bluidkiti
04-09-2023, 07:47 AM
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.
Thy will, not mine, be done.
April 10
Daily Reflections
GROWING UP
The essence of all growth is a willingness to change for
the better and then an unremitting willingness to shoulder
whatever responsibility this entails.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 115
Sometimes when I've become willing to do what I should
have been doing all along, I want praise and recognition.
I don't realize that the more I'm willing to act
differently, the more exciting my life is. The more I am
willing to help others, the more rewards I receive.
That's what practicing the principles means to me. Fun
and benefits for me are in the willingness to do the
actions, not to get immediate results. Being a little
kinder, a little slower to anger, a little more loving
makes my life better--day by day.
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Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
When I came into A.A., I came into a new world. A sober
world. A world of sobriety, peace, serenity, and happiness.
But I know that if I take just one drink, I'll go right
back into that old world. That alcoholic world. That world
of drunkenness, conflict, and misery. That alcoholic world
is not a pleasant place for an alcoholic to live in. Looking
at the world through the bottom of a whiskey glass is no fun
after you've become an alcoholic. Do I want to go back to
that alcoholic world?
Meditation For The Day
Pride stands sentinel at the door of the heart and shuts out
the love of God. God can only dwell with the humble and the
obedient. Obedience to God's will is the key unlocking the
door to God's kingdom. You cannot obey God to the best of your
ability without in time realizing God's love and responding to
that love. The rough stone steps of obedience lead up to where
the mosaic floor of love and joy is laid. Where God's spirit
is, there is your home. There is heaven for you.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that God may make His home in my humble and obedient
heart. I pray that I may obey His guidance to the best of
my ability.
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As Bill Sees It
The Forgotten Mountain, p. 100
When I was a child, I acquired some of the traits that had a lot to do
with my insatiable craving for alcohol. I was brought up in a little
town in Vermont, under the shadow of Mount Aeolus. An early
recollection is that of looking up at this vast and mysterious
mountain, wondering what it meant and whether I could ever climb
that high. But I was presently distracted by my aunt who, as a
fourth-birthday present, made me a plate of fudge. For the next
thirty-five years I pursued the fudge of life and quite forgot about the
mountain.
<< << << >> >> >>
When self-indulgence is less than ruinous, we have a milder word for
it. We call it "taking our comfort."
1. A.A. Comes Of Age, pp. 52-53
2. 12 & 12, p. 67
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Walk in Dry Places
Protecting Sobriety
Though AA members never criticize drinking customs, we do tell newcomers that it's wise to avoid situations involving alcohol. Even this is not an absolute, because we also concede that it's sometimes necessary to attend a cocktail reception or to lunch with a friend in a bar. So how do we distinguish between what's safe and what's likely to lead to trouble.
The litmus test is always to look at our own motives and spiritual guidance. A drink has no power over us unless we want to take the drink. If we are not deliberately seeking out drinking situations, our motives are probably good. If our spiritual house is in order, our Higher Power will also protect us in any situation.
Wherever we go, however, we should also make our sobriety the first priority of business. Whatever the importance of any social event, it is insignificant compared with the importance of sobriety. Keep sobriety at the top of your list, and the other decisions will follow in proper order.
We should hole the additional thought that "walking in dry places" is really thinking of our selves as always being in dry places under God's guidance.
..Today I will focus on the sober world I want to enjoy and share. The world of drinking has nothing for me. I may encounter situations involving casual drinking today, but I will not be part of them in mind and spirit. I will think and walk in dry places.
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Keep It Simple
You cannot prevent the birds of sadness from passing over your head, but you can prevent their making their nest in your head.---Chinese proverb
Life is full of feelings. We can be happy, sad, mad, scared. These feelings can come and go quickly. Or we may hang on to them. As recovering addicts, we used to hang on to feelings that made us feel bad. We let them make"nest" in our hair. We used our feelings as excuse to drink or use other drugs. Now we're learning to hang on to our good feelings. We can let go of anger, hurt, and fear. We can shoo away the birds of sadness and welcome the birds of happiness.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me become a "bird watcher." Help me learn from my feelings. And help me let go of the bad one so I can be happy.
Action For the Day: If I need to get rid of the sadness or anger that I'm hanging on to, I'll get help from my sponsor, a counselor, or a clergy person.
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Each Day a New Beginning
Even though I can't solve your problems, I will be there as your sounding board whenever you need me. --Sandra K. Lamberson
The prize we each have been given is our ability to offer full and interested attention to people seeking our counsel. And seldom does a day pass, that we aren't given the opportunity to listen, to nurture, to offer hope where it's been dashed.
We are not separate, one from another. Interdependence is our blessing; however, we fail to recognize it at our crucial crossroads. Alone we ponder. Around us, others, too, are often suffering in silence. These Steps that guide our lives push us to break the silence. The secrets we keep, keep us from the health we deserve.
Our emotional well-being is enhanced each time we share ourselves - our stories or our attentive ears. We need to be a part of someone else's pain and growth in order to make use of the pain that we have grown beyond. Pain has its purpose in our lives. And in the lives of our friends, too. It's our connection to one another, the bridge that closes the gap.
We dread our pain. We hate the suffering our friends must withstand. But each of us gains when we accept these challenges as our invitations for growth and closeness to others.
Secrets keep us sick. I will listen and share and be well.
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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition
Chapter 11 - A Vision For You
We know what you are thinking. You are saying to yourself: “I’m jittery and alone. I couldn’t do that.” But you can. You forget that you have just now tapped a source of power much greater than yourself. To duplicate, with such backing, what we have accomplished is only a matter of willingness, patience and labor.
p. 163
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Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Stories
EMPTY ON THE INSIDE - She grew up around A.A. and had all the answers--except when it came to her own life.
I finally for on my knees and asked God for help. I couldn't go on the way I was living. I had been in the apartment since August and hadn't bothered to unpack. I wasn't bathing. I couldn't answer my phone. I couldn't show up on weekends to visit my kids. So I prayed. Something made me go dig through a box, and I found the Big Book my father had sent me years earlier (I always tell new people to buy the hardcover version--for some reason they are harder to throw away.) I read "Bill's Story" again. This time it made sense. This time I could identify. I slept, holding the book like a teddy bear. I woke up feeling rested for the first time in months. And I didn't want to drink.
p. 516
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Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
Step Twelve - "Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs."
