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The almost certain consequences that follow taking even a glass of beer do not crowd into the mind to deter us

As we became subjects of King Alcohol, shivering denizens of his mad realm, the chilling vapor that is loneliness settled down

Willingness, honesty and open mindedness are the essentials of recovery

Above all, I have gained the greatest thing accorded any man, the love and understanding of a gracious God

Resentment is the number one offender

Keep his attention focused mainly on your personal experience

For we are now on a different basis; the basis of trusting and relying upon God

I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you and my fellows

Above everything, we alcoholics must be rid of this selfishness

Men and women drink essentially because they like the effect produced by alcohol

I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment

an old-timer told me something that has affected my life ever since

Keep on the firing line of life with these motives and God will keep you unharmed

Every time a person imposes his instincts unreasonably upon others, unhappiness follows

You may be suffering from an illness which only a spiritual experience will conquer

We are people who normally would not mix

When we work at our twelve steps, the old life of guzzling and fuzzy thinking, and all that goes with it, gradually dies, and we acquire a different and a better way of life

To watch people recover, to see them help others, to watch loneliness vanish, to have a host of friends - this is an experience you must not miss

and willing to get well, little charity, in the ordinary sense of the word, is needed or wanted

Many, we are sure, will rise to their feet and march on

A tumbler full of gin followed by half a dozen bottles of beer would be required if I were to eat any breakfast

We thought well before taking this step making sure we were ready; that we could at last abandon ourselves utterly to Him

Perpetual quietness of heart

To be doomed to an alcoholic death or to live on a Spiritual basis are not always easy alternatives to face

They are restless, irritable and discontented, unless they can again experience the sense of ease and comfort which comes at once by taking a few drinks--drinks which they see others taking with impunity

Faith has to work twenty-four hours a day in and through us, or we perish

Both you and the new man must walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress

My depression deepened unbearably, and finally it seemed to me as though I was at the very bottom of the pit

Fear sobered me for a bit

Upon a foundation of complete willingness, I might build what I saw in my friend

I came to A.A. with only my problems.

The day never passes that I do not silently cry out in thankfulness, not merely for my release from alcohol, but even more for a change that has given life new meaning, dignity and beauty

few people will sincerely try to practice the A.A. program unless they have hit bottom

They have found wisdom beyond their usual capability

All of A.A.'s Twelve Steps ask us to go contrary to our natural desires... they all deflate our egos.

Do not think of what you will get out of the occasion

We were prepared to look at it from an entirely different angle

Continue to watch for selfishness, dishonesty, resentment, and fear

It is easy to let up on the spiritual program of action and rest on our laurels

then would come oblivion and the awful awakening to face the hideous Four Horsemen--Terror, Bewilderment, Frustration, Despair.

We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us

When I had been in A.A. only a short while, an old timer told me something that has affected my life ever since.

I rather appreciated your ideas about the subtle insanity which precedes the first drink, but I was confident it could not happen to me after what I had learned

Both you and the new man must walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress

As the sober days grew into sober months and then into sober years, a new and beautiful life began to emerge from the shambles of my former existence

To conclude that others were wrong was as far as most of us ever got

Selfishness—self-centeredness! That we think is the root of our troubles

Strenuous work, one alcoholic with another, was vital to permanent recovery

The essence of all growth is a willingness to change for the better and then an unremitting willingness to shoulder whatever responsibility this entails

To get over drinking will require a transformation of thought and atti- tude

We perceive that only through utter defeat are we able to take our first steps toward liberation and strength

Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do Thy will

So our troubles, we think, are basically of our own making

The feeling of having shared ina common peril is one element in the powerful cement which binds us

We are people who normally would not mix

We can check ourselves by remembering that we are today sober only by the Grace of God and that any success we may be having is far more His success than ours

Here and there, once in a while, alcoholics have had what are called vital spiritual experiences

