Reflections for Everyday of the Year - Feb.

[janbear]

Tree Says:
I tentatively started attending meetings and found out I was not alone. Before long I was eagerly attending meetings and hungrily sucking up the love and knowledge I found there. I now have a sponsor and I am working the steps. I am happier in recovery than I have been prior to finding the rooms.
Recovery does not happen overnight. It is a process that can sometimes be painful but the benefits that we reap from recovery are so wonderful that the growing pains are well worth it!

[janbear]

Joan G. Says:
I crawled into an Al-Anon meeting for the first time in February 1992 aproximately 11 months after I had kicked my husband out in a fit of rage, my best thinking convinced me that losing his family would do the trick, surely now he'll sober up! I came to Al-Anon hoping the good folks there would teach me how to sober him up because my plan did not seem to be working. I fixated a long time after getting to Al-Anon on getting my husband back but only if he were sober.
The obsession eased off gradually as I got a sponser, took service committments, went to meeting, made calls, worked the steps, helped newcomers, the things that we do. Just as things were getting better my 13 year old son started coming home drunk every night. Thank God I had a program.

[janbear]

Karen C. Says:
I've come to see the benefit of one day at a time revealations. "More will be revealed" is a wonderful concept. It speaks of the surprise, the new thought, the inspiration right around the corner. The program is one of newness. I feel new. My eyes sparkle, my laugh is heartier, I am more lighthearted. Before I was stern, I judged others more and I was more certain of being right. Boy did I ever find out that I was dead wrong.
Now, I say, "Hmmm, well more will be revealed, I'm not in charge." I'm easier on myself and others. I instinctively know to hold my tongue, to smile more. To live and let live gives me and my loved ones freedom.

[shrubbery]

Last night as I shook hands of folks coming into my home group meeting (I am a trusted servant and had set up the room alone) I remembered "more will be revealed". The chair person for the meeting had not yet arrived (she did at 7 minutes before the meeting and said with a rush and a hug --"Love your support and help"), the secretary had not yet arrived (he sat next to me as the lead spoke), the GSR had arrived but had relayed information that another well loved member of our group had left the night before and nothing further was know about her whereabouts. I didn't know who was going to speak, if the chair would even arrive on time, but the meeting was ready to go and more was "ready to be revealed" for everyone in the small church basement.

After the night was over and we were all in a circle with our last final prayer the chair mentioned how she would miss the lead as he went out into the world and that she hoped his Higher Power would be there for love and support. It was not until about a half hour later that a man I took home revealed that he was a Vet, and that the speaker was a reservist and had been recalled up to duty and was due to ship our today.

Suddenly my own problems, my own fears, my own troubles seemed slight. More had become truely revealed ... and it was a great night to have recovery. I had been surrounded by people who supported me without ever mentioning their backgrounds; and their experience and strength was available to all we only needed to ask

Peace

[janbear]

Linn B. Says:
We go into the future with both of our hands being held by other recovering people. Since I have been clean and sober, I have never gone through anything alone. This is a choice that I must make - to take that hand offered to me, or sit alone in my misery. Thanks for over 14 years of hands!

[janbear]

Eaydo Says:
I act like a oldtimer, but continue to learn like a newcomer

[janbear]

Finn S. Says:
Sometimes living life one day at a time seems like too much to handle and all the walls I've built up with my lifetime of rebellion against the religious God I grew up with make me feel like a phony when I pray. What helped a lot in the first days of sobriety and still helps to clear my mind and find peace is when I stop and remember to: Breathe in, Breathe out, Don't drink in between.

[flick]

Jason M. Says:

It happened just as I heard hundreds of times before at meetings... My relapse just didn't "happen" - it was a gradual progression. I stopped going to meetings, stopped talking to sober people. Stopped praying. Self pity. Ego with an inferiority complex.... that was me. After I hit bottom again I came back through God's help (and family) and thought I knew how to get sober.I didn't know much of anything and had to re-learn most of what I was previously given through the program. I learned this because I had no "tools" or defenses against the first drink.

[bluidkiti]

Teresa D. Says:
This disease can strike at any given moment. I usually know now that the chaos and confusion is a great indication that the disease is revealing it's ugliness. Now, my program gives me the tools to stop - take a deep breath - in and out - then immediately do Step 3 - and just by making a conscience decision to turn my will over to the care of God brings me back to a good place. Everything gets better after this and what is really cool I can do that anytime - anywhere.

[janbear]

Steve R. Says:
One must keep an open mind in recovery. The ways of the past clearly don't work, and what works for one in recovery doesn't necessarily work for another. This is one of the reasons meetings and one-on-one contact with other members of recovery fellowships is so important. You're exposed to a variety of ways and attitudes to cope with your disease, and hear may differing views on and ways to approach the miracle called recovery. You need to listen for what makes sense to you, no matter what the source, and integrate it into your own recovery program. If it works for you, fine. If it doesn't, discard it, and try something else.

[janbear]

Edie Says:
After sifting through 12 years worth of pearls of wisdom from other alcoholics, I've decided the most important thing for me is to be true to myself -- learn to accept myself as I really am and try to love myself -- everything else will follow because we tend to treat other people according to how we feel about ourselves and what goes around comes around

[janbear]

Katelynn D. Says:
Alcoholism is a disease, and without treatment, it will only progress. Unfortunately, this disease contributed in the death of the man I divorced and many others that I was close to through out my life. This memory is a constant reminder, that we all have choices to make each day. My choice today is to live sober and drug-free, and for that, I am truly grateful.