Nor is this the only kind of Twelfth Step work. We sit in A.A. meetings and listen, not only to receive something ourselves, but to give the reassurance and support which our presence can bring. If our turn comes to speak at a meeting, we again try to carry A.A.'s message. Whether our audience is one or many, it is still Twelfth Step work. There are many opportunities even for those of us who feel unable to speak at meetings or who are so situated that we cannot do much face-to-face Twelfth Step work. We can be the ones who take on the unspectacular but important tasks that make good Twelfth Step work possible, perhaps arranging for the coffee and cake after the meetings, where so many skeptical, suspicious newcomers have found confidence and comfort in the laughter and talk. This is Twelfth Step work in the very best sense of the word. "Freely ye have received; freely give..." is the core of this part of Step Twelve.
p. 110
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May I look at my experiences, not as trouble, but as a way to use my
experience to help others.
--SweetyZee
When you make a mistake, make amends immediately.
Kindness can become its own motive. We are made kind by being kind.
--Eric Hoffer
Life is like a mirror. If you frown at it, it frowns back. If you smile, it
returns the greeting.
"One of the greatest gifts you can give to anyone is the gift of attention."
--Jim Rohn
"Develop a benevolent world view; look for the good in the people and
circumstances around you."
--Brian Tracy
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Father Leo's Daily Meditation
TODAY
"Real generosity towards the
future consists in giving all to
what is present."
--Albert Camus
Much of the gratitude that I talk about needs to be centered in what I do
with today; I need to focus on the present, rather than procrastinate for
the future.
As a sick alcoholic I lived either in the guilt of yesterday or the fear of
tomorrow - missing the reality of the present. The present moment is all
that I have and through this "moment" I live and breathe and have my
existence!
My understanding of prayer is centered in the present moment because
any understanding of relationship and communication, especially with
God, must begin from where one is, rather than where one would like to
be. Spirituality is the reality of the moment.
Master, thank You for the life that is experienced in the moment.
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"O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever."
Psalm 30:12
"You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for
You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created."
Revelation 4:11
Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are
those who have not seen and yet have believed."
John 20:29
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven?" He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he
said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will
never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this
child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 18:1-4
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Daily Inspiration
Let life's lessons grow into wisdom so that you may be the light for someone else's darkness. Lord, help me put to good use that which today brings so that I am better prepared for tomorrow.
To know someone doesn't mean to know every detail of that person's life. It means to feel affection, confidence and to believe in that person. Lord, may I really know You and have it reflect in how I treat others.
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NA Just For Today
Too Busy
"We must use what we learn or we will lose it, no matter how long we have been clean."
Basic Text, p. 82
After putting some clean time together, some of us have a tendency to forget what our most important priority is. Once a week or less we say, "I've gotta get to a meeting tonight. It's been.. " We've been caught up in other things, important for sure, but no more so than our continued participation in Narcotics Anonymous.
It happens gradually. We get jobs. We reunite with our families. We're raising children, the dog is sick, or we're going to school at night. The house needs to be cleaned. The lawn needs to be mowed. We have to work late. We're tired. There's a good show at the theater tonight. And all of a sudden, we notice that we haven't called our sponsor, been to a meeting, spoken to a newcomer, or even talked to God in quite a while.
What do we do at this point? Well, we either renew our commitment to our recovery, or we continue being too busy to recover until something happens and our lives become unmanageable. Quite a choice! Our best bet is to put more of our energy into maintaining the foundation of recovery on which our lives are built. That foundation makes everything else possible, and it will surely crumble if we get too busy with everything else.
Just for today: I can't afford to be too busy to recover. I will do something today that sustains my recovery.
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You are reading from the book Today's Gift.
But don't go into Mr. McGregor's garden. --Beatrix Potter
Since we are members of a family, we are not free to do anything we like. We may not be able to go as far from home as we would like. We may have to get up earlier in the morning than we would like. We may have only limited use of the car. Families set up limits in order to maintain order and happiness. If each of us demanded something different for supper each night, the situation would be unmanageable.
Limits also keep us safe. When Peter Rabbit was told not to go into Mr. McGregor's garden, it was for his own good. Limits and restrictions are a form of love and protection, and we all have them. When we bump up against one of these limits, we can be assured they serve to point us in another direction, one with freedoms of its own which we may never have explored without being forced to.
What freedom can I discover in a limitation today?
You are reading from the book Touchstones.
Chaos demands to be recognized and experienced before letting itself be converted into a new order. --Hermann Hesse
The forces of chaos and forces of order are always at work in the world. While many things are being built up, many are wearing down. It is a good thing, because life would be very boring in an unchanging state. But the chaos we met in our lives was often extreme and unusually destructive. We had to recognize it and feel the pain of it before we could build a new order. Looking back we can see that our First Step was just such an event.
All people have small chaotic events in their lives every day. If we take a moment and reflect on our present lives, we can certainly become aware of some ways in which things are in disarray. By simply letting ourselves know it in this moment, we get ready for the new order to begin.
I pray for courage and honesty to see the chaos which exists today. Help me become ready for the new order to evolve.
You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.
Even though I can't solve your problems, I will be there as your sounding board whenever you need me. --Sandra K. Lamberson
The prize we each have been given is our ability to offer full and interested attention to people seeking our counsel. And seldom does a day pass, that we aren't given the opportunity to listen, to nurture, to offer hope where it's been dashed.
We are not separate, one from another. Interdependence is our blessing; however, we fail to recognize it at our crucial crossroads. Alone we ponder. Around us, others, too, are often suffering in silence. These Steps that guide our lives push us to break the silence. The secrets we keep, keep us from the health we deserve.
Our emotional well-being is enhanced each time we share ourselves - our stories or our attentive ears. We need to be a part of someone else's pain and growth in order to make use of the pain that we have grown beyond. Pain has its purpose in our lives. And in the lives of our friends, too. It's our connection to one another, the bridge that closes the gap.
We dread our pain. We hate the suffering our friends must withstand. But each of us gains when we accept these challenges as our invitations for growth and closeness to others.
Secrets keep us sick. I will listen and share and be well.
You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Using Others to Stop Our Pain
Our happiness is not a present someone else holds in his or her hands. Our well being is not held by another to be given or withheld at whim. If we reach out and try to force someone to give us what we believe he or she holds, we will be disappointed. We will discover that it is an illusion. The person didn't hold it. He or she never shall. That beautifully wrapped box with the ribbon on it that we believed contained our happiness that someone was holding - its an illusion!
In those moments when we are trying to reach out and force someone to stop our pain and create our joy, if we can find the courage to stop flailing about and instead stand still and deal with our issues, we will find our happiness.
Yes, it is true that if someone steps on our foot, he or she is hurting us and therefore holds the power to stop our pain by removing his or her foot. But the pain is still ours. And so is the responsibility to tell someone to stop stepping on our feet.
Healing will come when were aware of how we attempt to use others to stop our pain and create our happiness. We will heal from the past. We will receive insights that can change the course of our relationships.
We will see that, all along, our happiness and our well being have been in our hands. We have held that box. The contents are ours for the opening.
