Daily Resolutions
The idea of "twenty-four-hour" living applies primarily to the
emotional life of the individual. Emotionally speaking, we must not
live in yesterday, nor in tomorrow.
As Bill Sees It, p. 284
A New year: 12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days, 8,760 hours, 525,600
minutes--a time to consider directions, goals, and actions. I must
make some plans to live a normal life, but also I must live emotionally
within a twenty-four hour frame, for if I do, I don't have to make
New Year's resolutions! I can make every day a New Year's day! I
can decide, "Today I will do this . . . Today I will do that." Each day
I can measure my life by trying to a little better, by deciding to
follow
God's will and making an effort to put the principles of our A.A.
program into action.
***********************************************************
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
I shall be loyal in my attendance, generous in my giving, kind in my
criticism, creative
in my suggestions, loving in my attitudes. I shall give A.A. my
interest, my
enthusiasm, my devotion, and most of all, myself. The Lord's Prayer has
become part
of my A.A. thoughts for each day: "Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be Thy
name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this
day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those
who trespass
against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."
Have I given myself?
Meditation For The Day
As we look back over the year just gone, it has been a good year to the
extent that
we have put good thoughts, good words, and good deeds into it. None of
what we have
thought, said, or done need be wasted. Both the good and the bad
experiences can be
profited by. In a sense, the past is not entirely gone. The result of
it, for good or
evil, is with us at the present moment. We can only learn by experience
and none of our
experience is completely wasted. We can humbly thank God for the good
things of the
year that has gone.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may carry good things into the year ahead. I pray that I
may carry on
with faith, with prayer, and with hope.
***********************************************************
As Bill Sees It
Wider
Understanding, p.255
To reach more alcoholics, understanding of A.A. and public good will
towards A.A. must go on growing everywhere. We need to be on
still better terms with medicine, courts, prisons, mental hospitals, and
all enterprises in the alcoholism field. We need the increasing
good will of editors, writers, television and radio channels. These
publicity outlets need to be opened ever wider.
********************************
Nothing matters more to A.A.'s future welfare than the manner in
which we use the colossus of modern communication. Used unselfishly
and well, it can produce results surpassing our present
imagination. Should we handle this great instrument badly, we
shall be shattered by the ego manifestations of our own people.
Against this peril, A.A. members' anonymity before the general
public is our shield and our buckler.
1. Twelve Concepts, p.51
2. Grapevine, November 1960
***********************************************************
Walk In Dry Places
Has
it
been
a
Year
of
Growth?
Growth
As any year draws to a close, we should reflect on how we have grown in
sobriety. We should also identify changes during the year that enabled
us to overcome bad habits and to move closer to better patterns of
living.
Though we never are guaranteed favorable outcomes, we should always
remember that sobriety is its own reward. We want a full life of
course, but it must begin with a decision to seek and to maintain
sobriety at all costs.
We find that with sobriety, lots of other problems seem to solve
themselves. Even if they don't we have the tools to move forward and to
achieve goals that always eluded us while we were drinking. Every year
in sobriety is a year of growth.
I'll be conscious today of recent improvements I've made in my life and
all my affairs. With sobriety, these improvements will go on for a
lifetime.
***********************************************************
Keep It Simple
May
you
live
all
the
days
of
your life'--Jonathan Swift.
Tonight, at midnight, a New Year will begin. None of us know what the
New
Year will hold. But we can trust ourselves to hold on to the spirit of
recovery as we go through the year. As a New Year is about to begin, we
can rejoice in our new way of life. We can give our will and our life
to
our HP. By doing these things, we'll be ready for the New Year.
PRAYER: Higher Power, I pray that I'll
start
the New Year safe in Your
loving arms. I pray that I'll keep working my program.
ACTION: Tonight, at midnight, I'll say the Serenity Prayer. I
will
think of all
the others who have read this meditation book and who will join me in
this prayer. We are a recovering community.
