May 9 2012 | AA 12 Steps In Action | Step 5 Admit And Accept | Alcoholics Anonymous Today's AA daily reflection: "walking through fear…" "If you walk into hell, keep on walking…" Fear is a very natural emotion to experience, very informative and very helpful in dangerous situations. And yet fear of the unknown is not so helpful and fear of being found out as a less than useful human being…
Often behind the resentments we may have felt, and the anger that life just is not fair, is fear. My experience of life in recovery has taught me that the steps help me understand what it is to be loved, to be able to love back unconditionally and be a simply useful human being is possible. Letting go of fear, anger and resentments opens the door to experience love, truth and learning and wisdom about life. Every emotion counts in recovery…
Step four, we made an inventory of our assets and liabilities. And in step five we share what happened to us, the defects of character where we were stuck in negative extremes of feeling. And our shortcomings, not enough experience of the good part of living the positive feelings of love, trust, integrity and fairness. Step four and five, the groundwork to understand the change in outlook in step six and in step seven. Contingent on awareness and asking for help, we understand life more completely…
Emotional and spiritual well-being, the bedrock of life. The first five steps open the door to understanding all that we are, and the wonderful knowledge that there is so much more to experience. When we feel life as life is, there is no need to blot anything out or suppress our natural feelings. Knowing our feelings, how we are thinking and understanding reality is the spiritual experience open to anyone and everyone with a clear head today…
DonInLondon 2005-2011
Walking through fear... as we come to understand in sharing how we were back then, step five opens the door to self-awareness, willingness and self-honesty. What drove us mad back in the day. Now, less fear, less ego, more faith and courage to live truth, love and be loved back, and learn wisdom from others as life affords today...
Romance and finance! Back then behind closed doors, love turned to obsession, spending or hoarding resources, driven mad by wants, not knowing why. All about fixing, fixing, more fixing. "Now," accepting understanding need rather than want, new living, real romance and finance exciting… not fixed, progress just for today...
-/-
AA Daily Reflection: AA Daily Reflections ~ "WALKING THROUGH FEAR... If we still cling to something we will not let go, we ask God to help us be willing. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 76
When I had taken my Fifth Step, I became aware that all my defects of character stemmed from my need to feel secure and loved. To use my will alone to work on them would have been trying obsessively to solve the problem. In the Sixth Step I intensified the action I had taken in the first three Steps — meditating on the Step by saying it over and over, going to meetings, following my sponsor’s suggestions, reading and searching within myself. During the first three years of sobriety I had a fear of entering an elevator alone. One day I decided I must walk through this fear. I asked for God’s help, entered the elevator, and there in the corner was a lady crying. She said that since her husband had died she was deathly afraid of elevators. I forgot my fear and comforted her. This spiritual experience helped me to see how willingness was the key to working the rest of the Twelve Steps to recovery. God helps those who help themselves."
-/-
May 9 2007
Just in a Day
I am moved by world events and personal events. We are witness to news from around the world every day. And I feel part of what this world is all about as we are connected by the media to all sorts of events across the world.
In our own backyard, the tragedy and fears surrounding the missing little girl in Portugal, inexplicable and pulls our feelings as we empathise. At the same time in Northern Ireland a new era in politics as the population find some accommodation towards peace and maybe reconciliation. As we know so well peace in these times can be very transient.
In the USA our monarch, Queen Elizabeth is entertained by the President. And we hear the usual gaffs from Mr Bush and the sharing of amusement by the Queen. So it’s a news day worthy of interest in a global and personal sense.
How do we connect to News?
I feel the absolute and utter devastation of the family searching their little girl; I feel the elation of a peace of sorts in our time. I don’t feel much for our Monarch away in the US and being a part of something I really am not sure about. Except maybe it’s good diplomacy… And of course I would be very concerned if anything happened to her, someone we have all known most our lives.
And yet it’s the personal connection which impacts most. I am not a parent yet feel the anguish and torment parents have. I have nephews and would feel as any relation in the search for one missing. In all this we the people are viewers on tragedy, on history and so many elements of this world. We can hardly catch a breath before the next wave of news hits.
We cannot fail to be moved by historic events either.
History
I was caught out last night; I switched on the TV and found a programme on all about the Second World War. The programme showed the campaign fighting the Japanese in 1945. It was an old documentary, yet in minutes as the true magnitude hit me, the horror and the absolute devastation filled me with deep sadness, that we humans can ever be so driven to fight to the death on a matter of politics and domination.
Life in this world has been shaped by, mankind’s rapacious nature and much of it is without merit. How we utilise and find ourselves drawn into conflicts.
Often the war on our doorstep, and often so far away we cannot make sense of it. Even through the decades it’s hard to make sense of any of these wars.
