One way to keep a grateful heart is to remember what AA has given us. The following passages were selected from our vast Grapevine Story Archives, which goes back to 1944. Thank you for sharing your stories with us
“Love is the principle that guided my first friends in AA. They welcomed me without question into their Fellowship. They were not concerned about anything except that I was a drunk. I was asked if I wanted help, if I had a place to sleep that night, and if I’d care for a cup of coffee. I was allowed to be myself, as best I could. No demands were made, no expectations were declared, no conformity was required. I was simply invited to share what they offered.”
Greg H., Moreno Valley, Calif.
From “Principles to Live By,” August 1994
“AA has rewired my thinking. What makes me happy now isn’t living the life I saw on TV when I was a kid. It truly is an inside job. AA has taught me how to try things I didn’t think I could do. I learned that I have to go through fear and can’t avoid it by going around. After I went to the mat with a few of my monsters, I realized that I really wasn’t afraid of things so much. I had some successes, and the failures weren’t so bad; sometimes they even ended up changing things for the better. I count on that now. When I face a tough problem it helps me to remember that the next time it comes, I will be able to go through it more easily; that hope and confidence give me happiness.”
Paula C., Houston, Texas
From “Happily Ever After,” May 2013
“I now live in a nursing home, where the message has to be carried to me, as I am unable to get out to meetings. The AA community in Trempealeau County, Wis. has a meeting at my nursing home every Sunday night. I have a cell phone, which I use to call half a dozen or so AAs a day, keeping in touch to give encouragement and offer what I know of the program. I keep their numbers in a pocket on my wheelchair. It’s funny how now I can call another AA from my wheelchair. When I got into the program phones were attached to the walls, and they were “party lines” where neighbors shared the same line, so we didn’t talk much AA on the phone, as the neighbors could pick it up and hear whatever anyone was saying. Anonymity is a bit better nowadays!”
Oliver P., D.M., Mondovi, Wis.
From “It’s a Wonderful Life,” November 2012
“God gave me another chance 13 years ago; it was my last chance. I know that my body, left in this ravished condition by alcohol, could never weather another of my kind of drunks…I only began living 13 short years ago; only became aware then that the sun could shine so brightly, that there were birds singing, flowers blooming, green grass growing under my feet and God’s blue heaven over my head. To lie down at night and sleep the night through and wake with a clear head was something new to me.”
C.U., Dade City, Fla.
From “The Boy Grew Up,” June 1955
“I’ve come to have moments of thankfulness without having to search for reasons.”
John X., Ottawa, Ontario
From “Quote of the Month,” June 1998
“I’m especially grateful for those painful rough times, those first few years in AA. It was because of them that I had to put the effort into doing all that the Big Book suggested. I sponsored many girls, worked in service, but knew I couldn’t make spiritual progress unless I worked the Steps. The Fourth Step revealed much. I had to do it over several times. I wanted to be honest. Today I can accept the things I can’t change. My hearing is gone. I don’t drive, which makes me dependent on others. I lost Ed after 37 years of a wonderful AA marriage. I live alone by choice. With all of this I have a peace of mind and serenity I never believed possible. I can accept and feel grateful for all I’ve been given. I have friends, a loving family—all the result of getting honest and working the Steps.”
Albertine R., Indio, Calif.
From “A Tremendous Journey,” July 1998
“In the old days I relied faithfully on those first drinks to get me out and wearily around in this world. But now I have switched my faith to a firm and permanent foundation. I have found a Power greater than myself…Let the hidden bottle be lost…my strength in life is always within reach.”
Frank V., West Palm Beach, Fla.
From “We Are Restricted,” August 1950
“Time and again, I have had the privilege of hearing AA members in prison groups tell what changing their attitudes has meant for each of them during a period when physical freedom was sharply curtailed…I am deeply grateful to these inmates for teaching me a little more about the art of being free within myself. It is the only kind of freedom worth a tinker’s damn. I know, for physical freedom availed me nothing as long as my own attitudes made me a slave to feelings, thoughts and sensations whose only outlet was through the neck of a bottle inserted in my mouth. Once I thought this would free me from myself, but all it did was enslave me to the unknown god of unconsciousness…I take my AA sobriety with gratitude rather than for granted.”
V.W., Los Altos, Calif.
From “Choice Regained,” July 1961
“Every morning as I pour water into my coffee maker, I’m filled with gratitude because I’m reminded of what it was like 14 years ago. Every morning, I filled a glass with brandy just to get my day started. Today, thanks to the program of Alcoholics Anonymous, I don’t have to do that anymore.”
Art V., Johns Island, S.C.
From “Gratitude,” August 2002
“With the still-elusive feeling of loving and being loved just around the corner, there is one feeling we can hang onto…one that will bring us nearer and nearer to that serenity we all seek. Hang onto a deep and sincere gratitude.”
M.K., Miami, Fla.
From “The Power of the Word,” August 1961
“One of the first suggestions given me in my early sobriety was an excellent one. I was told every morning, when I woke up, to thank my Higher Power for that night’s rest and ask for help in my helplessness to stay sober for that day. Then I was to spend some time in thinking about the simple rewards of sobriety: waking up in my own bed; not being sick with the dry heaves; no fear as to where my car was or that the telephone might ring informing me about some horrible incident of the night before; being able to look out the window and enjoy the sight of green grass or white snow. Following this, I was to arise and face the day, certain of the fact that if I followed the directions given me by Alcoholics Anonymous, made contact with other members, and placed my trust in the God of my understanding, I would receive the gift of another day of sobriety.”
Alf S., St. Cloud, Minn.
From “Arise and Face the Day,” December 1999