***********************************************************
Each Day a New Beginning
In the process of growing to spiritual maturity, we all go through many
adolescent stages. --Miki L. Bowen
Progress, not perfection, is our goal in this recovery program. And
many days we'll be haunted by the feeling that we've regressed. We will
display old behavior. We will feel unable to change, to go on, to make
gains once again. But these periods will pass, and soon progress will
be evident again.
We must be wary of our need for perfection. It's this need that makes
normal progress seem not good enough. And yet, that's all we're capable
of--and all we'll ever need to be capable of. The program, its Steps
and the promises offered, provide the tools we have lacked, yet need to
use in order to accept ourselves wholly and imperfectly.
Daily attention to our spiritual side will foster the spiritual and
emotional health we long for. Prayer and meditation, combined with
honest inventory-taking, can show us the personal progress needed, the
personal progress made. However, we will falter on occasion. We will
neglect our program some days. But it won't ever be beyond our reach.
And each day is a new beginning.
Today is before me, and I can make progress. I will begin with a quiet
prayer and a moment of meditation.
***********************************************************
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth
Edition
Chapter 6 - INTO ACTION
We
pocket our pride and go to it, illuminating every twist of character,
every dark cranny of the past. Once we have taken this step,
withholding nothing, we are delighted. We can look the world in the
eye. We can be alone at perfect peace and ease. Our fears fall from us.
We begin to feel the nearness of our Creator. We may have had certain
spiritual beliefs, but now we begin to have a spiritual experience. The
feeling that the drink problem has disappeared will often come
strongly. We feel we are on the Broad Highway, walking hand in hand
with the Spirit of the Universe.
p. 75
***********************************************************
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth
Edition Stories
Women Suffer Too
Despite great opportunities, alcohol
nearly ended her life. Early member, she spread the word among women in
our pioneering period.
I went to a meeting to see for myself
this group of freaks or bums who had done this thing. To go into a
gathering of people was the sort of thing that all my life, from the
time I left my private world of books and dreams to meet the real world
of people and parties and jobs, had left me feeling an uncomfortable
outsider, needing the warming stimulus of drinks to join in. I went
trembling into a house in Brooklyn filled with strangers . . . and I
found I had come home at last, to my own kind. There is another meaning
for the Hebrew word that in the King James version of the Bible is
translated "salvation." It is: "to come home." I had found my
salvation. I wasn't alone any more.
p. 206
***********************************************************
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
Step Five - "Admitted to God,
to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our
wrongs."
Yet many of us still hung back. We said, "Why can't 'God as we
understand Him' tell us where we are astray? If the Creator gave us our
lives in the first place, then He must know in every detail where we
have since gone wrong. Why don't we make our admissions to Him
directly? Why do we need to bring anyone else into this?"
p. 59
***********************************************************
"Wherever
you
go,
whomever
you
meet,
look
for
an opportunity to help,
to inspire, to
lend support."
--Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson
Most people search high and wide for the keys to success. If they only
knew, the key to
their dreams lies within.
--George Washington Carver
Look for the Good.
--unknown
The traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous help me play well with others,
when what I really want to do is take my toys and go home!
--unknown
"You can't build a reputation on what you're going to do."
--Henry Ford
***********************************************************
Father Leo's Daily Meditation
CHANGE
"It is not necessary to get away
from human nature but to alter
its inner attitude of heart and
mind."
-- J. F. Newton
An understanding of sobriety and serenity that has proved helpful to me
is that we
are not only changing but involved in change. We determine the results
of the
change.
I can change for good or bad. I can stay sober or drink. I can be
cheerful and creative
or negative and destructive. My attitude determines the results of my
changing life.
Spirituality has been given, but it also needs to be nurtured. I need
to surround myself
with loving and honest people if I am to allow my spirituality to grow
in my life. My
continued willingness is essential to my sobriety and serenity.
Thank You for making me with a mind and heart that together create the
action.