The deception of others is nearly always rooted in the deception of ourselves

We have entered the world of the Spirit

He does absurd, incredible, tragic things while drinking

It meant destruction of self-centered-ness

Patience, tolerance, understanding and love are the watchwords

This attitude, of course, is the end- result of purposeful forgetting

He cannot picture life without alcohol

Too many times discouragement has been the bonus for unrealistic expectations, not to mention self-pity or fatigue from my wanting to change the world by the weekend

You will be bound to them with new and wonderful ties, for you will escape disaster together and you will commence shoulder to shoulder your common journey

First of all, we had to quit playing God

Diversity of character is due to the unequal time given to values

the elements of a way of living which answered all my problems

For when harboring such feelings we shut ourselves off from the sunlight of the Spirit

Are we now ready to let God remove from us all the things which we have admitted are objectionable? Can He now take them all—every one?

We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness

Faced with alcoholic destruction, we soon became as Open minded on spiritual matters as we had tried to be on other questions

Love and tolerance is our code

We realize we know only a little

Taking this book down from our shelf we turn to the page which contains the twelve steps

The first requirement is that we be convinced that any life run on self-will can hardly be a success

We ask that we be given strength and direction to do the right thing

We feel that elimination of our drinking is but a beginning

We feel we are on the Broad Highway, walking hand in hand with the Spirit of the Universe

We become much more efficient

We find that no one need have difficulty with the spirituality of the program

What you say about the general hopelessness of the average alcoholic's plight is, in my opinion, correct

We know that God lovingly watches over us

More than most people, the alcoholic leads a double life

When we became alcoholics, crushed by a self-imposed crisis we could not postpone or evade, we had to fearlessly face the proposition that either God is everything or else He is nothing

Avoid then, the deliberate manufacture of misery

Selfishness--self-centeredness! That, we think, is the root of our troubles

It is when we try to make our will conform with God’s that we begin to use it rightly

Though our decision was a vital and crucial step, it could have little permanent effect unless at once followed by a strenuous effort to face, and to be rid of, the things in ourselves which had been blocking us

Those who do not recover are people who cannot or will not completely give themselves to this simple program, usually men and women who are constitutionally incapable of being honest with themselves.

Instead of having just good intentions that are me-centered, you can have God intentions that are God-centered

This to the end that our great blessings may never spoil us; that we shall forever live in thankful contemplation of Him who presides over us all

Each day, somewhere in the world, recovery begins when one alcoholic talks with another alcoholic, sharing experience, strength, and hope

If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are half way through

Life will take on new meaning

I saw that growth could start from that point

Most alcoholics owe money

The only requirement for membership is an honest desire to stop drinking

We pocket our pride and go to it, illuminating every twist of character, every dark cranny of the past

We will see that our new attitude toward liquor has been given us without any thought or effort on our part

they often lack emotional sobriety

there are certain things which only the individual can do

We finally saw that faith in some kind of God was a part of our make-up, just as much as the feeling we have fora friend.

Are we now ready to let God remove from us all the things which we have admitted are objectionable? Can He now take them all--every one?

Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics

Once in a while he may tell the truth

He finally realizes that he has undergone a profound alteration in his reaction to life; that such a change could hardly have been brought about by himself alone

No words can tell of the loneliness and despair I found in that bitter morass of self-pity

While I lay in the hospital the thought came that there were thousands of hopeless alcoholics who might be glad to have what had been so freely given me

How can I best serve Thee--Thy will (not mine) be done

Resentment is the number one offender

There were flights from city to country and back, as my wife and I sought escape

It is not the matter of giving that is in question, but when and how to give

They only thought they had lost their egoism and fear; they only thought they had humbled themselves

there is no middle-of-the-road solution

When we sincerely took such a position, all sorts of remarkable things followed

Are we now ready to let God remove from us all the things which we have admitted are objectionable?

