Loren R

What is, who are, the Serenity Sisters? I wasn’t “one of them”… until I was.

I was a contented middle age wife and Mom… sturdy and fairly confident in my recovery, solid in my foundation. I had sponsees, and a sponsor. My life was full, and busy and then it all crashed when my fairly tale life, and my fairy tale husband ended his life with a heroin overdose.

Nine months later, I was encouraged to come to the Serenity Sisters Retreat. I was so lost and so utterly broken, I thought, “why not”. That weekend transformed my life. I listened to a courageous woman share about her journey of loss. She had lost her son, Ian, also to an overdose. I could not fathom how she could stand in front of a room of women and share her story. The most poignant piece of her story was that she’d been at the retreat the year before and simply kept putting her son’s name on a piece of paper and dropping it in all of the God boxes placed around the retreat center. Her ephiphany was to know that by giving him to God, he was released from the pain of his addiction.

I cannot tell you how that resonated in my soul. I connected with her, shared my grief journey with her and so many other women that weekend. I found that the tribe I had was so tiny when compared to the love, empathy and compassion the women at the retreat showed me that first retreat. I even smiled, wrote a poem, line-danced and laughed till the wee hours of the morning.

I came home and joined the FB group. I connected with women- every day. They lifted me up and gave me hope that joy and compassion were within my reach.

The next year, I was asked to speak at the retreat… and I was able to give back and be stronger, braver, and kinder because Serenity Sisters showed me what unconditional love, support and kindness looked like.

I continue to support the endeavors of Serenity Sisters because regardless of 12 step affiliation, we are a group of women that HOLD.EACHOTHER.UP. This is who we are, this is what we do. I am a Serenity Sister and I could not imagine the impoverished life I would be living without them, without me. Serenity Sisters has taught me the most valuable lesson in this life; it is in giving that we receive.