God, help me remember that I hold the key to my own happiness. Give me the courage to stand still and deal with my own feelings. Give me the insights I need to improve my relationships. Help me stop doing the codependent dance and start doing the dance of recovery.
I am attracted to positive people and I attract positive people to me. Today I continue to seek and find people who are positive, healthy and nurturing. --Ruth Fishel
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Journey To The Heart
Be Aware of the Energy Around You
I stopped at a quaint little store in the mountain city of Solvang, California. It was filled with clocks, tick, tick, ticking away. Some sang, some chirped. Some just ticked. “If you wind them together long enough, they’ll all soon begin ticking together in harmony,” the shopkeeper told me knowingly. I listened. What she said was true.
We are energy and vibration. When we’re open, how easy it is to begin ticking to the rhythm of those around us. If we had kept ourselves locked up and put away, it would be different. But since we’ve chosen to be open, to be sensitive, to open our hearts and souls, we’ll connect with, tick to, vibrations of those around us. Our energy fields will touch and merge. We’ll begin to feel, and sometimes visibly take on, the characteristics, rhythms, and vibrations of those in our field.
Pay attention to, choose carefully, those with whom you live, eat, and play. There may be times when you can handle their energy, and times it isn’t right for you. Sometimes, when we’re feeling off balance, it may be that we’re around energy that just isn’t right for us.
Stay conscious of who you travel with on this journey. See who you’re attracted to and notice who is attracted to you. See how much better you feel when you surround yourself with the energy of love.
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More Language Of Letting Go
Make the hard calls
Sometimes we make choces with relative ease. One option feels right. We have no negative feelings about the other choice. On some occasions, we may be faced with what one man described as a “hard call.”
“I had raised my own children alone,” Jason said. “And I did a good job. I enjoyed my independence, but I relished the idea of being in a relationship at some time in my life. A few years after my two children left home, I met a woman I truly liked. We spent time together, got right up to the edge of being committed, but I had to back off.
“I liked her, but she had two children of her own. They were teenagers. They didn’t want me in their mother’s life. I didn’t want to lose this woman. But at a deeper level, I really didn’t want to be involved in the teenage years of raising someone else’s children. I knew I had to let her go,” he said. “It was a hard call.”
A hard call is when we don’t like either choice, but one option is unacceptable. Hard calls can take many shapes and forms. We may love someone who has a serious drinking problem and simply decide we can’t live with him or her– despite how we feel about the person. We may love someone who has physically abused us or displayed signs of violent behavior, while our feelings may be genuine, so is the danger. We can be faced with hard calls at work. At one point in my life, I could barely tolerate my supervisors. But I liked the work I was doing. I decided to stay; I’m still glad I did.
Hard calls are a part of life. They force us to examine our values and determine what’s genuinely important to us. They insist that we choose the path that’s in our highest good.
God, when I am faced with a tough decision, help me be gentle with myself and others as I sort out, with your help, what’s right for me.
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Know Your Food
Eating Close to the Earth
by Madisyn Taylor
Eating organic local food will change your life for the positive in so many ways as you connect with the earth and your community.
The food we eat is a multidimensional aspect of our lives. Food provides us with the energy that enables us to grow and prosper. Yet it can be, and frequently is, much, much more. Our food can be an experience in and of itself if we allow it to be. The dishes we remember from childhood offer unmatched comfort. The act of preparing meals can be an art form of the highest caliber. And the nourishment we derive from this fare promotes wellness within us. But many of us, distracted by daily affairs, forget that the profound pleasures of eating go beyond simple sustenance. We eat foods that are convenient or we eat unconsciously, snacking on whatever happens to be on hand. To understand the true value of food and the impact it can have on our lives, we should acknowledge and honor it by eating close to the earth.
If you have ever shelled and eaten garden-grown peas or bitten into a sun-warmed apple freshly plucked from its tree, you likely understand that there is a marked difference between these foods and those that are processed and stacked on supermarket shelves. Food recently picked contains more of its original life force and thus has a greater store of energy and nutrients. You can ensure you are eating close to the earth—and enjoying the many benefits of doing so—by shopping at a local farmers market and getting to know the individuals who grow your food. If you make the experience of shopping in this way enjoyable, you will be more apt to reject more convenient canned, packaged, and frozen foods in favor of the real delight you feel while browsing stalls of fresh foods nourished by the same soil you can find in your own backyard. You will soon learn what foods are in season in your area and how to prepare them.
As you savor the vivid flavors of juicy ripe fruits and the hearty crunch of unprocessed vegetables, you can also take pleasure in the fact that, by eating close to the earth, you are supporting farmers in your region, connecting with your local ecosystem, discouraging those who would waste precious fossil fuels by carting produce cross-country, and helping to preserve healthy culinary traditions that have existed for centuries. Published with permission from Daily OM
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A Day At A Time
Reflection For The Day
Change is the characteristic of all growth. From drinking to sobriety, from dishonesty to honesty, from conflict to serenity, from childish dependence to adult responsibility — all this and infinitely more represent change for the better. Only God is unchanging; only He has all the truth there is. Do I accept the belief that lack of power was my dilemma? Have I found a power by which I can live — a Power greater than myself
Today I Pray
I pray that The Program will be, for me, an outline for change — for changing me. These days of transition from active addiction to sobriety, from powerlessness to power through God, may be rocky, as change can be. May my restlessness be stilled by the unchanging nature of God, in whom I place my trust. Only He is whole and perfect and predictable.
Today I Will Remember
I can count on my Higher Power.
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One More Day
A friend is a person with whom I may be sincere. Before him, I may think aloud.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
We may wonder what has happened to old friends we have lost touch with over the years. Sometimes we get so caught up in our busy lives we neglect our friendships.
We can rebuild or strengthened a relationship by taking the first step in reaching out to others. Old connections can be reestablished. They were important to us at one time in our lives and can be again. We may find they have been wondering about us as well.
Today, we can take up pen and paper and write to them about ourselves. Now is the time to find out what has happened to our old friends and let them know they’re in our thoughts.
I will try today to establish contact with an old friend.
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Food For Thought
Increasing Joy
Before we found OA, many of us felt depressed much of the time. The combination of too much food and too little inspiration was lethal. We existed and we did what we had to do, but there was a lack of deep joy in our lives.
When we get the poisons out of our systems, which have been deposited by refined starches and sugars and by overeating in general, we feel one hundred percent better. As we get rid of the poisons in our minds and hearts, our joy increases.
Gradually we are relieved of the guilt of overeating. We are also relieved of envy, anger, and fear - all of the negative emotions, which have poisoned our hearts.
Deep joy can only come from the deepest part of ourselves. That is the place where we find and come to know our Higher Power.
Thank You, God, for increasing joy.
