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(\ ~~ /)
( \ (AA)/ )
(_ /AA\ _)
/AA\
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Fellowship
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"The fellowship I found in AA enabled me
to face my problem honestly and squarely.
I couldn't do it among my relatives,
I couldn't do it among my friends.
No one likes to admit they're a drunk,
that they can't control this thing.
But when we come into AA,
we can face our problem honestly and openly.
I went to closed meetings and open meetings.
And I took everything that AA had to give me.
It was at that point I reached surrender."
1976AAWS, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 340
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Thought to Consider . . .
We honor the spirit in other people when we listen to them.
*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
C A R E = Comforting And Reassuring Each other.
*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*
Tradition Eight: Alcoholics Anonymous should remain nonprofessional, but our service centers may employ special workers.
It is significant, now that almost no A.A. in our Fellowship breaks anonymity at the public level, that nearly all these fears have subsided. We see that we have no right or need to discourage A.A.'s who wish to work as individuals in these wider fields. It would be actually antisocial were we to forbid them. We cannot declare A.A. such a closed corporation that we keep our knowledge and experience top secret. If an A.A. member acting as a citizen can become a better researcher, educator, personnel officer, then why not? Everybody gains, and we have lost nothing. True, some of the projects to which A.A.'s have attached themselves have been ill-conceived, but that makes not the slightest difference with the principle involved.
1981, AAWS, Inc., Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, page 171
LISTENING DEEPLY
How persistently we claim the right to decide all by
ourselves just what we shall think and just how we shall act.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 37
If I accept and act upon the advice of those who have
made the program work for themselves, I have a chance to
outgrow the limits of the past. Some problems will shrink
to nothingness, while others may require patient, well-thought-out action. Listening deeply when others share
can develop intuition in handling problems which arise
unexpectedly. It is usually best for me to avoid impetuous
action. Attending a meeting or calling a fellow A. A.
member will usually reduce tension enough to bring relief
to a desperate sufferer like me. Sharing problems at
meetings with other alcoholics to whom I relate, or
privately with my sponsor, can change aspects of the
positions in which I find myself. Character defects are
identified and I begin to see how they work against me.
When I put my faith in the spiritual power of the program,
when I trust other to teach me what I need to do to have a
better life, I find that I can trust myself to do what is
necessary.
Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Hope Born from Hopelessness
Letter to Dr. Carl Jung:
"Most conversion experiences, whatever their variety, do have a common denominator of ego collapse at depth. The individual faces an impossible dilemma. "In my case the dilemma had been created by my compulsive drinking, and the deep feeling of hopelessness had been vastly deepened by my doctor. It was deepened still more by my alcoholic friend when he acquainted me with your verdict of hopelessness respecting Rowland H. "In the wake of my spiritual experience there came a vision of a society of
alcoholics. If each sufferer were to carry the news of the scientific
hopelessness of alcoholism to each new prospect, he might be able to lay every newcomer wide open to a transforming spiritual experience. This concept proved to be the foundation of such success as A.A. has since achieved."
GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1963
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"More than most people, the alcoholic leads a double life. He is very
much the actor. To the outer world he presents his stage character.
This is the one he likes his fellows to see. He wants to enjoy a
certain reputation, but knows in his heart he doesn't deserve it."
~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, Into Action, pg. 73~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day
We in A.A. are offering a spiritual program. The fundamental
basis of A.A. is belief in some Power greater than ourselves.
This belief takes us off the center of the universe and
allows us to transfer our problems to some power outside of
ourselves. We turn to this Power for the strength we need to
get sober and stay sober. We put our drink problem in God's
hands and leave it there. We stop trying to run our own life
and seek to let God run it for us. Do I do my best to give
spiritual help?
Meditation for the Day
God is your healer and your strength. You do not have to ask
Him to come to you. He is always with you in spirit. At your
moment of need He is there to help you. Could you know God's
love and His desire to help you, you would know that He needs
no pleading for help. Your need is God's opportunity. You must
learn to rely on God's strength whenever you need it. Whenever
you feel inadequate to any situation, you should realize that
the feeling of inadequacy is disloyalty to God. Just say to
yourself. I know that God is with me and wild help me to think
and say and do the right thing,
Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may never feel inadequate to any situation. I pray
that I may be buoyed up by the feeling that God is with me.
Hazelden Foundation PO Box 176 Center City, MN 55012
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