*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *June 3, 2016* *Mountain Climbing* I was brought up in a little Yankee town of about fifty houses, East Dorset, Vermont. I was born under the shadow of a mountain there called Mount Aeolus. An early recollection is one of looking up and seeing that mysterious mountain and wondering what it was and whether I would ever climb that high. But I was presently distracted by my aunt who, as a fourth-birthday present, made me a plate of fudge. For the next thirty-five years I ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *June 2, 2016* *The Spiritual Aspect* I had mocked the spiritual aspect of our program on many previous occasions, claiming that this God business was for sissies and hypocrites. But this time it was different.  After my last drunk, I knew that it would be death or insanity if I kept on drinking.  This time, I prayed. I somehow felt that if there /was/ a Power greater than myself who could relieve me from this suffering, then I had better try to find Him. /- ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *June 1, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Making a List The inventory was ours, not the other man’s. When we saw our faults we listed them.  We placed them before us in black and white. We admitted our wrongs honestly and were willing to set these matters straight.* /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 67 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *It is the highest form of self-respect to admit mistakes and to make amends for them. AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *H O W** = **H**onesty, **O ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 31, 2016* *Self-concern* “If we cannot or will not achieve sobriety, then we become truly lost, right in the here and now. We are of no value to anyone, including ourselves, until we find salvation from alcohol. Therefore, our own recovery and spiritual growth have to come first-- a right and necessary kind of self-concern.” /- As Bill Sees It,/ p. 81 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Keep your sobriety first to make it last. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *A A* = **A**c ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 30, 2016* *Discovery* I discovered a fellowship of human beings that I’d never seen before. I learned how to have self-respect through work that AA gave me to do. I learned how to be a friend. I learned how to go out and help other people—there was nowhere else I could have done that, I have learned that the more I give, the more I will have; the more I learn to give, the more I learn to live. /- Experience, Strength and Hope,/ p. 218 *Thought to Ponder . . .* L ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 29, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ The Twelfth Suggestion Carry this message to other alcoholics!  You can help when no one else can. You can secure their confidence when others fail.* /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 89 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *In AA we don't carry the alcoholic; we carry the message. AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *E S H** = **E**xperience, **S**trength and **H**ope. ** *A Member Shares: I'm Peyton, an alcoholic.  I never dreamed when I ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 28, 2016* *Maturity* When I look back now, I think I stopped maturing at fifteen when I started to get drunk with the older guys. I wanted to feel at peace with myself and comfortable with other people. I never found it in drinking. The belonging I always wanted I have found in AA and in sobriety. /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 485 *Thought to Ponder . . .* The sense of belonging is tremendously exciting. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *Y A N A* = **Y**ou **A**re * ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 27, 2016* *Love and Laughter* People who love laugh more and believe that a day without laughter is a lost day. Love is the cement for the unity we need in AA. It joins the power of the mind and the heart for emotional growth. /- The Best of the Grapevine/ [Vol. 3], p. 297 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Take time to laugh -- it is the music of the soul. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *H J F* = **H**appy, **J**oyous, **F**ree. Thanks to all of you for sharing so gener ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 26, 2016* *Secrets* I can neither love nor be loved if I allow my secrets to get in the way. It’s the side of myself that I refuse to look at that rules me. I must be willing to look at the dark side in order to heal my mind and heart because that is the road to freedom. /- Daily Reflections,/ p. 130 *Thought to Ponder . . .* I must walk into darkness to find the light. *AA-related 'Alconym' . . .* *H O W* = **H**onesty, **O**pen-mindedness, **W**illingness. ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 25, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ To Wives There is every evidence that women regain their health as readily as men if they try our suggestions. But for every man who drinks others are involved—the wife who trembles in fear of the next debauch; the mother and father who see their son wasting away. Among us are wives, relatives and friends whose problems have been solved; as well as some who have not yet found a happy solution.* /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 104 ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 24, 2016* *No Disgrace* We remember we have an incurable, potentially fatal ailment called alcoholism. And instead of persisting in drinking, we prefer to figure out, and use, enjoyable ways of living without alcohol.  We need not be ashamed that we have a disease. It is no disgrace.  No one knows exactly why some people become alcoholics while others don’t. It is not our fault.  We did not /want/ to become alcoholics.  We did not /try/ to get ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 23, 2016* *Humility* On his desk, Dr. Bob had a plaque defining humility: “Perpetual quietness of heart.  It is to have no trouble. It is never to be fretted or vexed, irritable or sore; to wonder at nothing that is done to me, to feel nothing done against me. It is to be at rest when nobody praises me, and when I am blamed or despised, it is to have a blessed home in myself where I can go in and shut the door and kneel to my Father in secret and be at peace ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 22, 2016 ~ Scroll Down for Share ~ Willingness If you have decided you want what we have and are willing to go to any length to get it -- then you are ready to take certain steps.* /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 58 *Thought to Ponder . . .* *Life will take on new meaning. AA-related 'Alconym' . . . *H O W** = **H**onesty, **O**pen-mindedness, **W**illingness. ** *A Member Shares: I’m Bill, an alcoholic.  When I was Twelfth-Stepped I heard, and was guided th ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 21, 2016* *Keep It Simple* There have been times when I have gone “shopping” for other solutions to my alcoholism or have tried to find ways to blame relatives or friends or institutions for my problems. This seems common among alcoholics. With a spirit of love and tolerance, the program must protect itself. It has been so important to my own recovery to learn--and relearn—the principles of AA. How dear our familiar slogan is: “Keep It Simple”! /- Thank You For S ...Continue Reading

*AA Thought for the Day* (courtesy AA-Alive.net) *May 20, 2016* *Today* Today is the day.  Doing our best, living each day to the fullest is the art of living. Yesterday is gone, and we don’t know whether we will be here tomorrow. If we do a good job of living today, and if tomorrow comes for us, then the chances are we will do a good job when it arrives—so why worry about it? /- Alcoholics Anonymous,/ p. 357 *Thought to Ponder . . .* Every day is a gift.  That is why we call it the present. *AA-related ...Continue Reading