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One Day At A Time
~ Aging ~
Those who love deeply never grow old;
they may die of old age, but they die young.
Benjamin Franklin
I used to be afraid of getting older. I was also afraid to become friends with older people, because I would come to love them and then they would die. I could not handle unpleasant feelings (other than if I overate to stop feeling them) because the feeling of unpleasantness would totally devastate me.
In working the Twelve Step program, my Higher Power has brought me great recovery in this area ... I am now able to handle the grief and sorrow that come up when I allow myself to get to know and love older people and then they die. I am now free in this area! I get to enjoy the wisdom and beauty that they have to share, from all their life experiences, and from the beautiful people they are!
Another beautiful gift from my Higher Power came when I started relating to older people again. When the first one died, it really threw me, and I was very sad. But I got up the next day and had a great spiritual awakening: this person was missing and that was sad, but I looked around and saw all the other wonderful people still there in my life, with whom I got to share another day! Life suddenly became much more precious to me ... to have one more day to be with and share with someone who touches my soul!
One Day at a Time . . .
I enjoy myself as I become older. I allow myself to enjoy friendships with those who are older than me. I thank my Higher Power for every day and every moment of precious life!
~ Lynne ~
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AA 'Big Book' - Quote
Burn the idea into the consciousness of every man that he can get well regardless of anyone. The only condition is that he trust in God and clean house. - Pg. 98 - Working With Others
Hour To Hour - Book - Quote
When we feel like we can't hold on for a whole day, we get a clock and hold on for an hour. When an hour is too long, we hold on for 10 minutes. At the end of 10, do another 10, and another and another, until it's OK.
Help me make it from hour to hour, or minute to minute if need be!
Beyond What I See
I want to know in my heart that life has meaning and purpose beyond what I see. I want to train my eye for seeing what is beautiful in life the way that a musician trains his ear. I want to know that each day is a gift, that I can't just expect it, that life is precious.
I say thank you for the gift of this day
- Tian Dayton PhD
Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote
Forgive yourself because your Spiritual Source already has. Who are you to argue about this?
T.G.I.F.: Thank God I'm Forgiven.
"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book
The wreckage of the past is environmentally safe and bio-degradable.
Time for Joy - Book - Quote
I am attracted to positive people and I attract positive people to me. Today I continue to seek and find people who are positive, healthy and nurturing.
Alkiespeak - Book - Quote
If I don't let go, I lose my grip. - Anon.
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AA Thought for the Day
April 10
Fear of Rejection
Almost without exception, my AA friends admitted that they had struggled with the same feelings.
Some claimed that their fear of rejection stemmed from a lack of self-worth;
some of the men laid the difficulty to feelings of inadequacy stimulated by years of drinking.
It was also asserted that we couldn't stand the responsibility of being loved
and so sought rejection in subtle ways. About the only thing that everyone agreed upon completely
was that this problem, like our drinking problem, had a spiritual solution.
- The Best of the Grapevine [Vol. 1], p.16
Thought to Ponder . . .
A fear faced is a fear erased.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
Y A N A = You Are Not Aone.
~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
Earnestness
"An alcoholic in his cups is an unlovely creature.
Our struggles with them are variously
strenuous, comic, and tragic.
One poor chap committed suicide in my home.
He could not, or would not, see our way of life.
There is, however, a vast amount of fun about it all.
I suppose some would be shocked at our
seeming worldliness and levity.
But just underneath there is
deadly earnestness.
Faith has to work twenty-four hours a day
in and through us,
or we perish."
Bill W., Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 92
Thought to Consider....
Laughter is the sound effect of recovery.
*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
DEAD
Drinking Ends All Dreams
*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Message
From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":
"Three blocks away from the main office we have a good-sized loft space where all shipping and mailing is done. This
activity now runs into tons of material a month. Six busy lads spend full time at it. Last year they shipped about 40,000
books and hundreds of thousands of pamphlets, many of them newly designed and edited largely through the work of
Ralph, our consultant on pamphlet literature. They mailed about 30,000 letters and bulletins and did huge quantities of
mimeographing. [c. 1959]"
2001 AAWS, Inc.; Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pg. 207
*~*~*~*~*^ Grapevine Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Finally came April 1939. The book was done. Tales of recovery for its story section had been supplied by Dr. Bob and
his Akron brethren. Others were supplied by New Yorkers, New Jerseyites. One came in from Cleveland and another
from Maryland. Chapters had been read and discussed at meetings. I had thought myself the author of the text until I
discovered I was just the umpire of the differences of opinion. After endless voting on a title for the new work we had
decided to call it The Way Out. But inquiry by Fitz M., our Maryland alcoholic, at The Library of Congress disclosed the
fact that 12 books already bore that title. Surely we couldn't make our book the 13th. So we named it Alcoholics
Anonymous instead! Though we didn't know it, our movement then got its name -- a name which because of the
implication of humility and modesty has given us our treasured spiritual principle of anonymity."
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., July 1947
"Book Publication Proved Discouraging Venture"
The Language of the Heart
~*~*~*~*^ Big Book & Twelve N' Twelve Quotes of the Day ^*~*~*~*~*
"Thus was I convinced that God is concerned with us humans when we want
Him enough. At long last I saw, I felt, I believed. Scales of pride and
prejudice fell from my eyes. A new world came into view."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Bill's Story, pg. 12~
I was to sit quietly when in doubt, asking only for direction and strength to meet my problems as He would have me.
-Alcoholics Anonymous p. 13 (Bill’s Story)
Many of us also like the experience of an occasional retreat from the outside world where we can quiet down for an
undisturbed day or so of self-overhaul and meditation.
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions p. 89
Misc. AA Literature - Quote
The Forgotten Mountain
When I was a child, I acquired some of the traits that had a lot to do with my insatiable craving for alcohol. I was brought
up in a little town in Vermont, under the shadow of Mount Aeolus. An early recollection is that of looking up at this vast
and mysterious mountain, wondering what it meant and whether I could ever climb that high. But I was presently
distracted by my aunt who, as a fourth-birthday present, made me a plate of fudge. For the next thirty-five years I
pursued the fudge of life and quite forgot about the mountain.
When self-indulgence is less than ruinous, we have a milder word for it. We call it 'taking our comfort.' 1. A.A. COMES
OF AGE, PP. 52-53BR>2. TWELVE AND TWELVE, P. 67
Prayer For The Day: Dear Father, please protect me in my journey and light my way. Forgive me when I do wrong for I am trying.
Ask and you shall receive,
Seek and ye shall find,
Knock and it shall be opened unto you.
Matthew 7:7
Courage to change the things I can;
and Wisdom to know the difference.
Thy will, not mine, be done.
