AMONG THE PARADOXES that apply to alcoholics is that we are impatient procrastinators. We want success and perfection right now, but we are caught up by a disease that functions as the world’s greatest delaying mechanism. Taking things slowly and gradually, as well as simply, in Alcoholics Anonymous makes character growth more solid. We areContinue reading “Putting It Off A Day At A Time – Grapevine Article June 1984 By C.C.”
Category Archives: Change
Eternal Values – As Bill Sees It #15
Many people will have no truck at all with absolute spiritual values. Perfectionists, they say, are either full of conceit because they fancy they have reached some impossible goal, or else they are swamped in self-condemnation because they have not done so. Yet I think that we should not hold this view. It is notContinue reading “Eternal Values – As Bill Sees It #15”
In Remembrance of Ebby – Grapevine Article June 1966 by Bill W
IN his seventieth year, and on the twenty-first of March, my friend and sponsor “Ebby” passed beyond our sight and hearing. On a chill November afternoon in 1934 it was Ebby who had brought me the message that saved my life. Still more importantly, he was the bearer of the Grace and of the principlesContinue reading “In Remembrance of Ebby – Grapevine Article June 1966 by Bill W”
Life Is Meant To Be Lived – Grapevine Article Sept 1995 by Louise A.
She decided she didn’t want “rocking chair” sobriety When some of my foggy thinking began to clear in the early days of my sobriety, I realized how often I had drunk to escape the realities of life. As a result, I worked hard at facing my alcoholism head-on, practicing the Steps, and convincing myself thatContinue reading “Life Is Meant To Be Lived – Grapevine Article Sept 1995 by Louise A.”
An Experience In Daily Living – Grapevine Article by D.W
He found that there is no panacea for living problems I WAS HAVING trouble living and was unable to ask for help. Suffering blackouts, financial ruin, and separation from my wife and child, I was sure I was insane. I felt certain the end was near but was helpless either to hasten its coming orContinue reading “An Experience In Daily Living – Grapevine Article by D.W”
Acceptance & Expectations – 12 Essential Insights For Emotional Sobriety – Dr. Allen Berger
Acceptance is one of the “big ideas” in recovery. There is a natural connection between self-acceptance—learning to accept our true self as we are—and learning to accept the world as it is. And the world as it is never fits our expectations. That’s a tough lesson, because a part of us always clings to theContinue reading “Acceptance & Expectations – 12 Essential Insights For Emotional Sobriety – Dr. Allen Berger”
Starting My Day – Grapevine Article March 2023 By Paul M.
He learned that a good day of service can begin with a well-made bed When I was a boy, my mother insisted that I make my bed every morning. Well, I didn’t want to since I was just going to mess it up again that night. Many years later, when I started going in andContinue reading “Starting My Day – Grapevine Article March 2023 By Paul M.”
Can We Choose – As Bill Sees It #4
We must never be blinded by the futile philosophy that we are just the hapless victims of our inheritance, of our life experience, and of our surroundings — that these are the sole forces that make our decisions for us. This is not the road to freedom. We have to believe that we can reallyContinue reading “Can We Choose – As Bill Sees It #4”
Response Ability – Grapevine Article June 2011 by Joe V.
The burdens of obligation transform to gifts of sobriety Before and during my drinking days, people were always talking to me about responsibility. I “had a responsibility” to be an excellent student, obedient son and religious child. I was also somehow responsible that children on the other side of the world didn’t go to bedContinue reading “Response Ability – Grapevine Article June 2011 by Joe V.”
Difficulty Reveals Character – Grapevine Article October 2021 by Ron B.
A member shares some powerful thoughts about AA’s patience, resilience and creativity during COVID-19 When I first read Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions with my sponsor some 10 years ago, I was struck by Bill W.’s description of AA members in the armed forces during World War II. Even though they were far from homeContinue reading “Difficulty Reveals Character – Grapevine Article October 2021 by Ron B.”