So simple that it seems, at least in the meetings I’ve been attending, that it has been forgotten or is being ignored.
From the Akron Manual;
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.- Matthew VI, 34.
Those words are taken from the Sermon on the Mount. Simply, they mean live in today only. Forget yesterday. Do not anticipate tomorrow. You can only live one day at a time and if you do a good job of that, you will have little trouble. One of the …read more

AA.org provides organized Suggestions For Leading Beginners’ Meetings from which I draw the following;
What Kind Of Beginners’ Meetings Work Best?
“Many kinds have worked well. They range from small, unplanned, informal discussions, with newcomers doing most of the talking and a different leader each time, to large sessions, prearranged in a series, with one continuing leader giving prepared talks on specific A.A. subjects.
A combination of these two types seems to work best. Groups have found that newcomers’ chances of recovery are higher if they can actively take part in A.A. discussions as soon as possible—and that they also need someone with …read more

This entry will be designed to elicit from you a list of meeting topics that can be used in Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.
I sat in a meeting today in a group that has a list numbered one through forty (1-40) yet no one chose any of those. The chairperson was new to chairing and has a lot to learn – this wasn’t his doing – it’s ours. Having asked for a topic or a burning desire and receiving nothing, he resorted to a First Step meeting in a manner that was nothing less than the “easier, softer way.” Can’t think of …read more

Last year we made an attempt to determine what is the message that we carry in Alcoholics Anonymous and received a couple of excellent responses;
Joe said: “The message that I carry is AA’s message. 12 steps which guarantee a spiritual awakening to be the result. My obligation is to try to share my experience with those twelve steps with other Alcoholics and to practice the 12 disciplines in all my affairs. Most important to me is that I be cognisant that this is AA’s program and AA’s steps! Not mine! My program is what brought me to AA! One path …read more

For those who are new to Alcoholics Anonymous…
You’re going to hear from folks who are called “chronic slippers.” They are not bedtime shoes, they are people who come and go, stay sober for a short time, relapse, come back etc. etc. etc.
Rob the Hat and old man Charlie used to tell a story about, of all names, a fellow named Mark who’d come into one of the Centereach groups. Mark would shake and bake for a while, stay sober for about three months, get to feeling better and then start to share about how he was thinking about drinking again. …read more

The Serenity Prayer
GOD, grant me the serenity
to accept the things
I cannot change,
Courage to change the
things I can, and the
wisdom to know the difference.
Living ONE DAY AT A TIME;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardship as the
pathway to peace.
Taking, as He did, this
sinful world as it is,
not as I would have it.
Trusting that He will make
all things right if I
surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy
in this life, and supremely
happy with Him forever in
the next. Amen
Just mho, it never gets old and the repetition can’t hurt…

Today’s Daily Reflection…
Equality
To me, this could be one of the Top Ten ideals/principles we can strive for. Shamefully, there are folks who, imho, differ and differ out loud and irrationally. Consider;
“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.”
Conformity eh? What does that mean? To me that means that those who would judge me less than a real alcoholic because I say I’m recoverin(g) instead of recovere(d) – can go to he**! I have no requirement to conform to your …read more

One of the many places in our literature which provided those oldtimers with enough resources to tell me the truth about me is on page 40 in our 12&12;
“Then it is explained that other steps of the A.A. program can be practiced with success only when Step Three is given a determined and persistent trial. This statement may surprise newcomers who have experienced nothing but constant deflation and a growing conviction that human will is of no value whatever.”
Are there really newcomers like that? (j/k)
“They have become persuaded, and rightly so, that many problems besides alcohol will not yield to …read more

Returning to the beginnings of “Living Sober,” we find common sense…
“Like almost any other ideas, the suggestions in this booklet can be misused.” Exactly like the suggestions in a meeting can be misused. And? The point? Won’t it all be what it will be according to someone else’s plan anyway?
Looking at the slogan “Easy Does It” the book says;
“Some of us have found that we could abuse this sensible notion, turning it into an excuse for tardiness, laziness, or rudeness. That is not, of course, what the slogan is intended for. Properly applied, it can be healing; misapplied, it can …read more

For any of you who may not know, I believe, from what I’ve read and heard through the years, that Bill Wilson was certainly a pride-filled human being. Which, no doubt, is why we ought to consider ourselves blessed by the work he did on it to find a humility that worked for him and for us.
I’ve been accused of a lot of things in my life. Most recently, my feelings (and my friend Mike’s feelings) were accused of killing suffering human beings. That’s pretty caustic but not unusual, for the person who made the accusation is obviously in a …read more