April 10
Daily Reflections
GROWING UP
The essence of all growth is a willingness to change for
the better and then an unremitting willingness to shoulder
whatever responsibility this entails.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 115
Sometimes when I've become willing to do what I should
have been doing all along, I want praise and recognition.
I don't realize that the more I'm willing to act
differently, the more exciting my life is. The more I am
willing to help others, the more rewards I receive.
That's what practicing the principles means to me. Fun
and benefits for me are in the willingness to do the
actions, not to get immediate results. Being a little
kinder, a little slower to anger, a little more loving
makes my life better--day by day.
************************************************** *********
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
When I came into A.A., I came into a new world. A sober
world. A world of sobriety, peace, serenity, and happiness.
But I know that if I take just one drink, I'll go right
back into that old world. That alcoholic world. That world
of drunkenness, conflict, and misery. That alcoholic world
is not a pleasant place for an alcoholic to live in. Looking
at the world through the bottom of a whiskey glass is no fun
after you've become an alcoholic. Do I want to go back to
that alcoholic world?
Meditation For The Day
Pride stands sentinel at the door of the heart and shuts out
the love of God. God can only dwell with the humble and the
obedient. Obedience to God's will is the key unlocking the
door to God's kingdom. You cannot obey God to the best of your
ability without in time realizing God's love and responding to
that love. The rough stone steps of obedience lead up to where
the mosaic floor of love and joy is laid. Where God's spirit
is, there is your home. There is heaven for you.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that God may make His home in my humble and obedient
heart. I pray that I may obey His guidance to the best of
my ability.
************************************************** *********
As Bill Sees It
The Forgotten Mountain, p. 100
When I was a child, I acquired some of the traits that had a lot to do
with my insatiable craving for alcohol. I was brought up in a little
town in Vermont, under the shadow of Mount Aeolus. An early
recollection is that of looking up at this vast and mysterious
mountain, wondering what it meant and whether I could ever climb
that high. But I was presently distracted by my aunt who, as a
fourth-birthday present, made me a plate of fudge. For the next
thirty-five years I pursued the fudge of life and quite forgot about the
mountain.
<< << << >> >> >>
When self-indulgence is less than ruinous, we have a milder word for
it. We call it "taking our comfort."
1. A.A. Comes Of Age, pp. 52-53
2. 12 & 12, p. 67
************************************************** *********
Walk in Dry Places
Protecting Sobriety
Though AA members never criticize drinking customs, we do tell newcomers that it's wise to avoid situations involving alcohol. Even this is not an absolute, because we also concede that it's sometimes necessary to attend a cocktail reception or to lunch with a friend in a bar. So how do we distinguish between what's safe and what's likely to lead to trouble.
The litmus test is always to look at our own motives and spiritual guidance. A drink has no power over us unless we want to take the drink. If we are not deliberately seeking out drinking situations, our motives are probably good. If our spiritual house is in order, our Higher Power will also protect us in any situation.
Wherever we go, however, we should also make our sobriety the first priority of business. Whatever the importance of any social event, it is insignificant compared with the importance of sobriety. Keep sobriety at the top of your list, and the other decisions will follow in proper order.
We should hole the additional thought that "walking in dry places" is really thinking of our selves as always being in dry places under God's guidance.
..Today I will focus on the sober world I want to enjoy and share. The world of drinking has nothing for me. I may encounter situations involving casual drinking today, but I will not be part of them in mind and spirit. I will think and walk in dry places.
************************************************** *********
Keep It Simple
You cannot prevent the birds of sadness from passing over your head, but you can prevent their making their nest in your head.---Chinese proverb
Life is full of feelings. We can be happy, sad, mad, scared. These feelings can come and go quickly. Or we may hang on to them. As recovering addicts, we used to hang on to feelings that made us feel bad. We let them make"nest" in our hair. We used our feelings as excuse to drink or use other drugs. Now we're learning to hang on to our good feelings. We can let go of anger, hurt, and fear. We can shoo away the birds of sadness and welcome the birds of happiness.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me become a "bird watcher." Help me learn from my feelings. And help me let go of the bad one so I can be happy.
Action For the Day: If I need to get rid of the sadness or anger that I'm hanging on to, I'll get help from my sponsor, a counselor, or a clergy person.
************************************************** *********
Each Day a New Beginning
Even though I can't solve your problems, I will be there as your sounding board whenever you need me. --Sandra K. Lamberson
The prize we each have been given is our ability to offer full and interested attention to people seeking our counsel. And seldom does a day pass, that we aren't given the opportunity to listen, to nurture, to offer hope where it's been dashed.
We are not separate, one from another. Interdependence is our blessing; however, we fail to recognize it at our crucial crossroads. Alone we ponder. Around us, others, too, are often suffering in silence. These Steps that guide our lives push us to break the silence. The secrets we keep, keep us from the health we deserve.
Our emotional well-being is enhanced each time we share ourselves - our stories or our attentive ears. We need to be a part of someone else's pain and growth in order to make use of the pain that we have grown beyond. Pain has its purpose in our lives. And in the lives of our friends, too. It's our connection to one another, the bridge that closes the gap.
We dread our pain. We hate the suffering our friends must withstand. But each of us gains when we accept these challenges as our invitations for growth and closeness to others.
Secrets keep us sick. I will listen and share and be well.
************************************************** *********
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition
Chapter 11 - A Vision For You
We know what you are thinking. You are saying to yourself: “I’m jittery and alone. I couldn’t do that.” But you can. You forget that you have just now tapped a source of power much greater than yourself. To duplicate, with such backing, what we have accomplished is only a matter of willingness, patience and labor.
p. 163
************************************************** *********
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition Stories
EMPTY ON THE INSIDE - She grew up around A.A. and had all the answers--except when it came to her own life.
I finally for on my knees and asked God for help. I couldn't go on the way I was living. I had been in the apartment since August and hadn't bothered to unpack. I wasn't bathing. I couldn't answer my phone. I couldn't show up on weekends to visit my kids. So I prayed. Something made me go dig through a box, and I found the Big Book my father had sent me years earlier (I always tell new people to buy the hardcover version--for some reason they are harder to throw away.) I read "Bill's Story" again. This time it made sense. This time I could identify. I slept, holding the book like a teddy bear. I woke up feeling rested for the first time in months. And I didn't want to drink.
p. 516
************************************************** *********
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
Step Twelve - "Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs."
Nor is this the only kind of Twelfth Step work. We sit in A.A. meetings and listen, not only to receive something ourselves, but to give the reassurance and support which our presence can bring. If our turn comes to speak at a meeting, we again try to carry A.A.'s message. Whether our audience is one or many, it is still Twelfth Step work. There are many opportunities even for those of us who feel unable to speak at meetings or who are so situated that we cannot do much face-to-face Twelfth Step work. We can be the ones who take on the unspectacular but important tasks that make good Twelfth Step work possible, perhaps arranging for the coffee and cake after the meetings, where so many skeptical, suspicious newcomers have found confidence and comfort in the laughter and talk. This is Twelfth Step work in the very best sense of the word. "Freely ye have received; freely give..." is the core of this part of Step Twelve.
p. 110
************************************************** *********
May I look at my experiences, not as trouble, but as a way to use my
experience to help others.