[janbear]

Joan G. Says:
Today my thinking is along differnt lines. My life, my responsibilities, my family, my choices, my career, my feelings, my likes and dislikes, all things I lost sight of in my disease. I never got together again with my husband and he's still drinking. I give my son the dignity and respect to live his own life and we have a good relationship today. And by the grace of God, I have a life, my life.

[janbear]

Clarice Says:
My miracle is that, in Al-Anon, I finally learned how to get out of the way. I came to believe I am not my son's Higher Power, and I am not his sponsor. I cannot change his response to his disease. I can change my response to his disease and to everyone and every thing I try to control!

[janbear]

Tree Says:
I have found that when I find myself in chaos and confusion, this disease in all its ugliness in right with me. But with the tools of this program I stop - breath in and out slowly - then do my 3rd step. I make the conscience decision to turn my will over to the care of God and then most important - I need to listen! Things do get better and maybe not in the way we would think they would, but it works.

[janbear]

Lisabuela Says:
I love the experiential nature of the program. I get to encounter another. I get to sit in a circle where there is no cross talk only designated space for each and every person to be heard. Silence is fine too. It's an exquisite encounter of intimacy. It includes the sublime and the inspired, the sweet and the confused!

[janbear]

June Says:
One of the important things I have done to stay in the now and stay centered, sane and sober for the past three years is read the Recovery thought of the day. That, along with some meditation, prayer, and living the "AA" program of recovery in all of my affairs for the past 14 years has changed my life for the better. I can look in the mirror and like what looks back at me and I can even be comfortable in this skin of mine most of the time.

[janbear]

Ruth Says:
I finally succumbed to the messages God was giving me and to the proddings of a fellow recovering alcoholics to look for help. That was in 1997. After six years of therapy, totalling another car, divorcing the husband and several relapses, I have become a better person, more stable, more joyful, more clearminded about myself and with tremendous will to help any other person in the same wagon. My search for the spiritual me is passionate and has taken over the will to drink entirely.

[janbear]

Phil Says:
Trying to stay sober would seem impossible if I did not value my self esteem, I was not given this gift of life to distroy it through an addiction. During my addiction I loathed my own behavior. Now in my well state I still am not peaceful and happy all the time but the self loathing has gone -- thank God.

[janbear]

Dwight B. Says:
I must remind myself daily that if I allow resenment to effect me and enter into my life, I will again be back out on the street and running! Resentments to me are as dangerous and destructive as taking that "First Drink" would be. Because of that, a daily (or sometimes an hourly) inventory is a must!

[janbear]

Ariel Z. Says:
The only thing that ever got through to him was the classic Al-Anon strategy of letting him suffer the consequences of his own actions, letting him fall and getting out of the way. I would literally leave the house in order to avoid waking him up for work. When he finally got fired for showing up at a new job 4 hours late and hung over, that's when he got it. He's been sober for over two years now.

[janbear]

Tree Says:
I have found that when I find myself in chaos and confusion, this disease in all its ugliness in right with me. But with the tools of this program I stop - breath in and out slowly - then do my 3rd step. I make the conscience decision to turn my will over to the care of God and then most important - I need to listen! Things do get better and maybe not in the way we would think they would, but it works.

[janbear]

Betty Ann Says:
When I pray for awareness I need to remember that action will need to be taken once that I have received it, because awareness without action is misery. If I am made aware of a pattern of behavior or character defect that needs to worked on, and then sit around on my laurels, I run around knowing that I am definitely the problem, yet I am trapped by my own unwillingness.

[janbear]

Cheryl H. Says:
I survived my husband's alcoholism, but he didn't. Al Anon made it possible for me to accept his death without guilt. It took me a while to understand that his decisions were out of my control no matter how much it hurt. My decision was to stay because he was a wonderful person with a terrible problem. I still view life with him as better than life without him.

[janbear]

Amy L. Says:
I have learned in sobriety that there is hope for everyone, and that the power greater than myself gives me the courage, strength, and wisdom to go through each day sober and half sane if I stay willing to do his work. Working the steps turned into them working for me and working with others has kept me going when all else failed. The people in my home group keep me focused, and my higher power loves me even when I am unlovable.

[janbear]

Kim M. Says:
I just could not accept the fact that I would NEVER be able to use again. Just the thought of it made me cringe! It wasn't until a fellow recovering addict came to me and said, "Hey! Just try to keep your focus on today. Just for today!" When this person said those three simple words to me, he probably had no idea his words would forever change my life. Well, that they did! The thought of NEVER using again was unimaginable, but just for today - seven years later - I am clean and serene!

[janbear]

Cassandra C. Says:
Not everyone has the same concept of a Higher Power, but there is alot of talk about GOD in the rooms with a capital G. My sponsor has helped me through step 2 by showing me that god can be many things -- "gift of desperation" or "gratitude over despair" or "good orderly direction" from a "group of drunks."

[bluidkiti]

Helen G. Says:
I always have to remember that I have a disease called alcoholism. It is never cured, just as diseases such as cancer, diabetes, etc. are cured. But I am assured that I can always keep it in remission by following the steps, having a sponsor, and to let go, and let God. With the help of AA, I can continue my sobriety for the rest of my life.

[janbear]

Judy C. Says:
When I discovered that I had a drinking problem, I knew that I would have to have God and a Spirtitual program in my life. No longer could I make excuses why I drank. Once I worked through the issues that caused me to drink, then and only then, I no longer needed to drink again. This was 16-1/2 years ago. Today, I am a productive woman whose life is filled with joy, happiness and I returned back to school at the age of 49. So, its never too late to fulfill one's potential.