***********************************************************
I
believe that I am now a child of God .
1 John 3:1-3
I believe that I was saved by the grace of God through faith, that it
was a gift and not
the result of any works on my part.
Ephesians 2:8
I choose to be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.
Ephesians 6:10
***********************************************************
Daily Inspiration
To have courage, think courageous, act courageous,
and pray to God for courage. Lord, You are full of love for all who
come to You.
Abundance is God's to give, so shut out all limited thoughts. Lord, my
faith in You and my faith in the talents and abilities You have given
me makes me able to achieve my goals.
***********************************************************
NA Just For Today
Being Of Service
"Working with others is only the
beginning of service work."
Basic Text, pg 56
We're in recovery now. Through living
the program, we've attained some stability in our lives. Our faith in a
Higher Power has grown. Our individual spiritual awakening is
progressing comfortably. So now what? Do we simply sit still and enjoy?
Of course not. We find a way to be of service.
We tend to think of service only in
terms of committee service or holding a position at some level, but
service goes far beyond this understanding. In fact, we can find
opportunities to be of service in nearly every area of our lives. Our
jobs are a form of service to our communities, no matter what our
occupation. The work we do in our homes serves our families. Perhaps we
do volunteer work in our communities.
What a difference our service efforts
make! If we doubt this, we can just imagine what the world would be
like if no one bothered to be of service to others. Our work serves
humanity. The message we carry goes beyond the rooms of recovery,
affecting everything we do.
Just for today: I will look for
opportunities to be of service in everything I do.
***********************************************************
You are reading from the book Today's
Gift.
Finish each day and be done with it.
Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well. --Ralph Waldo Emerson
Two of the most useless phrases in the
English language are "what if" and "if only." We waste so much time and
energy thinking about what we might have done and wishing we had acted
or reacted differently. We imagine how things might have turned out "if
only . . ."
All of us make mistakes. To go back
and wonder and wish about our yesterdays prevents us from living fully
today. Each day is a fresh chance; a new beginning. We can only squeeze
what we can out of the moment and let the drops fall where they may.
Some will evaporate and some will form rainbows.
Can I forget about yesterday and start
a fresh new day?
You are reading from the book
Touchstones.
Dawns another year,
Open it aright;
Thou shalt have no fear
In its fading light.
--Joseph Krauskopf
New Year's Eve is a good time to
reflect upon the closing year and set our direction for the year ahead.
This day reminds us that every day of the year is lived just one at a
time. Looking back, we can see a year's change in ourselves. We see the
progress we have made as men on our journey. Perhaps we see how much
stronger we are emotionally. Maybe we see relationships that have
developed because of our growing ability to love. Certainly all of us
have some things we regret and some changes we mourn. They too have
their place today.
As we begin the coming year, let us
review our relationship with each of the Steps. We may perceive aspects
of our program that call for more attention. One or two particular
Steps may speak to our needs at this time or may have been overlooked
in this past year. On this last day of the year, we can again turn our
lives and will over to the care of a loving God.
I look to the New Year with a renewed
commitment to the Steps.
You are reading from the book Each Day
a New Beginning.
In the process of growing to spiritual
maturity, we all go through many adolescent stages. --Miki L. Bowen
Progress, not perfection, is our goal
in this recovery program. And many days we'll be haunted by the feeling
that we've regressed. We will display old behavior. We will feel unable
to change, to go on, to make gains once again. But these periods will
pass, and soon progress will be evident again.
We must be wary of our need for
perfection. It's this need that makes normal progress seem not good
enough. And yet, that's all we're capable of--and all we'll ever need
to be capable of. The program, its Steps and the promises offered,
provide the tools we have lacked, yet need to use in order to accept
ourselves wholly and imperfectly.
Daily attention to our spiritual side
will foster the spiritual and emotional health we long for. Prayer and
meditation, combined with honest inventory-taking, can show us the
personal progress needed, the personal progress made. However, we will
falter on occasion. We will neglect our program some days. But it won't
ever be beyond our reach. And each day is a new beginning.
