Saturday, May 5, 2012
" ...our problems were of our own making. Bottles were only a symbol." - Alcoholics Anonymous, Third Edition, 1976, p 103
Just for today, I surrender to the reality that I and I alone am responsible for my problems, that I and I alone am responsible for being addicted to my substance of choice and that I and I alone can identify and correct the "symbol" on which my addiction is based. If I lost a job or a spouse or partner because of drinking or any reason and I continued or began to drink to "cope" with resentment or a sense of loss, the problem is my handling of those feelings, not the situations themselves. Anger and resentment, then, are the "symbol" of my addictive character, and it is that defect which I must identify in my Fourth and hand over to my Higher Power in the Sixth and Seventh Steps. Something must replace the void when anger and resentment are let go, however, and the service clause of the 12th Step - carrying the message to other alcoholics - suffices in deflectling my attention from myself onto others who need the message. Today, I accept that I am responsible for my problems and that I and I alone am accountable to their consequences. And our common journey continues. Just for today. - Chris M., 2012
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