He had lost everything worthwhile in life and was only living, one might say, to drink

The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker

Today the remarkable unity of A.A. is one of the greatest assets that our Society has

The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker

Yes, there is a substitute, and it is vastly more than that

See to it that your relationship with Him is right, and great events will come to pass for you and countless others

The feeling of having shared in a common peril is one element in the powerful cement which binds us

Carry this message to other alcoholics! You can help when no one else can

Ask Him in your morning meditation what you can do each day for the man who is still sick

Most of us think this awareness of a Power greater than ourselves is the essence of spiritual experience

These men were not drinking to escape; they were drinking to overcome a craving beyond their mental control

he has become very curious to know how you got well.

Under these conditions we can employ our mental faculties with assurance, for after all God gave us brains to use

To us, the Realm of Spirit is broad, roomy, all inclusive; never exclusive or forbidding to those who earnestly seek

Delay is dangerous, and rebellion may be fatal.

The greatest enemies of us alcoholics are resentment, jealousy, envy, frustration, and fear

The only real freedom a human being can ever know is doing what you ought to do because you want to do it

Most emphatically we wish to say that any alcoholic capable of honesty facing his problems in the light of our experience can recover, provided he does not close his mind to all spiritual concepts

It brings misunderstanding, fierce resentment, financial insecurity, disgusted friends and employers, warped lives of blameless children, sad wives and parents--

The verdict of the ages is that faith means courage

Each day, somewhere in the world, recovery begins when one alcoholic talks with another alcoholic, sharing experience, strength, and hope

In the face of collapse and despair, in the face of the total failure of their human resources, they found that a new power, peace, happiness, and sense of direction flowed into them

We are sure God wants us to be happy, joyous, and free

The more we become willing to depend upon a Higher Power, the more independent we actually are

All of us felt at times that we were regaining control, but such intervals-- usually brief--were inevitably followed by still less control, which led in time to pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization

In fact, the effectiveness of the whole A

It will become more and more evident as we go forward that it is pointless to become angry, or to get hurt by people who, like us, are suffering from the pains of growing up

If we were to live, we had to be free of anger

Putting out of our minds the wrongs others had done, we resolutely looked for our own mistakes

They are restless, irritable and discontented, unless they can again experience the sense of ease and comfort which comes at once by taking a few drinks--drinks which they see others taking with impunity

You may be suffering from an illness which only a spiritual experience will conquer

Resentment is the number one offender

let me pass on what I consider the four paradoxes of how A.A. Works

Being all powerful, He provided what we needed, if we kept close to Him and performed His work well

Some of us have tried to hold on to our old ideas and the result was nil until we let go absolutely

Most of us sense that real tolerance of other people's shortcomings and viewpoints and a respect for their opinions are attitudes which make us more useful to others

No words can tell of the loneliness and despair I found in that bitter morass of self-pity

I suppose some would be shocked at our seeming worldliness and levity

A much more important demonstration of our principles lies before us in our respective homes, occupations and affairs

If we skip this vital step, we may not overcome drinking

When a person offended we said to ourselves, This is a sick man

Our behavior is as absurd and incomprehensible with respect to the first drink as that of an individual with a passion, say, for jay-walking

the alcoholic leads a double life

Many of us had moral and philosophical convictions galore, but we could not live up to them even though we would have liked to

At some of these we balked

We went back through our lives

Men and women drink essentially because they like the effect produced by alcohol

The fact is that most alcoholics, for reasons yet obscure, have lost the power of choice in drink

This short word somehow touches about every aspect of our lives

They had said that though I did raise a defense, it would one day give way before some trivial reason for having a drink

First Things First

Giving rather than getting will become the guiding principle

Your job now is to be at the place where you may be of maximum helpfulness to others, so never hesitate to go anywhere if you can be helpful

It is harder to go to an enemy than to a friend, but we find it much more beneficial to us

We become much more efficient

Where had we been selfish, dishonest, or inconsiderate? Whom had we hurt? Did we unjustifiably arouse jealousy, suspicion or bitterness?