Yet we find in our own small world the nature of mankind is not far from the barbarism of previous centuries, and previous cultures and the wickedness we can encounter in everyday life. We are fractured in our living. And we cannot fail to be touched by the horrors that occur at the hands of criminal minds and at the hands of nature too.
My world and my problems pale into insignificance as I look across history and across this world, I am never far away from that simple truth.
Yet it’s my Life and Living
Yes my life and living which is about living to the good of good conscience, to support and help and assist as I may. At the same time I need look after myself as best I can..
We, who are touched by events, have our small and our good conscience to keep us safe as we may, yet we are never singly that important that we influence directly events over which we are powerless.
We tend to insulate and filter what we cannot cope with, deal with and offer a helping hand as we may and society enables. The problems of this world can like a burden if we don’t find our daily path and influence gently towards a better world. So much conflict worldwide and still as fierce and becoming more so as the voices of the many shout out outraged by atrocities. We would do well to find better ways to live and be as diverse as humanity is and still find room to be respectful and let this world work for us as we may.
This is an imperfect world which will cause as much pain as happiness as we find our way. It is the personal stories which we connect to most. And when we look back at our history of war, we cannot fail to see the absolute truth that conflicts so deadly have and continue simply because of dogma and doctrine. We are paving the way for bigger and more homogenous societies, yet it seems we are centuries away from a greater understanding of our humanity. It seems that Nature and Providence will provide much of the learning as we turn our climate to unfriendly and unbalanced as we reap the resources of this world and offer our future generations less of everything as we feed on our limited resources.
We risk burn out before we get close to a better understanding of ourselves and our potential. So gifted for self-destruction, we need learn what we may as we may. And in truth it feels like in some respects we may be too late.
The big world over which we have no power, the smaller personal worlds we have, which also leave us pretty powerless too, it’s the way we live, the truth of it quite astonishing as we meander along. Bigger minds and edicts and cultures have burned out as we too find endings rather than beginnings.
How am I feeling?
Ok today in my small world. But the big world impinged quite deeply as I watched history and saw it very much alive in our natures, where conflict rages as strongly as any intent to peace in our times.
Last night a request
To chair a meeting in AA, or rather share and tell my story of experience strength and hope.. My hopes these days, to be useful, to utilise and make a life again… To support and be a part of a fellowship which simply offers opportunity to do the right thing. And simply on a daily basis…
Maybe the lesson learned for me is to do local what I feel we need to do globally. Live well, conserve, be a part of life. Share my views and the best of intent to find peace and happiness. As someone said recently to me the truth is, “we all need to be loved.” And we need love each enough to make life work, simply one day at a time.
Governments and societies amble towards change.
Step Changes
A phrase a bit old these days, yet I heard it on the news today, that step changes in outlook are required and quickly. The jargon from Consultanese...
Consultanese
My definition of Consultanese is the language of thinkers and intellectuals. The language of theory and little understanding of practice… Theoretical blunderer’s hell bent on change without regard to the human condition. Consultanese is the tool of vanity and leadership, when a revolution is required as we break up structures and organisation to make way for new process and living.
Step changes
Steps of AA, the twelve step programme of my fellowship, we have learned much about step change and human behaviour, and know more than most what it’s like to move from a life heading for early endings, to a life of new beginnings. Step changes indeed, won through new attitudes to life and living, only made possible through the impossible lives we have led. Maybe always its life threatening to be so driven to changes so necessary to make life work again.
As hard can be for an individual human, one wonders if in hindsight society recognises these revolutions as they happen. Some in tandem with the changes, many left floundering or washed up and left behind…
It has always been so. And just for today I will go with the flow as I may, or be lost again as this world turns and another natural revolution takes me where it will.
There may be trouble ahead… a song from the past, appropriate as we so often dance to a new tune…
-/-
AA Official Site Reflections ~ AA Official Big Book And Twelve And Twelve Online ~
-/-
"Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. Chapter 6, Into Action, Big Book From: Page 72 Thru: Page 75, the bottom of the page. 12 And 12 Step 5."
May ~ All About Step Five:"Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs"
Step 5 "Admit And Accept" Reading Video Link:
-/-
May ~ Video Reading Chapter Six Into Action Link:
-/-
I do not speak for Alcoholics Anonymous I speak for myself. Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of unique and authentic people who speak for themselves where they will to share experience, strength and hope about recovery on a daily basis. Anonymity affords sanctuary to find how to live sober and be open, honest and willing to learn life day by day. For me "truth," "love" and "wisdom" offer the best spiritual experience by living reality today. Into the fabric of recovery from alcoholism are woven the Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions, steps to be open, honest and willing to learn, traditions to live unity, service and recovery.
