I’m Beverly and I got a fresh start on my life.
Weeds to Wildflowers was born out of a life-changing shift I experienced when I quit drinking on June 5, 2017. I had been a “grey-area drinker” for several years, but as I got older, my hangovers got easier to come by and harder to get past. I would occasionally drink more than I wanted to and be very sick. I wanted a different life for myself. I wanted to wake up each morning without a hangover. I wanted to enjoy cozy evenings with books and a cup of tea. I wanted to remember all my conversations with my friends and be available to respond to an emergency at any hour of the day. Mostly, I didn’t want to be hungover anymore. I don’t remember my last drinking experience, but I do remember my last hangover. I called in late to work because I felt so bad. I remember thinking, “this is stupid and I’m not going to do it anymore!”
That day, I researched quitting drinking. I decided on a 100 day trial period. I also immediately sought out a tribe. I didn’t have a single sober friend. I began listening to the Since Right Now podcast and I binged it until I was caught up. I feel like Jeff, Matt and Chris are personal friends of mine. Through SRN, I found The Unruffled Podcast, a podcast for creative sober women. I binged my way through that as well and joined the secret Facebook group associated with it. I was well on my way to finding my tribe. After a while, I decided to check out AA. I go to about one meeting a week and I find it helpful. What helps my journey I take with me. What doesn’t seem true to me, I leave behind. I do not identify as an alcoholic, though I am committed to sobriety.
I have completely immersed myself into the sobriety movement. There are so many great resources through social media, including Facebook and Instagram. Certainly Twitter too, but I don’t really understand how Twitter works. My sober journey has become a journey towards finding/remembering my true self. I test out lots of different ideas for physical, emotional and spiritual health and keep what feels right to me and release the rest without judgement.
About the website name, there are two reasons I chose it. First, there is an expression that states that the difference between a weed and a wildflower is where you find it. If you see it in your grass, it’s a weed, but on the side of a mountain, it’s a beautiful field of wildflowers. For a long time, I was trying to bloom in the wrong place. By transforming how I live my life, I have emerged as a wildflower. In addition, that saying implies that the real difference between the two is perspective. Being able to see a challenge as a blessing or a delay as a chance to rest helps me to experience all the joy that is available to me all the time.
Second, when I was in my twenties, I worked in many restaurants. In that industry, when you are swamped, in the kitchen or as a server, you say you are “in the weeds.” Before I quit drinking, I always felt behind. Small tasks seemed difficult (despite the fact that I actually could do so much – including train for and run TWO marathons. I have shifted my thinking away from putting out fires and into joy of the present moment.
I am just now ready to share some of my experiences with others. I hope that at least someone finds this blog helpful. Feel free to email me with any questions about my experience or any other topic on the blog. Thanks for taking your time to visit my little corner of the internet.
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