Daily Reflections, April 1st

LOOKING WITHIN

Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 42

Step Four is a vigorous and painstaking effort to discover what the liabilities in each of us have been, and are. I want to find exactly how, when, and where my natural desires have warped me. I wish to look squarely at the unhappiness this has caused others and myself. By discovering what my emotional deformities are, I can move toward their correction. Without a willing and persistent effort to do this, there can be little sobriety or contentment for me.

To resolve ambivalent feelings, I need to feel a strong and helpful sense of myself. Such an awareness doesn't happen overnight, and no one's self-awareness is permanent. Everyone has the capacity for growth, and for self-awareness, though an honest encounter with reality. When I don't avoid issues but meet them directly, always trying to resolve them, they become fewer and fewer.

Twenty-Four Hours A Day, April 1st

A.A. Thought for the Day

Since I've been in A.A., have I made a start toward becoming more honest? Do I no longer have to lie to my loved ones? Do I try to have meals on time, and do I try to earn what I make at work? Am I trying to be honest? Have I faced myself as I really am and have I admitted to myself that I'm no good by myself, but have to rely on God to help me do the right thing? Am I beginning to find out what it means to be alive and to face the world honestly and without fear?

Meditation for the Day

God is all around us. His spirit pervades the universe. And yet we often do not let His spirit in. We try to get along without His help and we make a mess of our lives. We can do nothing of any value without God's help. All our human relationships depend on this. When we let God's spirit rule our lives, we learn how to get along with others and how to help them.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may let God run my life. I pray that I will never again make a mess of my life through trying to run it myself.

NA - Just for Today, April 1st

Love and addiction

Page 95

"Some of us first saw the effects of addiction on the people closest to us. We were very dependent on them to carry us through life. We felt angry disappointed, and hurt when they found other interests, friends, and loved ones."

Basic Text, p. 7

Addiction affected every area of our lives. Just as we sought the drug that would make everything alright, so we sought people to fix us. We made impossible demands, driving away those who had anything of worth to offer us. Often, the only people left were those who were themselves too needy to be capable of denying our unrealistic expectations. It's no wonder that we were unable to establish and maintain healthy intimate relationships in our addiction.

Today, in recovery, we've stopped expecting drugs to fix us. If we still expect people to fix us, perhaps it's time to extend our recovery program to our relationships. We begin by admitting we have a problem-that we don't know the first thing about how to have healthy intimate relationships. We seek out members who've had similar problems and have found relief. We talk with them and listen to what they share about this aspect of their recovery. We apply the program to all our affairs, seeking the same kind of freedom in our relationships that we find throughout our recovery.

Just for Today: Loving relationships are within my reach. Today, I will examine the effects of addiction on my relationships so that I can begin seeking recovery.

Thought for Today, April 1st

"Forgiveness is no favor ... we do it for no one but ourselves" 

 Larcene G. (2019 Appalachian Regional Roundup)

"If something that someone does upsets me i am a prisoner of their behavior"  

Scott L. (2022 Appalachian Regional Roundup)

Five Truths

1. Everything changes and ends

2. Things don't always go as planned

3. Life is not always fair

4. Pain is a part of Life

5. People are not always loving or loyal

Buddha/Zen Thoughts, April 1st

"Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials."

-Lin Yutang

Native American, April 1st

"People think other things are more important than prayer, but they are mistaken."

-Thomas Yellowtail, CROW

An Elder once said the most important thing you can do in the course of a day is to pray. If we get up late or oversleep, which is more important? Rush to work without praying or pray first and then go to work? The Elders say it's more important to pray. If we get angry, should we act on our anger or should we pray first? The Elders say it's more important to pray first. If, during the day, we face indecision, what should we do? PRAY. If, during the day, we become irritated or we experience fear, what should we do first? PRAY. The Warrior who prays first will lead a different life from those who pray last.

Great Spirit, teach me to pray first!

Keep It Simple, April 1st

Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

- Step Four of Alcoholics Anonymous.

We avoid the Fourth Step. We put it off. We're scared of what we will find inside of us. We may find out we're mean, angry, selfish, afraid. We might see how badly we've acted to others, to ourselves. We have all these things inside us. We also have love, trust, faith, and hope. We love art, music, nature, or sports. We have power to heal, and we have used it too. The Fourth Step helps us to know our inner power. As we learn about our own power, we can use it carefully, on purpose, to do good.

Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me use my power to do Your will. Let your power work through me too.

Action for the Day: Today Ill watch my own actions and words. I'll see how my power affects others. I'll talk about this with my sponsor.

Big Book, April 1st

Chapter 2 THERE IS A SOLUTION (pg 20 & top 21)

You may already have asked yourself why it is that all of us became so very ill from drinking. Doubtless you are curious to discover how and why, in the face of expert opinion to the contrary, we have recovered from a hopeless condition of mind and body. If you are an alcoholic who wants to get over it, you may already be asking-"What do I have to do?"

It is the purpose of this book to answer such questions specifically. We shall tell you what we have done. Before going into a detailed discussion, it may be well to summarize some points as we see them.

How many time people have said to us: "I can take it or leave it alone. Why can't he?" "Why don't you drink like a gentleman or quit?" "That fellow can't handle his liquor." "Why don't you try beer and wine?" "Lay off the hard stuff." "His will power must be weak." "He could stop if he wanted to." "She's such a sweet girl, I should think he'd stop for her sake." "The doctor told him that if he ever drank again it would kill him, but there he is all lit up again."

Now these are commonplace observations on drinkers which we hear all the time. Back of them is a world of ignorance and misunderstanding. We see that these expressions refer to people whose reactions are very different from ours.

Moderate drinkers have little trouble in giving up liquor entirely if they have good reason for it. They can take it or leave it alone.

Then we have a certain type of hard drinker. He may have the habit badly enough to gradually impair him physically and mentally. It may cause him to die a few years before his time. If a sufficiently strong reason - ill health, falling in love, change of environment, or the warning of a doctor-becomes operative, this man can also stop or moderate, although he may find it difficult and troublesome and may even need medical attention.

Night Light, April 1st

There's sometimes a good hearty tree growin' right out of the bare rock, out o' some crack that just holds the roots; right on the pitch o' them bare stony hills where you can't seem to see a wheel-barrowful o' good earth in a place, but that tree'll keep a green top in the driest summer.

-Sarah Orne Jewett

When our meetings end, we join hands or place our arms around each other in a circle of prayer. This cir- cle gives us nourishment for our growth, even in ad- verse conditions.

Without this circle of strength and nourishment, we would be like we were before the program: a tree growing shallow roots, searching far for nourishment. The program grounds us and helps us grow deep and secure roots.

Whether we choose to grow in a forest or out on our own, we're never alone. We can survive because of the spirit that flows through the hearts of program members into our hearts. Within the protection of the circle and outside, our needs for growth are answered and provided for by the program.

Tonight I can push my roots down deeply and hold securely onto my space. I've found the place that provides for my needs.