Today is before me, and I can make
progress. I will begin with a quiet prayer and a moment of meditation.
You are reading from the book The
Language Of Letting Go.
Affirming the Good
Fun becomes fun, love becomes love,
life becomes worth living. And we become grateful. --Beyond Codependency
Wait, and expect good things - for
yourself and your loved ones.
When you wonder what is coming, tell
yourself the best is coming, the very best life and love have to offer,
the best God and His universe have to send. Then open your hands to
receive it. Claim it, and it is yours.
See the best in your mind; envision
what it will look like, what it will feel like. Focus, until you can
see it clearly. Let your whole being, body and soul, enter into and
hold onto the image for a moment.
Then, let it go. Come back into today,
the present moment. Do not obsess. Do not become fearful. Become
excited. Live today fully, expressing gratitude for all you have been,
all you are, and all you will become.
Wait, and expect good things.
Today, when I think abut the year
ahead, I will focus on the good that is coming.
Today I have all the willingness...
all the energy and all the guidance to continue to choose the path of
peace and love and joy. --Ruth Fishel
***************************************
Journey To The Heart
Honor the Ending
“How was your trip?” a friend asked,
as my trip drew to a close.
I thought for a moment, then the
answer came easily. “It had its ups and downs,” I said. “There were
times I felt exhilarated and sure I was on track. Other days I felt
lost. Confused. I’d fall into bed at night certain that this whole trip
was a mistake and a waste. But I’d wake up in the morning, something
would happen, and I’d see how I’d been guided all along.”
The journey of a year is drawing to a
close. Cherish the moments, all of them, even the ups and downs.
Cherish the places you’ve visited, the people you’ve seen. Say good-bye
to those whose journey have called them someplace else. Know you can
always call them back by thinking loving thoughts. Know all those you
love will be there for you when you need them most. Honor the lessons
you’ve learned, and the people who helped you learn them. Honor the
journey your soul mapped out for you. Trust all the places you’ve been.
Make a scrapbook in your heart to help you remember.
Look back for a moment. Reflect in
peace. Then let this year draw to a close. All parts of the journey are
sacred and holy. You’ve learned that by now. Take time to honor this
ending– though it’s never really the end. Go to sleep tonight. When you
wake up tomorrow, a new adventure will begin.
Remember the words you were told when
this last adventure began, the words whispered quietly to your heart:
Let the journey unfold. Let it be magical. The way has been prepared.
People will be expecting you. Yes, you are being led.
***************************************
More Language Of Letting Go
The adventure is in the trip
We were on our way to the drop zone
when Chip turned to me.
“Let’s go to San Francisco and see a
widgeon.”
“Widgeon?” I said. “Okay. Let’s go.”
“These are the rules,” he said,
pulling off the highway and getting back on the exit ramp heading
north. “We’ll stop at the house for a minute. But we can’t pack. We can
only take with us what we have on us now. We’ll have to trust ourselves
to get whatever else we need on the way.”
“Okay,” I said. “You’re on.”
I didn’t know what a widgeon was.
Four hours later, we were walking
barefoot on Morro Beach, just south of Big Sur. A big rock, one that
looked like the fossil remains of a dinosaur hunched over in the water,
beckoned. So did the impending sunset. I still didn’t know what a
widgeon was, but I was glad we were searching for one.
“You’d better call Andy,” I said,
watching the waves crash against the dinosaur rock. “You guys were
supposed to go climbing tomorrow.”
Chip took the cell phone I was handing
him.
“I’ve got an idea,” I said. “Tell Andy
to get on a plane, fly to San Francisco, wait for us to pick him up,
then come with us to find a widgeon.”
Chip called Andy. Thirty-five mintues
later, Andy called back. “I’ll be at the United gate at the San
Francisco airport at 9:34. See you!” he said.
