A

A.A. Thoughts For The Day~*~
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Emotional Sobriety

"If we examine every disturbance we have, great or small,
we will find at the root of it some unhealthy dependency
and its consequent unhealthy demand.
Let us, with God's help,
continually surrender these hobbling liabilities.
Then we can be set free to live and love;
we may then be able to twelfth-step ourselves,
as well as others, into emotional sobriety."
Bill. W., AAGrapevine, January 1958
c.1967AAWS, As Bill Sees It, p. 288
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Thought to Consider . . .

Sobriety is a choice and a treasure.

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
A A = Altered Attitudes

*~*~*~*~*^Just For Today!^*~*~*~*~*

Progress

Step Ten: Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

"The quick inventory is aimed at our daily ups and downs, especially those where people or new events throw us off balance and tempt us to make mistakes.

"In all these situations we need self-restraint, honest analysis of what is involved, a willingness to admit when the fault is ours, and an equal willingness to forgive when the fault is elsewhere. We need not be discouraged when we fall into the error of our old ways, for these disciplines are not easy. We shall look for progress, not for perfection."

*~*~*~*~*^Daily Reflections^*~*~*~*~*
A SPIRITUAL AXIOM

It is a spiritual axiom that very time we are disturbed, no matter
what the cause, there is something wrong with us.
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 90

I never truly understood the Tenth Step's spiritual axiom until I
had the following experience. I was sitting in my bedroom, reading
into the wee hours, when suddenly I heard my dogs barking in the
back yard. My neighbors frown on this kind of disturbance so, with
mixed feelings of anger and shame, as well as fear of my
neighbor's disapproval, I immediately called in my dog's. Several
weeks later the exact situation repeated itself but this time,
because I was feeling more at peace with myself, I was able to
accept the situation--dogs will bark--and I calmly called in the
dogs. Both incidents taught me that when a person experiences
nearly identical events and reacts two different ways, then it
is not the event which is of prime importance, but the person's
spiritual condition. Feelings come from inside, not from outward
circumstances. When my spiritual condition is positive, I react
positively.

©Copyright 1990 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS WORLD SERVICES, INC.©
*~*~*~*~*^As Bill Sees It^*~*~*~*~*
Instincts Run Wild

Every time a person imposes his instincts unreasonably upon others, unhappiness follows. If the pursuit of wealth tramples upon people who happen to be in the way, then anger, jealousy, and revenge are likely to be aroused. If sex runs riot, there is a similar uproar.
Demands made upon other people for too much attention, protection, and love can invite only domination or revulsion in the protectors themselves - two emotions quite as unhealthy as the demands which evoked them. When an individual's desire for prestige becomes uncontrollable, whether in the sewing circle or at the international conference table, other people suffer and often revolt. This collision of instincts can produce anything from a cold snub to a blazing revolution.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, p. 44
*~*~*~*~*^ Big Book Quote ^*~*~*~*~*
"In this book you read again and again that faith did for us what we
could not do for ourselves. We hope you are convinced now that God
can remove whatever self-will has blocked you off from Him. If you
have already made a decision, and an inventory of your grosser
handicaps, you have made a good beginning. That being so you have
swallowed and digested some big chunks of truth about yourself."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, How It Works, pg. 70~
*~*~*~*^Twenty Four Hours A Day^*~*~*~*
A.A. Thought for the Day

Am I willing to be bored sometimes at meetings? Am I willing to
listen to much repetition of A.A. principles? Am I willing to hear
the same thing over and over again? Am I willing to listen to a
long blow-by-blow personal story, because it might help some new
member? Am I willing to sit quietly and listen to long-winded
members go into every detail of their past? Am I willing to take
it, because it is doing them good to get it off their chest? My
feelings are not too important. The good of A.A. comes first, even
if it is not always comfortable for me. Have I learned to take it?

Meditation for the Day

God would draw us all closer to Him in the bonds of the spirit.
He would have all people drawn closer to each other in the bonds
of the spirit. God, the great Spirit of the universe, of which
each of our own spirits is a small part, must want unity between
Himself and all His children. "Unity of the spirit in the bonds
of peace." Each experience of our life, of joy, of sorrow, of
danger, of safety, of difficulty, of success, of hardship, of
ease, each should be accepted as part of our common lot, in the
bonds of the spirit.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may welcome the bonds of true fellowship. I pray
that I may be brought closer to unity with God and other people.