Getting sober in Arizona. What a great state, full of beauty, to travel this path together. Nature is often a powerful part of the true healing process. We implement outings into nature to gain what words, speeches and books simply cannot offer. Sanctuary Recovery Centers took clients to Sedona last week, and wow. We can’t really describe the feeling we get from seeing clients experience the beauty through fresh eyes.

In fact, one of the most stand-out stories we heard from the day is from a gentlemen we’ll call Sammy for anonymity. He was sharing with our staff that he’d only been to this place drunk. He’d only been to this place high. He’d only “sort-of” been to this place. He talked about how amazing it was to be here in this magnificent landscape without being clouded by drugs and alcohol.

Isn’t that relatable?

Those of us who are recovering go through a process of “reclaiming” locations. Sure we’ve partied there, bought drugs over there, nodded off there… etc. But were we really there? There are so many emotions that run through us when we go back to familiar places (hopefully after a long stay away if it’s triggering). We remember the drugs, the alcohol, the madness. But we start to reclaim it. We start to rebuild our memories; true and authentic memories. We plant our real flag. We push aside the old cloudiness and see through new eyes. We see a bright future.

What will you reclaim?