--SweetyZee
When you make a mistake, make amends immediately.
Kindness can become its own motive. We are made kind by being kind.
--Eric Hoffer
Life is like a mirror. If you frown at it, it frowns back. If you smile, it
returns the greeting.
"One of the greatest gifts you can give to anyone is the gift of attention."
--Jim Rohn
"Develop a benevolent world view; look for the good in the people and
circumstances around you."
--Brian Tracy
************************************************** *********
Father Leo's Daily Meditation
TODAY
"Real generosity towards the
future consists in giving all to
what is present."
--Albert Camus
Much of the gratitude that I talk about needs to be centered in what I do
with today; I need to focus on the present, rather than procrastinate for
the future.
As a sick alcoholic I lived either in the guilt of yesterday or the fear of
tomorrow - missing the reality of the present. The present moment is all
that I have and through this "moment" I live and breathe and have my
existence!
My understanding of prayer is centered in the present moment because
any understanding of relationship and communication, especially with
God, must begin from where one is, rather than where one would like to
be. Spirituality is the reality of the moment.
Master, thank You for the life that is experienced in the moment.
************************************************** *********
"O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever."
Psalm 30:12
"You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for
You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created."
Revelation 4:11
Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are
those who have not seen and yet have believed."
John 20:29
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven?" He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he
said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will
never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this
child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 18:1-4
************************************************** *********
Daily Inspiration
Let life's lessons grow into wisdom so that you may be the light for someone else's darkness. Lord, help me put to good use that which today brings so that I am better prepared for tomorrow.
To know someone doesn't mean to know every detail of that person's life. It means to feel affection, confidence and to believe in that person. Lord, may I really know You and have it reflect in how I treat others.
************************************************** *********
NA Just For Today
Too Busy
"We must use what we learn or we will lose it, no matter how long we have been clean."
Basic Text, p. 82
After putting some clean time together, some of us have a tendency to forget what our most important priority is. Once a week or less we say, "I've gotta get to a meeting tonight. It's been.. " We've been caught up in other things, important for sure, but no more so than our continued participation in Narcotics Anonymous.
It happens gradually. We get jobs. We reunite with our families. We're raising children, the dog is sick, or we're going to school at night. The house needs to be cleaned. The lawn needs to be mowed. We have to work late. We're tired. There's a good show at the theater tonight. And all of a sudden, we notice that we haven't called our sponsor, been to a meeting, spoken to a newcomer, or even talked to God in quite a while.
What do we do at this point? Well, we either renew our commitment to our recovery, or we continue being too busy to recover until something happens and our lives become unmanageable. Quite a choice! Our best bet is to put more of our energy into maintaining the foundation of recovery on which our lives are built. That foundation makes everything else possible, and it will surely crumble if we get too busy with everything else.
Just for today: I can't afford to be too busy to recover. I will do something today that sustains my recovery.
************************************************** *********
You are reading from the book Today's Gift.
But don't go into Mr. McGregor's garden. --Beatrix Potter
Since we are members of a family, we are not free to do anything we like. We may not be able to go as far from home as we would like. We may have to get up earlier in the morning than we would like. We may have only limited use of the car. Families set up limits in order to maintain order and happiness. If each of us demanded something different for supper each night, the situation would be unmanageable.
Limits also keep us safe. When Peter Rabbit was told not to go into Mr. McGregor's garden, it was for his own good. Limits and restrictions are a form of love and protection, and we all have them. When we bump up against one of these limits, we can be assured they serve to point us in another direction, one with freedoms of its own which we may never have explored without being forced to.
What freedom can I discover in a limitation today?
You are reading from the book Touchstones.
Chaos demands to be recognized and experienced before letting itself be converted into a new order. --Hermann Hesse
The forces of chaos and forces of order are always at work in the world. While many things are being built up, many are wearing down. It is a good thing, because life would be very boring in an unchanging state. But the chaos we met in our lives was often extreme and unusually destructive. We had to recognize it and feel the pain of it before we could build a new order. Looking back we can see that our First Step was just such an event.
All people have small chaotic events in their lives every day. If we take a moment and reflect on our present lives, we can certainly become aware of some ways in which things are in disarray. By simply letting ourselves know it in this moment, we get ready for the new order to begin.
I pray for courage and honesty to see the chaos which exists today. Help me become ready for the new order to evolve.
You are reading from the book Each Day a New Beginning.
Even though I can't solve your problems, I will be there as your sounding board whenever you need me. --Sandra K. Lamberson
The prize we each have been given is our ability to offer full and interested attention to people seeking our counsel. And seldom does a day pass, that we aren't given the opportunity to listen, to nurture, to offer hope where it's been dashed.
We are not separate, one from another. Interdependence is our blessing; however, we fail to recognize it at our crucial crossroads. Alone we ponder. Around us, others, too, are often suffering in silence. These Steps that guide our lives push us to break the silence. The secrets we keep, keep us from the health we deserve.
Our emotional well-being is enhanced each time we share ourselves - our stories or our attentive ears. We need to be a part of someone else's pain and growth in order to make use of the pain that we have grown beyond. Pain has its purpose in our lives. And in the lives of our friends, too. It's our connection to one another, the bridge that closes the gap.
We dread our pain. We hate the suffering our friends must withstand. But each of us gains when we accept these challenges as our invitations for growth and closeness to others.
Secrets keep us sick. I will listen and share and be well.
You are reading from the book The Language of Letting Go.
Using Others to Stop Our Pain
Our happiness is not a present someone else holds in his or her hands. Our well being is not held by another to be given or withheld at whim. If we reach out and try to force someone to give us what we believe he or she holds, we will be disappointed. We will discover that it is an illusion. The person didn't hold it. He or she never shall. That beautifully wrapped box with the ribbon on it that we believed contained our happiness that someone was holding - its an illusion!
In those moments when we are trying to reach out and force someone to stop our pain and create our joy, if we can find the courage to stop flailing about and instead stand still and deal with our issues, we will find our happiness.
Yes, it is true that if someone steps on our foot, he or she is hurting us and therefore holds the power to stop our pain by removing his or her foot. But the pain is still ours. And so is the responsibility to tell someone to stop stepping on our feet.
Healing will come when were aware of how we attempt to use others to stop our pain and create our happiness. We will heal from the past. We will receive insights that can change the course of our relationships.