Chip and I looked at each other. It
was 6:34. We were two hundred miles south of San Francisco and had
already started traveling the One through Big Sur– a winding two lane
highway that climbed high banks, offered a breathtaking view, and
needed to be traveled slowly and cautiously.
Half an hour later, we looked at the
odometer. We had gone twelve miles.
Chip turned east on a road the
suddenly appeared. It was slightly bigger than a one-lane road, winding
its way through the mountains that separated us from the interstate and
a sixty-five mile per hour limit. He drove like a Daytona master.
Forty-five minutes later, we had traveled another twelve miles.
Focus, focus, focus. Focus on the
destination, not the journey. Just get there.
At 10:35, one hour past Andy’s arrival
time, we pulled up in front of the baggage claim. A six foot, two inch
Texas blond guy sat on a bench, reading a book. We honked. He looked
up, waved, then lumbered over to the car and slid into the backseat.
“What’s a widgeon?” he said.
The next morning, we set out for Ace
Aviation, the home of the widgeon. We didn’t know where it was, but we
headed in what we thought was the right direction. Suddenly, Chip
pointed to a sign. “Seaplanes!” We pulled off the road, and went in.
“Have you heard of Ace Aviation?” we
wasked.
“Yup,” she said.
“Is there a widgeon there?” we asked.
“Yup,” she said.
“Will you tell us where it is?” we
asked.
She did.
One hour later, we pulled into the
parking lot for Ace Aviation. For the next hour, we fawned over
widgeons– amphibious planes with a peculiar yet immediate and
undeniable charm. The name painted on one widgeon read, “Da Plane.” It
was the seaplane from Fantasy Island.
We found a hot springs motel on the
lasr evening of the trip. Sitting in the outdoor hot tub, I found many
things remarkable: the almost full moon in the sky, the calming effect
of the water, and the toothpaste provided by the hotel. All along the
trip, our wishes seemed to magically appear– from a restaurant on a
desolate strip of beach, to a restroom in the middle of a forest, to a
widgeon in a widgeon hospital.
I’ve said before; I’ll say it again.
It’s good to have a destination, but the adventure is in the trip.
Take a moment. Review where you’ve
been this past year. Be grateful for all you’ve experienced and the
people who have come into your life. Search your heart. Let go of any
resentments. Take a moment and reflect on your successes. Be grateful
for them; be grateful for all the ordinary moments,too. Take a look at
your goal list. Some things have taken place. Other things may not have
materialized yet. Don’t give up yet. Let go. Tomorrow, you can make a
new list.
God, thank you for this year. Clear my
heart so I can start yomorrow with a clean slate.
***************************************
New Year's Resolutions: The Two Lists
A Message from DailyOM Co-Founder
Scott Blum
I was fortunate to spend time with an
enigmatic man named Robert during a very special period of my life.
Robert taught me many things during our days together, and this time of
year reminds me of one particular interaction we had.
"Now that you are becoming more
aware," Robert said, "you need to begin to set goals for yourself so
you don't lose the momentum you have built."
"Like New Year's resolutions?" I asked.
"That's an interesting idea," he
smirked. "Let's do that."
By then I was used to his cryptic
responses, so I knew something was up because of the way his eyes
sparkled as he let out an impish laugh.
"Tonight's assignment is to make two
lists," Robert continued. "The first is a list of all the New Year's
resolutions you WANT to keep, and the second is a list of all the New
Year's resolutions you WILL keep. Write the WANT List first, and when
you have exhausted all of your ideas, then write the second list on
another sheet of paper."
That night I went home and spent
several hours working on the two lists. The WANT List felt overwhelming
at first, but after a while I got into writing all the things I had
always wanted to do if the burdens of life hadn't gotten in the way.
After nearly an hour, the list swelled to fill the entire page and
contained nearly all of my ideas of an ideal life. The second list was
much easier, and I was able to quickly commit ten practical resolutions
that I felt would be both realistic and helpful.