-/-
Spiritual principles ~ Forgiveness Acceptance Surrender Faith Open-mindedness Honesty Willingness Moral-inventory Amends Humility Persistence Spiritual-growth Service
-/-
Often behind the resentments we may have felt, and the anger that life just is not fair, is fear. My experience of life in recovery has taught me that the steps help me understand what it is to be loved, to be able to love back unconditionally and be a simply useful human being is possible. Letting go of fear, anger and resentments opens the door to experience love, truth and learning and wisdom about life. Every emotion counts in recovery…
Step four, we made an inventory of our assets and liabilities. And in step five we share what happened to us, the defects of character where we were stuck in negative extremes of feeling. And our shortcomings, not enough experience of the good part of living the positive feelings of love, trust, integrity and fairness. Step four and five, the groundwork to understand the change in outlook in step six and in step seven. Contingent on awareness and asking for help, we understand life more completely…
Emotional and spiritual well-being, the bedrock of life. The first five steps open the door to understanding all that we are, and the wonderful knowledge that there is so much more to experience. When we feel life as life is, there is no need to blot anything out or suppress our natural feelings. Knowing our feelings, how we are thinking and understanding reality is the spiritual experience open to anyone and everyone with a clear head today…
DonInLondon 2005-2011
Walking through fear... as we come to understand in sharing how we were back then, step five opens the door to self-awareness, willingness and self-honesty. What drove us mad back in the day. Now, less fear, less ego, more faith and courage to live truth, love and be loved back, and learn wisdom from others as life affords today...
Romance and finance! Back then behind closed doors, love turned to obsession, spending or hoarding resources, driven mad by wants, not knowing why. All about fixing, fixing, more fixing. "Now," accepting understanding need rather than want, new living, real romance and finance exciting… not fixed, progress just for today...
-/-
AA Daily Reflection: AA Daily Reflections ~ "WALKING THROUGH FEAR... If we still cling to something we will not let go, we ask God to help us be willing. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 76
When I had taken my Fifth Step, I became aware that all my defects of character stemmed from my need to feel secure and loved. To use my will alone to work on them would have been trying obsessively to solve the problem. In the Sixth Step I intensified the action I had taken in the first three Steps — meditating on the Step by saying it over and over, going to meetings, following my sponsor’s suggestions, reading and searching within myself. During the first three years of sobriety I had a fear of entering an elevator alone. One day I decided I must walk through this fear. I asked for God’s help, entered the elevator, and there in the corner was a lady crying. She said that since her husband had died she was deathly afraid of elevators. I forgot my fear and comforted her. This spiritual experience helped me to see how willingness was the key to working the rest of the Twelve Steps to recovery. God helps those who help themselves."
-/-
May 9 2007
Just in a Day
I am moved by world events and personal events. We are witness to news from around the world every day. And I feel part of what this world is all about as we are connected by the media to all sorts of events across the world.
In our own backyard, the tragedy and fears surrounding the missing little girl in Portugal, inexplicable and pulls our feelings as we empathise. At the same time in Northern Ireland a new era in politics as the population find some accommodation towards peace and maybe reconciliation. As we know so well peace in these times can be very transient.
In the USA our monarch, Queen Elizabeth is entertained by the President. And we hear the usual gaffs from Mr Bush and the sharing of amusement by the Queen. So it’s a news day worthy of interest in a global and personal sense.
How do we connect to News?
I feel the absolute and utter devastation of the family searching their little girl; I feel the elation of a peace of sorts in our time. I don’t feel much for our Monarch away in the US and being a part of something I really am not sure about. Except maybe it’s good diplomacy… And of course I would be very concerned if anything happened to her, someone we have all known most our lives.
And yet it’s the personal connection which impacts most. I am not a parent yet feel the anguish and torment parents have. I have nephews and would feel as any relation in the search for one missing. In all this we the people are viewers on tragedy, on history and so many elements of this world. We can hardly catch a breath before the next wave of news hits.
We cannot fail to be moved by historic events either.
History
I was caught out last night; I switched on the TV and found a programme on all about the Second World War. The programme showed the campaign fighting the Japanese in 1945. It was an old documentary, yet in minutes as the true magnitude hit me, the horror and the absolute devastation filled me with deep sadness, that we humans can ever be so driven to fight to the death on a matter of politics and domination.
Life in this world has been shaped by, mankind’s rapacious nature and much of it is without merit. How we utilise and find ourselves drawn into conflicts.
Often the war on our doorstep, and often so far away we cannot make sense of it. Even through the decades it’s hard to make sense of any of these wars.
Yet we find in our own small world the nature of mankind is not far from the barbarism of previous centuries, and previous cultures and the wickedness we can encounter in everyday life. We are fractured in our living. And we cannot fail to be touched by the horrors that occur at the hands of criminal minds and at the hands of nature too.