We will see that, all along, our happiness and our well being have been in our hands. We have held that box. The contents are ours for the opening.
God, help me remember that I hold the key to my own happiness. Give me the courage to stand still and deal with my own feelings. Give me the insights I need to improve my relationships. Help me stop doing the codependent dance and start doing the dance of recovery.
I am attracted to positive people and I attract positive people to me. Today I continue to seek and find people who are positive, healthy and nurturing. --Ruth Fishel
*******************************************
Journey To The Heart
Be Aware of the Energy Around You
I stopped at a quaint little store in the mountain city of Solvang, California. It was filled with clocks, tick, tick, ticking away. Some sang, some chirped. Some just ticked. “If you wind them together long enough, they’ll all soon begin ticking together in harmony,” the shopkeeper told me knowingly. I listened. What she said was true.
We are energy and vibration. When we’re open, how easy it is to begin ticking to the rhythm of those around us. If we had kept ourselves locked up and put away, it would be different. But since we’ve chosen to be open, to be sensitive, to open our hearts and souls, we’ll connect with, tick to, vibrations of those around us. Our energy fields will touch and merge. We’ll begin to feel, and sometimes visibly take on, the characteristics, rhythms, and vibrations of those in our field.
Pay attention to, choose carefully, those with whom you live, eat, and play. There may be times when you can handle their energy, and times it isn’t right for you. Sometimes, when we’re feeling off balance, it may be that we’re around energy that just isn’t right for us.
Stay conscious of who you travel with on this journey. See who you’re attracted to and notice who is attracted to you. See how much better you feel when you surround yourself with the energy of love.
*******************************************
More Language Of Letting Go
Make the hard calls
Sometimes we make choces with relative ease. One option feels right. We have no negative feelings about the other choice. On some occasions, we may be faced with what one man described as a “hard call.”
“I had raised my own children alone,” Jason said. “And I did a good job. I enjoyed my independence, but I relished the idea of being in a relationship at some time in my life. A few years after my two children left home, I met a woman I truly liked. We spent time together, got right up to the edge of being committed, but I had to back off.
“I liked her, but she had two children of her own. They were teenagers. They didn’t want me in their mother’s life. I didn’t want to lose this woman. But at a deeper level, I really didn’t want to be involved in the teenage years of raising someone else’s children. I knew I had to let her go,” he said. “It was a hard call.”
A hard call is when we don’t like either choice, but one option is unacceptable. Hard calls can take many shapes and forms. We may love someone who has a serious drinking problem and simply decide we can’t live with him or her– despite how we feel about the person. We may love someone who has physically abused us or displayed signs of violent behavior, while our feelings may be genuine, so is the danger. We can be faced with hard calls at work. At one point in my life, I could barely tolerate my supervisors. But I liked the work I was doing. I decided to stay; I’m still glad I did.
Hard calls are a part of life. They force us to examine our values and determine what’s genuinely important to us. They insist that we choose the path that’s in our highest good.
God, when I am faced with a tough decision, help me be gentle with myself and others as I sort out, with your help, what’s right for me.
*******************************************
Know Your Food
Eating Close to the Earth
by Madisyn Taylor
Eating organic local food will change your life for the positive in so many ways as you connect with the earth and your community.
The food we eat is a multidimensional aspect of our lives. Food provides us with the energy that enables us to grow and prosper. Yet it can be, and frequently is, much, much more. Our food can be an experience in and of itself if we allow it to be. The dishes we remember from childhood offer unmatched comfort. The act of preparing meals can be an art form of the highest caliber. And the nourishment we derive from this fare promotes wellness within us. But many of us, distracted by daily affairs, forget that the profound pleasures of eating go beyond simple sustenance. We eat foods that are convenient or we eat unconsciously, snacking on whatever happens to be on hand. To understand the true value of food and the impact it can have on our lives, we should acknowledge and honor it by eating close to the earth.
If you have ever shelled and eaten garden-grown peas or bitten into a sun-warmed apple freshly plucked from its tree, you likely understand that there is a marked difference between these foods and those that are processed and stacked on supermarket shelves. Food recently picked contains more of its original life force and thus has a greater store of energy and nutrients. You can ensure you are eating close to the earth—and enjoying the many benefits of doing so—by shopping at a local farmers market and getting to know the individuals who grow your food. If you make the experience of shopping in this way enjoyable, you will be more apt to reject more convenient canned, packaged, and frozen foods in favor of the real delight you feel while browsing stalls of fresh foods nourished by the same soil you can find in your own backyard. You will soon learn what foods are in season in your area and how to prepare them.
As you savor the vivid flavors of juicy ripe fruits and the hearty crunch of unprocessed vegetables, you can also take pleasure in the fact that, by eating close to the earth, you are supporting farmers in your region, connecting with your local ecosystem, discouraging those who would waste precious fossil fuels by carting produce cross-country, and helping to preserve healthy culinary traditions that have existed for centuries. Published with permission from Daily OM
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A Day At A Time
Reflection For The Day
Change is the characteristic of all growth. From drinking to sobriety, from dishonesty to honesty, from conflict to serenity, from childish dependence to adult responsibility — all this and infinitely more represent change for the better. Only God is unchanging; only He has all the truth there is. Do I accept the belief that lack of power was my dilemma? Have I found a power by which I can live — a Power greater than myself
Today I Pray
I pray that The Program will be, for me, an outline for change — for changing me. These days of transition from active addiction to sobriety, from powerlessness to power through God, may be rocky, as change can be. May my restlessness be stilled by the unchanging nature of God, in whom I place my trust. Only He is whole and perfect and predictable.
Today I Will Remember
I can count on my Higher Power.
*******************************************
One More Day
A friend is a person with whom I may be sincere. Before him, I may think aloud.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
We may wonder what has happened to old friends we have lost touch with over the years. Sometimes we get so caught up in our busy lives we neglect our friendships.
We can rebuild or strengthened a relationship by taking the first step in reaching out to others. Old connections can be reestablished. They were important to us at one time in our lives and can be again. We may find they have been wondering about us as well.
Today, we can take up pen and paper and write to them about ourselves. Now is the time to find out what has happened to our old friends and let them know they’re in our thoughts.
I will try today to establish contact with an old friend.
************************************
Food For Thought
Increasing Joy
Before we found OA, many of us felt depressed much of the time. The combination of too much food and too little inspiration was lethal. We existed and we did what we had to do, but there was a lack of deep joy in our lives.
When we get the poisons out of our systems, which have been deposited by refined starches and sugars and by overeating in general, we feel one hundred percent better. As we get rid of the poisons in our minds and hearts, our joy increases.
Gradually we are relieved of the guilt of overeating. We are also relieved of envy, anger, and fear - all of the negative emotions, which have poisoned our hearts.