The next day, I met Robert in front of
the local food Co-op, where we seemed to have most of our enlightening
conversations. "Tell me about your two lists," Robert said as the
familiar smirk crept onto his face.
"The first list contains all the
things I SHOULD do if I completely changed my life to be the person I
always wanted to be. And the second list contains all the things I
COULD do by accepting my current life, and taking realistic steps
towards the life I want to lead."
"Let me see the second list," he said.
I handed him the second list, and
without even looking at it, he ripped the paper into tiny pieces and
threw it in the nearby garbage can. His disregard for the effort I had
put into the list annoyed me at first, but after I calmed down I began
to think about the first list in a different light. In my heart, I knew
the second list was a cop out, and the first list was the only one that
really mattered.
"And now, the first list." Robert
bowed his head and held out both of his hands.
I purposefully handed him the first
list and held his gaze for several seconds, waiting for him to begin
reading the page. After an unusually long silence, he began to crumple
the paper into a ball and once again tossed it into the can without
looking at it.
"What did you do that for?!" I
couldn't hide my anger any longer.
Robert began to speak in a quiet and
assured voice. "What you SHOULD or COULD do with your life no longer
matters. The only thing that matters, from this day forward, is what
you MUST do."
He then drew a folded piece of paper
from his back pocket and handed it to me.
I opened it carefully, and found a
single word floating in the middle of the white page:
"Love." Published with permission from
Daily OM
***************************************
A Day At A Time
Reflection For The Day
God grant me the SERENITY to accept
the things I cannot change; COURAGE to change the things I can; and
WISDOM to know the difference — living one day at a time; enjoying one
moment at a time; accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; taking,
as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it: Trusting
that He will make all things right if I surrender to His will; that I
may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with him
forever in the next. Amen.
Today I Pray
May I look back at this past year as a
good one, in that nothing I did or said was wasted. No experience —
however insignificant it may have seemed — was worthless. Hurt gave me
the capacity to feel happiness; bad times made me appreciate the good
ones; what I regarded was my weaknesses became my greatest strengths. I
thank God for a year of growing.
Today I will Remember
Hope is my “balance brought forward” —
into a new year’s ledger.
***************************************
One More Day
Afflictions are not really a good
gift — neither they nor their consequences. However, if afflictions do
come, it is well that we convert them into afflictions of love. Herein
lies the power of man.
–Chaim Nachman Bialik
All around us we hear cries of “Happy
New Year,” and we wonder if this next year is going to be happier than
last year was. Carrying the burden of chronic pain or a chronic illness
is far more demanding than most people can imagine;. It can overwhelm
our days.
We alone have the power to convert
that pain, loneliness, and any feelings of guilt into external
expressions of ourselves, such as helping others. It’s almost
impossible to be completely wound up in ourselves when we are doing for
others.
I feel positive thoughts about this
New Year. My goal is to reach out to at least one person each day.
************************************
Food For Thought
No Exceptions
Abstinence is the most important thing in my life without exception.
Since I am a compulsive overeater, any exception would mean that I
might lose control. If I do not control my disease, it controls me.
Therefore, there are no exceptions to the rule that abstinence is the
most important thing in my life.
In order to follow this rule, I need to depend on a Power greater than
myself. Alone, I am not strong enough to maintain abstinence at all
times and in all places, but through the grace of God and the support
of the OA fellowship, I can do it.
With abstinence, the rest of my life falls into place. I have an
incurable illness, but one which can be controlled day by day through
following the OA program, working the Twelve Steps, and staying in
contact with my Higher Power. There are good days and bad days. but
there is always abstinence. I am grateful to be an abstaining,
recovering, compulsive overeater.
May I remember each day there are no exceptions to abstinence.
*****************************************
One Day At A Time
Life Is Worth Living
"These, then, are my last words to you:
Be not afraid of life.
Believe that life is worth living.
and your belief will help create the
fact.
