Red Hot Ruby's

The Art of Recovery

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Life Coach. Artist. Addiction Counselor. In long term recovery. Happy most of the time. Curious.
Schedule a coaching session or ask questions: redhotrubys@outlook.com

  • CHOICE

    From the Big Book of AA, I was inspired to paint this piece which I call “Choice”. 

    It would be lovely to read all of chapter 2 as the author is talking about that fleeting moment between thought and action. The buildup is good!  The context is helpful.  But there’s a sentence on page 24 of my version of the Big Book that stopped me in my tracks.  It says, “The almost certain consequences that follow taking even a glass of beer (insert your drug of choice here) do not crowd into the mind to deter us.” 

    But what if they did?  What if that crowd of reasons showed up when we experience that little chill of temptation?   What would that crowd look like?  What would the crowd say?

    We always reach a point, many points in our lives where there are both a crowd of reasons to relapse and a crowd of reasons not to.  The amazing thing is that these crowds have many similarities: Grief, confusion, happiness, heartbreak, growth, beauty, the unexpected.  Ah the paradox of living in recovery.  What was once a relapse trigger is now a joy.  What used to confuse us is now inspiration.  Everything is a freaking lesson!

    The Big Book also says that “the fear of people will leave us”.  I would expand that to say that the fear of triggers will leave us because we learn the power of choice.  We learn to trust, first by trusting the process, the teachers, the text . . . then we realize we can trust ourselves.  We stop pretending like the crowd isn’t there, instead, we turn around and look.  We listen. We’ve made friends with our crowd.

    When I was drinking, I used to imagine how wonderful it would be to hire someone to follow me around and make sure I would stay out of trouble.  I didn’t know then what is obvious to me now: that person is me.

    Because that “crowd of reasons” is right there.  All the time.  It’s always been there.  We just haven’t thought about them, looked at them, honored them. 

    But we can.  We can choose to. 

    The crowd doesn’t change much.

    But we can. 

    Words and art by Ruby Karen A. Wilcox, this original is for sale here: Choice. Original OOAK Watercolor Painting. Unmatted, Unframed. – Etsy

    I am accepting new zoom clients for my Life Coaching practice, beginning in January 2026. I would LOVE to support your journey! Please reach out to me via email at redhotrubys@outlook.com.

  • QUESTIONS (are tools of creation)

    Ask Good Questions of Life!

    As we travel on our road . . . we need to know where we are starting and where we wanna’ go. So, asking helpful questions is vital. VITAL! Questions are a tool of creation.

    What do I want?

    What do I NOT want?

    How do I feel?

    How do I want to feel?

    Where am I going?

    Where am I starting?

    What question will help you today?

    This original watercolor is for sale on my etsy page:

    QUESTIONS OOAK Original Watercolor Painting – Etsy

    I am accepting new clients in January 2026 for on-line life coaching sessions. Please reach out to me at redhotrubys@outlook.com I would LOVE to support you!

WHAT IS A LIFE COACH?

A life coach is a professional mentor who partners with clients to identify personal or professional goals, create actionable plans, and overcome obstacles through motivation and accountability. Unlike therapists, they focus on the present and future to help clients improve relationships, careers, and daily life.

It’s a tough time on this planet right now, isn’t it?  We are bombarded with fear-based messaging and invitations to panic.  Some of us feel it more than others, that’s for sure. 

And while it’s normal to feel scared, anxious,  angry, guilty or all of the above, it’s not necessary to live in that space, to be overwhelmed and  controlled by negativity. There is something you can do to change those experiences and feel safe.  In truth, there are a lot of somethings you can do! 

Do you need someone to listen to you and help you make some sense of your thoughts? 

Let’s turn down the fear-based noise and make some sense of it together.  You can find ways that help you calm your thoughts, relax your body, and even sleep better.  Yup!  I said it . . . Sleep better!

Let’s work together to create a unique, affordable healing plan that suits your unique personal values and history . . . a simple, realistic plan that you really feel good about!

Yes.  It will take some time, so the sooner you call, email, or text, the sooner we can begin.  Questions are always welcome!  Please reach out using the contact form below.

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