Deep joy can only come from the deepest part of ourselves. That is the place where we find and come to know our Higher Power.
Thank You, God, for increasing joy.
*****************************************
One Day At A Time
~ Aging ~
Those who love deeply never grow old;
they may die of old age, but they die young.
Benjamin Franklin
I used to be afraid of getting older. I was also afraid to become friends with older people, because I would come to love them and then they would die. I could not handle unpleasant feelings (other than if I overate to stop feeling them) because the feeling of unpleasantness would totally devastate me.
In working the Twelve Step program, my Higher Power has brought me great recovery in this area ... I am now able to handle the grief and sorrow that come up when I allow myself to get to know and love older people and then they die. I am now free in this area! I get to enjoy the wisdom and beauty that they have to share, from all their life experiences, and from the beautiful people they are!
Another beautiful gift from my Higher Power came when I started relating to older people again. When the first one died, it really threw me, and I was very sad. But I got up the next day and had a great spiritual awakening: this person was missing and that was sad, but I looked around and saw all the other wonderful people still there in my life, with whom I got to share another day! Life suddenly became much more precious to me ... to have one more day to be with and share with someone who touches my soul!
One Day at a Time . . .
I enjoy myself as I become older. I allow myself to enjoy friendships with those who are older than me. I thank my Higher Power for every day and every moment of precious life!
~ Lynne ~
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AA 'Big Book' - Quote
Burn the idea into the consciousness of every man that he can get well regardless of anyone. The only condition is that he trust in God and clean house. - Pg. 98 - Working With Others
Hour To Hour - Book - Quote
When we feel like we can't hold on for a whole day, we get a clock and hold on for an hour. When an hour is too long, we hold on for 10 minutes. At the end of 10, do another 10, and another and another, until it's OK.
Help me make it from hour to hour, or minute to minute if need be!
Beyond What I See
I want to know in my heart that life has meaning and purpose beyond what I see. I want to train my eye for seeing what is beautiful in life the way that a musician trains his ear. I want to know that each day is a gift, that I can't just expect it, that life is precious.
I say thank you for the gift of this day
- Tian Dayton PhD
Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote
Forgive yourself because your Spiritual Source already has. Who are you to argue about this?
T.G.I.F.: Thank God I'm Forgiven.
"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book
The wreckage of the past is environmentally safe and bio-degradable.
Time for Joy - Book - Quote
I am attracted to positive people and I attract positive people to me. Today I continue to seek and find people who are positive, healthy and nurturing.
Alkiespeak - Book - Quote
If I don't let go, I lose my grip. - Anon.
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AA Thought for the Day
April 10
Fear of Rejection
Almost without exception, my AA friends admitted that they had struggled with the same feelings.
Some claimed that their fear of rejection stemmed from a lack of self-worth;
some of the men laid the difficulty to feelings of inadequacy stimulated by years of drinking.
It was also asserted that we couldn't stand the responsibility of being loved
and so sought rejection in subtle ways. About the only thing that everyone agreed upon completely
was that this problem, like our drinking problem, had a spiritual solution.
- The Best of the Grapevine [Vol. 1], p.16
Thought to Ponder . . .
A fear faced is a fear erased.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
Y A N A = You Are Not Aone.
~*~A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
Earnestness
"An alcoholic in his cups is an unlovely creature.
Our struggles with them are variously
strenuous, comic, and tragic.
One poor chap committed suicide in my home.
He could not, or would not, see our way of life.
There is, however, a vast amount of fun about it all.
I suppose some would be shocked at our
seeming worldliness and levity.
But just underneath there is
deadly earnestness.
Faith has to work twenty-four hours a day
in and through us,
or we perish."
Bill W., Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 92
Thought to Consider....
Laughter is the sound effect of recovery.
*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
DEAD
Drinking Ends All Dreams
*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Message
From "The Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous":
"Three blocks away from the main office we have a good-sized loft space where all shipping and mailing is done. This
activity now runs into tons of material a month. Six busy lads spend full time at it. Last year they shipped about 40,000
books and hundreds of thousands of pamphlets, many of them newly designed and edited largely through the work of
Ralph, our consultant on pamphlet literature. They mailed about 30,000 letters and bulletins and did huge quantities of
mimeographing. [c. 1959]"
2001 AAWS, Inc.; Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pg. 207
*~*~*~*~*^ Grapevine Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"Finally came April 1939. The book was done. Tales of recovery for its story section had been supplied by Dr. Bob and
his Akron brethren. Others were supplied by New Yorkers, New Jerseyites. One came in from Cleveland and another
from Maryland. Chapters had been read and discussed at meetings. I had thought myself the author of the text until I
discovered I was just the umpire of the differences of opinion. After endless voting on a title for the new work we had
decided to call it The Way Out. But inquiry by Fitz M., our Maryland alcoholic, at The Library of Congress disclosed the
fact that 12 books already bore that title. Surely we couldn't make our book the 13th. So we named it Alcoholics
Anonymous instead! Though we didn't know it, our movement then got its name -- a name which because of the
implication of humility and modesty has given us our treasured spiritual principle of anonymity."
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., July 1947
"Book Publication Proved Discouraging Venture"
The Language of the Heart
~*~*~*~*^ Big Book & Twelve N' Twelve Quotes of the Day ^*~*~*~*~*
"Thus was I convinced that God is concerned with us humans when we want
Him enough. At long last I saw, I felt, I believed. Scales of pride and
prejudice fell from my eyes. A new world came into view."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Bill's Story, pg. 12~
I was to sit quietly when in doubt, asking only for direction and strength to meet my problems as He would have me.
-Alcoholics Anonymous p. 13 (Bill’s Story)
Many of us also like the experience of an occasional retreat from the outside world where we can quiet down for an
undisturbed day or so of self-overhaul and meditation.
-Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions p. 89
Misc. AA Literature - Quote
The Forgotten Mountain
When I was a child, I acquired some of the traits that had a lot to do with my insatiable craving for alcohol. I was brought
up in a little town in Vermont, under the shadow of Mount Aeolus. An early recollection is that of looking up at this vast
and mysterious mountain, wondering what it meant and whether I could ever climb that high. But I was presently
distracted by my aunt who, as a fourth-birthday present, made me a plate of fudge. For the next thirty-five years I
pursued the fudge of life and quite forgot about the mountain.
When self-indulgence is less than ruinous, we have a milder word for it. We call it 'taking our comfort.' 1. A.A. COMES
OF AGE, PP. 52-53BR>2. TWELVE AND TWELVE, P. 67
Prayer For The Day: Dear Father, please protect me in my journey and light my way. Forgive me when I do wrong for I am trying.
Ask and you shall receive,
Seek and ye shall find,
Knock and it shall be opened unto you.
Matthew 7:7