William James (1842 ~ 1910)
I have lived my life as a compulsive
eater and I have known many other compulsive eaters. I believe I can
say unequivocally that life is much more difficult in so many ways for
us than for many others. I denied that what I suffered from was a
disease; yet I watched as over the years it robbed me of so many things
others take for granted. Most of us will acknowledge early on that the
manifestations of compulsive eating affects us spiritually, emotionally
and physically. Volumes have been written about each of these so most
reading this know the devastation it causes. When I began to inventory
my life and saw how much the quality of it had suffered, it saddened me
greatly.
I believe one of the most difficult
ways the disease of COE, or any compulsive illness, affects us is the
way society looks upon us. Because I have experienced life both ways, I
know how behavior and attitudes change in interacting with a COE vs a
non-COE. We wear our disease on the outside ... but the extensive
damage is far more wide-spread than just the physical. The disease
wrecks havoc in every area of our lives as we silently go about our
life doing the things expected of us. We don't dare scapegoat the
disease. After all, this is not a cancer ... or heart disease. Yet it
can be just as serious.
Many decades ago, a group of
alcoholics gathered and, as a result, life began to change for those of
us who struggled with the disease. When I reached the point in my life
that I could actually acknowledgement that compulsive eating was
affecting it and that I had done everything possible to stop it and
couldn't, it was one of the most freeing moments I've ever experienced.
I learned that I was as powerless over this as I would have been
suffering a heart attack. I also learned that I couldn't handle it
alone. I learned that there were twelve steps that were absolutely
necessary if I were to survive emotionally and, perhaps even physically.
I went from fighting the disease to
acknowledging it. Because of the Steps I learned that there were tens
of thousands of others exactly like me and that we all spoke the same
beautiful language. I learned not to be afraid of life ... and that,
despite this despicable disease, life is truly worth living. I was told
to "act as if" and by doing this it became no longer an act.
One day at a time ...
I affirm that my life is worth living.
One day at a time, I affirm that I will not be afraid of anything that
makes me feel otherwise.
~ Mari
*****************************************
AA 'Big Book' - Quote
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Abandon yourself to God as you
understand God. Admit your faults to Him and to your fellows. Clear
away the wreckage of your past. Give freely of what you find and join
us. We shall be with you in the Fellowship of the Spirit, and you will
surely meet some of us as you trudge the Road of Happy Destiny.
May God bless you and keep you - until
then. - Pg. 164 - A Vision For You
Hour To Hour - Book - Quote
Under stress men are more likely to do
the 'fight or flight' thing and counter stress with anger or desertion.
Women are more likely to adopt the 'tend and befriend' mode where they
begin to nurture others and make alliances. You will be adopting a
number of strategies in your growing recovery. Try to make as many of
them proactive as you can. The more you respond (with thought and
deliberation) than react (instinctively), the better you will weather
the journey.
I seek solutions and guidelines for my
behaviors and the coming decisions I must make. I do not 'react' but
'respond' to the situations in my life.
I Will Live in My Body as Well as My Head
I cannot hold onto life any more than
I can hold onto a rain storm, a cloud or a sun set. I will not know how
to be, what to do or how to act if I am ever living in my head. I have
to live in my body, too, in the present, spontaneously part of the
moment with head and heart in balance so I can sense where I am and
where the current of life is taking me. So that we can be free of what
is in the way of manifesting our own good. So that we can live in the
present unencumbered with unresolved pain from the past. So that we can
stop repeating the same old dysfunctional patterns from our past in our
relationships in the present.
Emotional balance allows us to live in
this alive and ever changing present so that we can respond
spontaneously to any given moment or any given situation. So that we
have the inner balance to be responsive, flexible and alive. So that we
can live in the present.
Living in my head limits my
spontaneity.
- Tian Dayton PhD
Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote
The sole purpose of AA is to help the
alcoholic stop drinking. The sole purpose of NA is to help the addict
stop using. The sole purpose of CDA is to help the chemically dependent
give up mind affecting chemicals. The soul purpose of all these
fellowships is service, unity, and recovery.
