24 Hours A Day May 6 AA Thought for the Day I’ve noticed that the ones who do the most for AA are not in the habit of boasting about it. The danger of building myself up too much is that, if I do, I’m in danger of having a fall. That pattern of thought goes with drinking. If one side of a boat gets too far up out of the water, it’s liable to tip over. Building myself up and drinking go together. One leads to the other. So if I’m going to stay sober, I’ve got to keep small. Have I got the right perspective on myself? Meditation for the Day The way sometimes seems long and weary. So many people today are weary. The weariness of others must often be shared by me. The weary and the heavy-laden, when they come to me, should be helped to find the rest that I have found. There is only one sure cure for world-weariness and that is turning to spiritual things. In order to help bring about the turning of the weary world to God, I must dare to suffer, dare to conquer selfishness in myself, and dare to be filled with spiritual peace in the face of all the weariness of the world. Prayer for the Day I pray that I may be a help to discouraged people. I pray that I may have the courage to help bring about what the weary world needs but does not know how to get.

I once heard an old timer say, "It's great to have many years sober, but recovery is really about quality, not quantity." This really made me stop and think about what constitutes quality recovery. When we see someone who has the kind of recovery we want, what are the aspects of how that person lives life that makes their recovery attractive to us? I would love to hear what the rest of you think.

20 months sober as of January 27th. It works if you work it! All you gotta do is do a little work! God, sponsor, meetings, and work the steps.

The highest activity a human being can attain is learning for understanding, because to understand is to be free. – Barauch Spinoza

   January 24 From isolation to connection Our disease isolated us...  Hostile, resentful, self-centered, and self-seeking, we cut ourselves off from the outside world. Basic Text, p. 4 = Addiction is an isolating disease, closing us off from society, family, and self.  We hid.  We lied.  We scorned the lives we saw others living, surely beyond our grasp.  Worst of all, we told ourselves there was nothing wrong with us, even though we knew we were desperately ill.  Our connection with the world, and with reality itself, was severed.  Our lives lost meaning, and we withdrew further and further from reality. The NA program is designed especially for people like us.  It helps reconnect us to the life we were meant to live, drawing us out of our isolation.  We stop lying to ourselves about our condition; we admit our powerlessness and the unmanageability of our lives.  We develop faith that our lives can improve, that recovery is possible, and that happiness is not permanently beyond our grasp.  We get honest; we stop hiding; we show up and tell the truth, no matter what.  And as we do, we establish the ties that connect our individual lives to the larger life around us. We addicts need not live lives of isolation.  The Twelve Steps can restore our connection to life and livingif we work them. = Just for today:  I am a part of the life around me.  I will practice my program to strengthen my connection to my world. Copyright 1991-2016 by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved