Daily Reflection

MARCH 31

NO ONE DENIED ME LOVE

On the A. A. calendar it was Year Two. . . . A newcomer

appeared at one of these groups. . . . He soon proved that

his was a desperate case, and that above all he wanted to

get well . . . [He said], "Since I am the victim of another

addiction even worse stigmatized than alcoholism, you may

not want me among you."

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, pp. 141-42

I came to you—a wife, mother, woman who had walked out

on her husband, children, family. I was a drunk, a pill-head,

a nothing. Yet no one denied me love, caring, a sense of

belonging. Today, by God's grace and the love of a good

sponsor and a home group, I can say that—through you in

Alcoholics Anonymous—I am a wife, a mother, a

grandmother and a woman. Sober. Free of pills. Responsible.

Without a Higher Power I found in the Fellowship, my

life would be meaningless. I am full of gratitude to be a

member of good standing in Alcoholics Anonymous.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 30
OUR GROUP CONSCIENCE
". . . sometimes the good is the enemy of the best"
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS COMES OF AGE P- 101
I think these words apply to every area of A.A.'s Three
Legacies: Recovery, Unity and Service! I want them etched
in my mind and life as I "trudge the Road of Happy
Destiny" (Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 164). These words,
often spoken by co-founder Bill W., were appropriately
said to him as the result of the group's conscience. It
brought home to Bill W. the essence of our Second Tradition:
"Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not
govern."
Just as Bill W. was originally urged to remember, I think
that in our group discussions we should never settle for the
"good," but always strive to attain the "best." These
common strivings are yet another example of a loving God,
as we understand Him, expressing Himself through the
group conscience. Experiences such as these help me to
stay on the proper path of recovery. I learn to combine
initiative with humility, responsibility with thankfulness,
and thus relish the joys of living my twenty-four hour
program.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 29
TRUSTED SERVANTS
They are servants. Theirs is the sometimes thankless
privilege of doing the group's chores
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 134
In Zorba the Greek, Nikos Kazantzakis describes an
encounter between his principal character and an old man
busily at work planting a tree. "What is it you are doing?"
Zorba asks. The old man replies: "You can see very well
what I'm doing, my son, I'm planting a tree." "But why
plant a tree," Zorba asks, "if you won't be able to see it bear
fruit?" And the old man answers: "I, my son, live as though
I were never going to die." The response brings a faint
smile to Zorba's lips and, as he walks away, he exclaims
with a note of irony: "How strange—I live as though I were
going to die tomorrow!"
As a member of Alcoholics Anonymous, I have found
that the Third Legacy is a fertile soil in which to plant the
tree of my sobriety. The fruits I harvest are wonderful:
peace, security, understanding and twenty-four hours of
eternal fulfillment; and with the soundness of mind to listen
to the voice of my conscience when, in silence, it gently
speaks to me, saying: You must let go in service. There are
others who must plant and harvest.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 28
EQUALITY
Our membership ought to include all who suffer from
alcoholism Hence we may refuse none who wish to recover.
Nor ought A.A. membership ever depend upon money or
conformity. Any two or three alcoholics gathered together
for sobriety may call themselves an A.A. group, provided
that, as a group, they have no other affiliation.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 565
Prior to A.A., I often felt that I didn't "fit in" with the
people around me. Usually "they" had more/ less money
than I did, and my points of view didn't jibe with "theirs."
The amount of prejudice I had experienced in society only
proved to me just how phony some self-righteous people
were. After joining A. A., I found the way of life I had been
searching for. In A.A. no member is better than any other
member; we're just alcoholics trying to recover from
alcoholism.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 27
A.A.'s FREEDOMS
We trust that we already know what our several freedoms
truly are; that no future generation of AAs will ever feel
compelled to limit them. Our AA freedoms create the soil in
which genuine love can grow. . . .
LANGUAGE OF THE HEART, p. 303
I craved freedom. First, freedom to drink; later, freedom
from drink. The A.A. program of recovery rests on a
foundation of free choice. There are no mandates, laws or
commandments. A.A.'s spiritual program, as outlined in the
Twelve Steps, and by which I am offered even greater
freedoms, is only suggested. I can take it or leave it.
Sponsorship is offered, not forced, and I come and go as I
will. It is these and other freedoms that allow me to recapture
the dignity that was crushed by the burden of drink,
and which is so dearly needed to support an enduring
sobriety.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 26
THE TEACHING IS NEVER OVER
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.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 164
These words put a lump in my throat each time I read them.
In the beginning it was because I felt, "Oh no! The teaching
is over. Now I'm on my own. It will never be this new
again." Today I feel deep affection for our A.A. pioneers
when I read this passage, realizing that it sums up all of
what I believe in, and strive for, and that—with God's
blessing—the teaching is never over, I'm never on my own,
and every day is brand new.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 25
A FULL AND THANKFUL HEART
 try hard to hold fast to the truth that a full and thankful
heart cannot entertain great conceits. When brimming with
gratitude, one's heartbeat must surely result in outgoing
love, the finest emotion that we can ever know.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 37
I believe that we in Alcoholics Anonymous are fortunate in
that we are constantly reminded of the need to be grateful
and of how important gratitude is to our sobriety. I am truly
grateful for the sobriety God has given me through the
A.A. program and am glad I can give back what was given
to me freely. I am grateful not only for sobriety, but for the
quality of life my sobriety has brought. God has been
gracious enough to give me sober days and a life blessed
with peace and contentment, as well as the ability to give
and receive love, and the opportunity to serve others—in
our Fellowship, my family and my community. For all of
this, I have "a full and thankful heart."

