Giving it away so I can keep it.

21Nov09

 
It’s what we say about sobriety in the Alcoholics Anonymous program: “You’ve got to give it away to keep it.”
Last month, as I was nearing my one-year anniversary of being sober, I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to give away my sobriety. That is, I was able to share my strength, hope and [...]

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Tags: AA, sobriety, recovery, sober, alcoholism, Alcoholics Anonymous, 12-Step Program, AA meeting, life, change, not drinking, advice, Step 12, help, AA chips, alcohol abuse, AA program, 12th Step

A prayer, peace and acceptance.

14Nov09

B.’s father died early yesterday morning.
He’d been in a nursing home for about two years, landing there after a long and – from what I’d heard – often destructive battle with alcoholism and its attendant illnesses.
He died in his sleep, and I think B. had made his peace with him a while back, so I [...]

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Tags: AA, AA program, acceptance, alcohol abuse, alcoholic, Alcoholics Anonymous, alcoholism, death, letting go, life, making peace, Prayer of St. Francis, relationships, service, sobriety, sorrow

Reason NOT to drink #6: AC/DC concert?

06Nov09

I ran into a friend at Starbuck’s this afternoon.
She: “We’re going camping tonight.”
Me: “I’m going to the AC/DC concert.”
She: (Laughing) “Oh, you’ll be soooo stoned.”
Me: (Weak laugh) “Welllllll…..not really. But I probably should be.”
I won’t, in fact, be stoned. I won’t be drunk, either. Or even tipsy. As a recovering alcoholic, I’ll be stone cold [...]

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Tags: sobriety, recovery, sober, alcoholism, life, alcohol, not drinking, staying sober, getting sober, alcohol-free, alcohol abuse, concert, sober concert