This brave philosophy, wherein each man plays God, sounds good in the speaking, but it still has to meet the acid test: how well does it actually work? One good look in the mirror ought to be answer enough for any alcoholic

Most of us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics

This seemed to prove that one alcoholic could affect another as no nonalcoholic could

They believe in themselves, and still more in the Power which pulls chronic alcoholics back from the gates of death

No stop signs, speed limit Nobody's gonna slow me down Like a wheel, gonna spin it Nobody's gonna mess me around —AC/DC

Yet we had been seeing another kind of flight, a spiritual liberation from this world, people who rose above their problems

He has a positive genius for getting tight at exactly the wrong moment

Both you and the new man must walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress

We feel that elimination of our drinking is but a beginning

Opinions vary considerably as to why the alcoholic reacts differently from normal people

In this book you read again and again that faith did for us what we could not do for ourselves

If your talk has been sane, quiet and full of human understanding, you have perhaps made a friend

Anyone who knows the alcoholic personality by firsthand contact knows that no true alky ever stops drinking permanently without undergoing a profound personality change

Actually we were fooling ourselves, for deep down in every man, woman, and child, is the fundamental idea of God

Selfishness--self-centeredness! That, we think, is the root of our troubles

Those who do not recover are people who cannot or will not completely give themselves to this simple program, usually men and women who are constitutionally incapable of being honest with themselves

The most lovable quality anyone can possess is tolerance

They tell why living was so unsatisfactory

When we saw our faults we listed them

So our troubles, we think, are basically of our own making

We learned that we had to fully concede to our innermost selves that we were alcoholics

In 1948 Dr. Bob recalled the absolutes as the only yardstick A.A. had in the early days before the Twelve Steps.

The tremendous fact for every one of us is that we have discovered a common solution

Cling to the thought that, in God's hands, the dark past is the greatest possession you have--the key to life and happiness for others

Both of you will awaken to a new sense of responsibility for others

The only requirement for membership is an honest desire to stop drinking

We begin to feel the nearness of our Creator

his character defects, representing instincts have gone astray, have been the primary cause of his drinking and his failure at life

Nothing, absolutely nothing happens in God's world by mistake

When these crop up, we ask God at once to remove them

truly brought him to God

Friendship marks a life even more deeply than love

But this is not all

Helping others is the foundation stone of your recovery

Our first objective will be the development of self restraint

faith in some kind of God was a part of our make-up

The main problem of the alcoholic centers in his mind

We lose the fear of making decisions, great and small, as we realize that should our choice prove wrong we can, if we will, learn from the experience

We should not try to understand God from what we think we know about love, but rather we should strive to understand love in the light of who God is

faith in some kind of God was a part of our make-up

Giving rather than getting will become the guiding principle.

As we became subjects of King Alcohol, shivering denizens of his mad realm, the chilling vapor that is loneliness settled down

It is an effort to discover the truth about the stock-in-trade

There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance----that principle is contempt prior to investigation

Circumstances made him willing to believe

Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics

Remind the prospect that his recovery is not dependent upon people

So our troubles, we think, are basically of our own making

In the face of collapse and despair, in the face of the total failure of their human resources, they found that a new power, peace, happiness, and sense of direction flowed into them

In A.A. we have found that the actual good results of prayer are beyond question.

We are sure God wants us to be happy, joyous, and free

The great fact is just this, and nothing less: That we have had deep and effective spiritual experiences which have revolutionized our whole attitude toward life, toward our fellows and toward God's universe.

We will see that our new attitude toward liquor has been given us without any thought or effort on our part

He finally realizes that he has undergone a profound alteration in his reaction to life; that such a change could hardly have been brought about by himself alone

What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition

In this book you read again and again that faith did for us what we could not do for ourselves

These things will come to pass naturally and in good time provided, however, the alcoholic continues to demonstrate that he can be sober, considerate, and helpful, regardless of what anyone says or does

Much has been written pro and con, but among physicians, the general opinion seems to be that most chronic alcoholics are doomed

God will determine that, so you must remember that your real reliance is always upon Him

I am living in hell from one day to the next

It is easy to let up on the spiritual program of action and rest on our laurels

All these failings generate fear, a soul sickness in its own right

We finally saw that faith in some kind of God was a part of our make-up, just as much as the feeling we have fora friend