wizened old man sat on his haunches. They figured he must be a guru.
They approached the wrinkled old man and asked him, "Is this it? Is this the Cave of Truth? Did we really find it?"
The little brown man leaned back and was really, really quiet as he looked them over. Finally he spoke, "Yes, this is the Cave of Truth, but before you go in, I have just one question to ask you." He paused," Just how far into the Cave of Truth do you want to go?"
The friends looked at each other for a short minute, smiled, and answered almost in unison, "Oh, just far enough in to say we have been here".

"The truth will set you free", sure sounds good in theory doesn't it? But who really wants to face the truth in light of a broken and unacceptable life? Einstein said, If you are out to describe the truth, leave elegance to the tailor. It is usually ugly, painful and difficult to get to.

In my work with people, when I tell this Cave of Truth Story I mostly get the reaction of surprise, and nervous laughter. When I ask, "How far are you willing to go into the Cave of Truth for your healing and peace of mind?" the replies are variations on the theme of "All the way in!" I always ask them several times. "Are you sure? Even when the cave is dark and cold and wet, and you feel like you are suffocating? Even when every part of you is screaming to turn around and get out of the cave? Even when everyone that came in with you has turned around? Are you sure? Even when you hear your family and friends calling you - sending in a search party to drag you home? Are you sure? "I have never had anyone answer "no".

The people who do choose to keep moving forward through their pain are heroes. Most people attempting to really heal and recover their lives are like the group of friends - lots of enthusiasm and effort to get to the mouth of the cave. No desire to experience the cave crawl. Working and living in a drug rehab, I have been right beside these friends while they are being brought face to face with the reality of who and what they have become, the things they have done, and the things that were done to them. Facing the truth is terrifying and the map is often undecipherable. Persevering through the dark and cold and wet and suffocation and longing and pain to continue towards the light at other side has rewards too great to describe here. I'll just use the word 'free'. Not many people are prepared to go to any length for their healing and recovery, even in rehab. They just want to say they've been there.

I suggest that anyone one the journey get a guide, someone who has traveled to the other side, and then returned. Some one who has come back to help guide the unsure, confused and lost.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2561194 by Jane Derry


www.focusontoday.com Effective and Intuitive Private Counselling,Online,Face to Face and Telephone. Learning to live in right relationship with self, spirit and others.