'I do not put the sole purpose of any
fellowship above the soul purpose.' ~Shelly Marshall
"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book
To be considered trustworthy, one must
be trust-wordy.
Time for Joy - Book - Quote
Today I know that I am at choice.
Today I have all the willingness, all the energy, and all the guidance
to continue to choose the path of peace and love and joy.
Alkiespeak - Book - Quote
Keep coming back. Unknown origin.
*****************************************
AA Thought for the Day
December 31
Faith
When we look back, we realize that the
things which came to us when we put ourselves in God's hands
were better than anything we could
have planned.
- As Bill Sees It, p. 2
Thought to Ponder . . .
Breathe in faith, breathe out fear.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
F A I T H = Finding Answers In The
Heart.
~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
Guidance
Walk day by day in the path of
spiritual progress.
If you persist, remarkable things will
happen.
When we look back, we realize the
things which came to us
when we put ourselves in God's hands,
were better than anything we could
have planned.
Follow the dictates of a Higher Power
and you will presently live in a new
and wonderful world,
no matter what your present
circumstances!
1976, 2001AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous,
p. 100
Thought to Consider . . .
Look for the Good.
*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
A A = Adventurers Anonymous
*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Diagnosis
>From "More About Alcoholism":
"We do not like to pronounce any
individual as alcoholic, but you can quickly diagnose yourself. Step
over to the nearest barroom and try some controlled drinking. Try to
drink and stop abruptly. Try it more than once. It will not take long
for you to decide, if you are honest with yourself about it. It may be
worth a bad case of jitters if you get a full knowledge of your
condition."
2001 AAWS, Inc., Fourth Edition;
Alcoholics Anonymous, pgs. 31-32
*~*~*~*~*^ Grapevine Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"It's only when I stop thinking about
it, stop trying to run the show, that my life may become as God
intends."
Tucson, Ariz., March 1988
"The Work at Hand,"
Emotional Sobriety
~*~*~*~*^ Big Book & Twelve N' Twelve
Quotes of the Day ^*~*~*~*~*
"Outsiders are sometimes shocked when
we burst into merriment over a
seemingly tragic experience out of the
past. But why shouldn't we
laugh? We have recovered, and have
been given the power to help others."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition,
The Family Afterward, pg. 132~
"We feel as though we had been placed
in a position of neutrality
safe and protected. We have not even
sworn off. Instead, the problem
has been removed. It does not exist
for us. We are neither cocky nor
are we afraid. That is our experience.
That is how we react so long
as we keep in fit spiritual condition."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition,
Into Action, Page 85~
It mattered little whether our
resentments were justified or not.
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
p.90
Misc. AA Literature - Quote
When we reached A.A., and for the
first time in our lives stood among people who seemed to understand,
the sense of belonging was tremendously exciting. We thought the
isolation problem had been solved.
But we soon discovered that, while we
weren't alone any more in a social sense, we still suffered many of the
old pangs of anxious apartness. Until we had talked with complete
candor of our conflicts, and had listened to someone else do the same
thing, we still didn't belong.
Step Five was the answer. It was the
beginning of true kinship with man and God.
Prayer for the Day: Kindess Prayer -
Keep us, O God, from closed
mindedness, let us Be large in thought, in work, in deed.
Let us be done with faultfinding, and
Leave off self-seeking.
May we put away all pretense and meet
each other face-to-face, without Self pity and without prejudice.
May we never be hasty in our judgement
And be always generous and helpful.
Teach us to put into action our better
Impulses, straightforward and unafraid.
Let us take time for the right things.
Make us Grow calm, serene, and gentle.
Grant that we may realize it is the
Little things that create difference, That in the big things in life we
are one.
And may we strive to touch and know The great common heart of us all,
and O God, let us not forget to be kind.