alt="2010-09-25T18-41-25-658_9781936290444_0009_001"/>
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
CHAPTER FOUR THE JOURNEY BEGINS
CHAPTER FIVE SOUL MATES
CHAPTER SIX SPIRITUAL GYPSY
CHAPTER SEVEN ON WE GO WITH THE COSMIC SHOW
CHAPTER EIGHT SHOWING UP
CHAPTER NINE GUIDANCE: FOLLOW YOUR HEART
CHAPTER TEN CHALLENGES/GIFTS
CHAPTER ELEVEN HOLY PEOPLE AND SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES
CHAPTER TWELVE THE PRACTICE, THE DHARMA
CHAPTER THIRTEEN THE STEPS
The Mindful Addict isn’t the typical recovery memoir. Where most such stories start to fizzle out after the hero emerges from the drama and horror of addiction, Tom’s just gets going. Sure, his years of drug addiction are compelling to read about, but it’s in his recovery that the story takes off. When he got clean as the sixties turned to the seventies, drugs and charismatic hucksters pervaded the spiritual scene, and his guide into recovery, Flobird, reads more like one of those trippy cult leaders than any twelve-step sponsor I’ve ever heard of—but she is in recovery, and that makes all the difference.
Tom is a kind of spiritual everyman, seeking out Mother Teresa and Ram Dass, taking on celibacy and poverty, hanging out at Edgar Cayce’s library and Yogananda’s ashram. Like a character in some eighteenth-century picaresque novel, Tom takes us from one illuminating moment to another, guided only by his longing to serve, to grow, and to experience spiritual bliss and connection. Along the way, his outward innocence hides an inner wisdom. Never claiming to be a guru, Tom nonetheless teaches us through his experiences and through the broad-ranging insights that develop over a lifetime of recovery and spiritual practice. And just when you think his story is ready to fizzle, aging and illness bring more lessons.
His determination is remarkable, a testament to the twelve-step principle of “showing up” that he embodies. When I first met Tom, he told me he wanted to write the story of his life. When he sent me his early attempts, I was skeptical. Here was a guy with a high school education who was recovering from brain surgery—how much could you expect from him? But with true humility, he set out to learn what it would take to create a great book. He showed tenacity and a willingness to be a beginner that most people—especially those with decades of clean time—could never muster. And even though I followed the process and knew how committed he was, I was still amazed by the quality of the end result. The Mindful Addict is a book that is going to touch a lot of people, ultimately not because of the glamour of Tom’s life, but because of the authenticity of his love and the power of his message. As Tom says, he’s “out living and loving life to the fullest in the present moment,” and after reading this book, that’s what you’re going to want to do too.
–Kevin Griffin
Author of One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps and A Burning Desire: Dharma God & the Path of Recovery
My name is Tom, and I’m an addict of the hopeless variety. This is my story and my adventure. I was catapulted into another dimension, transported from a life full of fear and separateness to a life full of miracles and synchronicity, a life that is now overflowing with love and intimacy.
Since October 20, 1971, I have followed the spiritual path of twelve-step programs. The teachings I have learned throughout my life’s journey of personal challenges began in a state of hopeless addiction. But my teachers, studies, and experiences on a variety of spiritual paths have led me to believe in the possibility—and simplicity—of finding true happiness. Living life to the fullest, with an attitude of gratitude, has become my mantra over the years. It has led me to experience life with a true joy for living, despite external circumstances.
This book shows how, through meditation, a person who had no prior training came to have his life profoundly changed by the practice. Meditation teaches us to always follow our inner guidance and stay present in the moment. Along with offering love and service to others, meditation leads to a fulfilling life. We can be happy right here, right now—not if and when our specific desires materialize.
What I share here is my experience. I do not claim to be any kind of expert or teacher within the twelve-step arena, and although I find myself attracted to Buddhism, there will be no formal teachings in this book. There are numerous books on Buddhism and twelve-step programs. My simple goal is to share what has worked and is currently working in my life. I’m drawn to the school of Theravada Buddhism, from where the now-popular Vipassana practice of meditation stems.
The word “mindfulness” will be mentioned throughout the book. Mindfulness comes from the Sanskrit word sati, which means basic awareness, and the word smirti, meaning “to come back” to awareness when the mind starts to stray. Simply, it all means “Pay attention to what is.” We need not acquire a black belt in meditation, visit seven higher realms, or have direct contact with the angels around us. We just have to be present and constantly give of ourselves as we walk through our lives. That’s how we truly discover that our serenity is only and always a breath away.
I invite you to join me on this journey. The spiritual path is open to each of us. Although it contains many bumps and some darkness, we will walk it together, and we will always find our way to the light.
There have been countless people and experiences that ultimately led to the writing of this book. They are too numerous to mention by name, but I am thankful for them all.