Daily Reflection

MARCH 24
ACTIVE, NOT PASSIVE
Man is supposed to think, and act He wasn't made in God's
image to be an automaton.
AS BILL SEES IT, p. 55
Before I joined A.A., I often did not think, and reacted to
people and situations. When not reacting I acted in a
mechanical fashion. After joining A. A., I started seeking
daily guidance from a Power greater than myself, and
learning to listen for that guidance. Then I began to make
decisions and act on them, rather than react to them. The
results have been constructive; I no longer allow others to
make decisions for me and then criticize me for it.
Today—and every day—with a heart full of gratitude,
and a desire for God's will to be done through me, my life
is worth sharing, especially with my fellow alcoholics!
Above all, if I do not make a religion out of anything, even
A.A., then I can be an open channel for God's expression.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 23
. . . AND NO MORE RESERVATIONS
We have seen the truth again and again: "Once an alcoholic,
always an alcoholic.". . . If we are planning to stop
drinking, there must be no reservation of any kind, nor any
lurking notion that someday we will be immune to alcohol.
. . . To be gravely affected, one does not necessarily have
to drink a long time nor take the quantities some of us have.
This is particularly true of women. Potential female alcoholics
often turn into the real thing and are gone beyond
recall in a few years.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 33
These words are underlined in my book. They are true for
men and women alcoholics. On many occasions I've turned
to this page and reflected on this passage. I need never fool
myself by recalling my sometimes differing drinking
patterns, or by believing I am "cured." I like to think that, if
sobriety is God's gift to me, then my sober life is my gift to
God. I hope God is as happy with His gift as I am with
mine.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 22
NO MORE STRUGGLE. . .
And we have ceased fighting anything or anyone— even
alcohol.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 84
When A.A. found me, I thought I was in for a struggle, and
that A.A. might provide the strength I needed to beat
alcohol. Victorious in that fight, who knows what other
battles I could win. I would need to be strong, though. All
my previous experience with life proved that. Today I do
not have to struggle or exert my will. If I take those Twelve
Steps and let my Higher Power do the real work, my
alcohol problem disappears all by itself. My living
problems also cease to be struggles. I just have to ask
whether acceptance—or change—is required. It is not my
will, but His, that needs doing.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 21
MATERIAL AND SPIRITUAL WELL-BEING
Fear . . . of economic insecurity will leave us.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 84
Having fear reduced or eliminated and having economic
circumstances improve, are two different things. When I
was new in A.A., I had those two ideas confused. I thought
fear would leave me only when I started making money.
However, another line from the Big Book jumped off the
page one day when I was chewing on my financial
difficulties: "For us, material well-being always followed
spiritual progress; it never preceded." (p. 127). I suddenly
understood that this promise was a guarantee. I saw that it
put priorities in the correct order, that spiritual progress
would diminish that terrible fear of being destitute, just as it
diminished many other fears.
Today I try to use the talents God gave me to benefit
others. I've found that is what others valued all along. I try
to remember that I no longer work for myself. I only get the
use of the wealth God created, I never have "owned" it. My
life's purpose is much clearer when I just work to help, not
to possess.

Daily Reflection

MARCH 20
LOVE AND TOLERANCE
Love and tolerance of others is our code.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 84
I have found that I have to forgive others in all situations to
maintain any real spiritual progress. The vital importance
of forgiving may not be obvious to me at first sight, but my
studies tell me that every great spiritual teacher has insisted
strongly upon it.
I must forgive injuries, not just in words, or as a matter
of form, but in my heart. I do this not for the other persons'
sake, but for my own sake. Resentment, anger, or a desire
to see someone punished, are things that rot my soul. Such
things fasten my troubles to me with chains. They tie me to
other problems that have nothing to do with my original
problem.