My world and my problems pale into insignificance as I look across history and across this world, I am never far away from that simple truth.
Yet it’s my Life and Living
Yes my life and living which is about living to the good of good conscience, to support and help and assist as I may. At the same time I need look after myself as best I can..
We, who are touched by events, have our small and our good conscience to keep us safe as we may, yet we are never singly that important that we influence directly events over which we are powerless.
We tend to insulate and filter what we cannot cope with, deal with and offer a helping hand as we may and society enables. The problems of this world can like a burden if we don’t find our daily path and influence gently towards a better world. So much conflict worldwide and still as fierce and becoming more so as the voices of the many shout out outraged by atrocities. We would do well to find better ways to live and be as diverse as humanity is and still find room to be respectful and let this world work for us as we may.
This is an imperfect world which will cause as much pain as happiness as we find our way. It is the personal stories which we connect to most. And when we look back at our history of war, we cannot fail to see the absolute truth that conflicts so deadly have and continue simply because of dogma and doctrine. We are paving the way for bigger and more homogenous societies, yet it seems we are centuries away from a greater understanding of our humanity. It seems that Nature and Providence will provide much of the learning as we turn our climate to unfriendly and unbalanced as we reap the resources of this world and offer our future generations less of everything as we feed on our limited resources.
We risk burn out before we get close to a better understanding of ourselves and our potential. So gifted for self-destruction, we need learn what we may as we may. And in truth it feels like in some respects we may be too late.
The big world over which we have no power, the smaller personal worlds we have, which also leave us pretty powerless too, it’s the way we live, the truth of it quite astonishing as we meander along. Bigger minds and edicts and cultures have burned out as we too find endings rather than beginnings.
How am I feeling?
Ok today in my small world. But the big world impinged quite deeply as I watched history and saw it very much alive in our natures, where conflict rages as strongly as any intent to peace in our times.
Last night a request
To chair a meeting in AA, or rather share and tell my story of experience strength and hope.. My hopes these days, to be useful, to utilise and make a life again… To support and be a part of a fellowship which simply offers opportunity to do the right thing. And simply on a daily basis…
Maybe the lesson learned for me is to do local what I feel we need to do globally. Live well, conserve, be a part of life. Share my views and the best of intent to find peace and happiness. As someone said recently to me the truth is, “we all need to be loved.” And we need love each enough to make life work, simply one day at a time.
Governments and societies amble towards change.
Step Changes
A phrase a bit old these days, yet I heard it on the news today, that step changes in outlook are required and quickly. The jargon from Consultanese...
Consultanese
My definition of Consultanese is the language of thinkers and intellectuals. The language of theory and little understanding of practice… Theoretical blunderer’s hell bent on change without regard to the human condition. Consultanese is the tool of vanity and leadership, when a revolution is required as we break up structures and organisation to make way for new process and living.
Step changes
Steps of AA, the twelve step programme of my fellowship, we have learned much about step change and human behaviour, and know more than most what it’s like to move from a life heading for early endings, to a life of new beginnings. Step changes indeed, won through new attitudes to life and living, only made possible through the impossible lives we have led. Maybe always its life threatening to be so driven to changes so necessary to make life work again.
As hard can be for an individual human, one wonders if in hindsight society recognises these revolutions as they happen. Some in tandem with the changes, many left floundering or washed up and left behind…
It has always been so. And just for today I will go with the flow as I may, or be lost again as this world turns and another natural revolution takes me where it will.
There may be trouble ahead… a song from the past, appropriate as we so often dance to a new tune…
-/-
AA Official Site Reflections ~ AA Official Big Book And Twelve And Twelve Online ~
-/-
"Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. Chapter 6, Into Action, Big Book From: Page 72 Thru: Page 75, the bottom of the page. 12 And 12 Step 5."
May ~ All About Step Five:"Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs"
Step 5 "Admit And Accept" Reading Video Link:
-/-
May ~ Video Reading Chapter Six Into Action Link:
-/-
I do not speak for Alcoholics Anonymous I speak for myself. Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of unique and authentic people who speak for themselves where they will to share experience, strength and hope about recovery on a daily basis. Anonymity affords sanctuary to find how to live sober and be open, honest and willing to learn life day by day. For me "truth," "love" and "wisdom" offer the best spiritual experience by living reality today. Into the fabric of recovery from alcoholism are woven the Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions, steps to be open, honest and willing to learn, traditions to live unity, service and recovery.
-/-
Spiritual principles ~ Forgiveness Acceptance Surrender Faith Open-mindedness Honesty Willingness Moral-inventory Amends Humility Persistence Spiritual-growth Service
-/-
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