Tom Adams
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Readers often ask why I don’t say more about my own recovery journey in my posts. In exploring the Recovery Month theme of “recovery for all”, today’s post tells some of my recovery story and why I think it is important to share. While Recovery Month is ending, I will continue to write regularly on recovery for individuals and families.
It is Recovery Month, 2025. This is my 38th September in Recovery. 39 years ago was an ugly September in my life. The very notion of recovery back then was foreign, threatening and beyond my comprehension, yet here I am, with much to celebrate. One of my reflections this year is on a remarkable book published earlier this year that I had the opportunity to be involved with, A Marriage That Changed the World: Lois and Bill Wilson and the Addiction Recovery Movement. It focuses on how the union of Lois and Bill Wilson evolved into a partnership that has changed everything. This couple modeled recovery and resilience in ways that have rippled across time and transformed the way we heal from addiction on every continent and in every culture. While we live in a world of many pathways of recovery, they have common roots that were nurtured in no small way by their hands ninety years ago.
I spent four days last week at a Twelve-Step Recovery Convention in Ocean City, MD. Being back at the beach reminded me of my end-of-summer reflections and shoutout to Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s book Gift from the Sea. Today’s post reflects on my gratitude for both the gifts from the seashore and from recovery.
September is National Recovery Month. This week’s post focuses on substance use disorders and other addictions and how they impact millions of people. Learning that recovery is possible is everyone’s responsibility.
This week’s post is a potpourri of reflections as summer and Labor Day weekend pass. I’m grateful for the month off from writing this post, and for a couple of weeks at the beach with family and friends.
I’ve reached an age where friends die regularly. Last week, a seminary classmate from New Jersey died. We spent four years of college together at a Baltimore seminary during the turbulent sixties. He was a larger-than-life guy whose wit was deserving of a late-night comedy show.
Donald Trump’s second term is about “moving fast and breaking things,” apparently modeled after the old Mark Zuckerberg motto and tribute to arrogance. Under its aegis, Tech Bros were encouraged to disparage all that preceded them, denigrating whatever created the “things” they were hell-bent on discarding. No wonder Trump chose Elon Musk, his bosom buddy/sworn enemy, to disrupt and dismantle federal services.
Editor’s Note: Summer is traditionally a time for vacation, fun and rest. I’m going to honor that tradition by posting for Critical Conversations every other week in July and taking August off. My July posts will be Tuesday July 15 and 29.
This week’s post celebrates the birth of freedom in the United States by offering possible actions to preserve freedom and justice for all. My June 10th post focused on the many injustices that will occur if the “One Big Beautiful” budget bill (2025 budget bill) is passed by Congress. I also wrote about the possible expansion of the conflict in Iran and the Middle East. This week’s post offers readers some practical simple actions to take. During your quiet time or mediation, you can ask: What’s mine to do to preserve freedom and advance equity and justice for all?
Most weeks I try to focus my post on one idea. Readers tell me that is more interesting and easier to digest. This week I am going to diverge from that path and comment on the ups and downs of my life recently. I suspect even those who enjoy chaos and are advocates of chaos theory have had enough? I sure have.
Tom Adams writes and speaks on topics vital to the intersection of our personal lives with our community and global lives. He has for decades been engaged in and written about nonprofit leadership and transitions, spirituality and spiritual growth, how we each contribute to a more just and equitable world and recovery from addictions and the Twelve Step recovery movement.