The physician who, at our request, gave us this letter,
has been kind enough to enlarge upon his views in another statement which
follows. In this statement he confirms what we who have suffered alcoholic
torture must believe that the body of the alcoholic is quite as abnormal
as his mind. It did not satisfy us to be told that we could not control
our drinking just because we were maladjusted to life, that we were in
full flight from reality, or were outright mental defectives. page
xxiv
All these, and many
others, have one symptom in common: they cannot start drinking without
developing the phenomenon of craving. This phenomenon, as we have
suggested, may be the manifestation of an allergy which differentiates
these people, and sets them apart as a distinct entity.
page xxiv
Our very lives, as
ex-problem drinkers, depend upon our constant thought of others and how
we may help meet their needs. page
20
There is a solution.
Almost none of us liked the self-searching, the leveling of our pride,
the confession of shortcomings which the process requires for its
successful consummation. But we saw that it really worked in others, and
we had come to believe in the hopelessness and futility of life as we
had been living it. When, therefore, we were approached by those in whom
the problem had been solved, there was nothing left for us but to pick
up the simple kit of spiritual tools laid at our feet. We have found
much of heaven and we have been rocketed into a fourth dimension of
existence of which we had not even dreamed. page
25
All of us felt at times
that we were regaining control, but such intervals - usually brief -
were inevitably followed by still less control, which led in time to
pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization. We are convinced to a man
that alcoholics of our type are in the grip of a progressive illness.
Over any considerable period we get worse, never better. page
30
When we became
alcoholics, crushed by a self-imposed crisis we could not postpone or
evade, we had to fearlessly face the proposition that either God is
everything or else He is nothing. God either is, or He isn't. What was
our choice to be? page 53
At some of these we
balked (the suggested twelve
steps).
We thought we could find an easier, softer way. But we could not. With
all the earnestness at our command, we beg of you to be fearless and
thorough from the very start.
Some of us have tried to hold on to our
old ideas and the result was nil until we let go absolutely. page
58
The first requirement
is that we be convinced that any life run on self-will can hardly be a
success. On that basis we are almost always in collision with something
or somebody, even though our motives are good. Most people try to live
by self-propulsion. page 60
Selfishness -
self-centeredness! That, we think, is the root of our troubles. Driven
by a hundred forms of fear, self-delusion, self-seeking, and self-pity,
we step on the toes of our fellows and they retaliate. Sometimes they
hurt us, seemingly without provocation, but we invariably find that at
some time in the past we have made decisions based on self which later
placed us in a position to be hurt.
So our troubles, we think, are basically of our
own making. They arise out of ourselves, and the alcoholic is an extreme
example of self-will run riot, though he usually doesn't think so. Above
everything, we alcoholics must be rid of this selfishness. We must, or
it kills us! God makes that possible. And there often seems no way
of entirely getting rid of self without His aid. Many of us had moral
and philosophical convictions galore, but we could not live up to them
even though we would have liked to. Neither could we reduce our
self-centeredness much by wishing or trying on our own power. We had to
have God's help.
This is the how and why of it. First of all, we
had to quit playing God. It didn't work. Next, we decided that hereafter
in this drama of life, God was going to be our Director. He is the
Principal; we are His agents. He is the Father, and we are His children.
Most good ideas are simple, and this concept was the keystone of the new
and triumphant arch through which we passed to freedom. page
62
"God, I
offer myself to Thee-to build with me and to do with me as Thou wilt.
Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do Thy will. Take
away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I
would help of Thy Power, Thy Love, and Thy Way of life. May I do Thy
will always!" We thought well before taking this step making sure
we were ready; that we could at last abandon ourselves utterly to
Him. page
63
It is plain that a life which includes deep resentment leads only to futility and unhappiness. To the precise extent that we permit these, do we squander the hours that might have been worth while. But with the alcoholic,
whose hope is the maintenance and growth of a spiritual experience, this business of resentment is infinitely
grave. We found that it is fatal. For when harboring such feelings we shut ourselves off from the sunlight of the Spirit. The insanity of alcohol returns and we drink again. And with us, to drink is to die.
page 66
If we are sorry for
what we have done, and have the honest desire to let God take us to
better things, we believe we will be forgiven and will have learned our
lesson. If we are not sorry, and our conduct continues to harm others,
we are quite sure to drink. We are not theorizing. page
70
Our real purpose is to
fit ourselves to be of maximum service to God and the people about us. page
77
The alcoholic is like a
tornado roaring his way through the lives of others. Hearts are broken.
Sweet relationships are dead. Affections have been uprooted. Selfish and
inconsiderate habits have kept the home in turmoil. We feel a man is
unthinking when he says that sobriety is enough. page
82
Yes, there is a long
period of reconstruction ahead. We must take the lead. A remorseful
mumbling that we are sorry won't fill the bill at all. page
83
The spiritual life is
not a theory. We have to live it. page
83
If we are painstaking
about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are
half way through. We are going to know a new freedom and a new
happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it.
We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace. No matter
how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can
benefit others. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will
disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in
our fellows. Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and outlook
upon life will change. Fear of people and of economic insecurity will
leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used
to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we
could not do for ourselves.
Are these extravagant promises? We think not.
They are being fulfilled among us - sometimes quickly, sometimes
slowly. They will always materialize if we work for them. pages
83-84
It is easy to let up on
the spiritual program of action and rest on our laurels. We are headed
for trouble if we do, for alcohol is a subtle foe. We are not cured of
alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the
maintenance of our spiritual condition. Every day is a day when we must
carry the vision of God's will into all of our activities. page
85
Never avoid these
responsibilities, but be sure you are doing the right thing if you
assume them. Helping others is the foundation stone of your recovery. A
kindly act once in a while isn't enough. You have to act the Good
Samaritan every day, if need be. It may mean the loss of many nights'
sleep, great interference with your pleasures, interruptions to your
business. It may mean sharing your money and your home, counseling
frantic wives and relatives, innumerable trips to police courts,
sanitariums, hospitals, jails and asylums. Your telephone may jangle at
any time of the day or night. page
97
It is not the matter of
giving that is in question, but when and how to give. That often makes
the difference between failure and success. The minute we put our work
on a service plane, the alcoholic commences to rely upon our assistance
rather than upon God. He clamors for this or that, claiming he cannot
master alcohol until his material needs are cared for. Nonsense. Some of
us have taken very hard knocks to learn this truth: Job or no job - wife
or no wife - we simply do not stop drinking so long as we place
dependence upon other people ahead of dependence on God.
Burn the idea into the consciousness of every
man that he can get well regardless of anyone. The only condition is
that he trust in God and clean house. page
98
Your job now is to be
at the place where you may be of maximum helpfulness to others, so never
hesitate to go anywhere if you can be helpful. You should not hesitate
to visit the most sordid spot on earth on such an errand. Keep on the
firing line of life with these motives and God will keep you unharmed. page
102
Practical experience
shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as intensive
work with other alcoholics. It works when other activities fail. This is
our twelfth suggestion: Carry this message to other alcoholics! You
can help when no one else can. You can secure their confidence when others
fail. Remember they are very ill. page
89
Step
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we
tried to carry this message
(the appropriate portion
of the literature)
to others
(similarly afflicted
people, when we share in anonymous fellowship meetings),
and
to practice these
principles
in all our affairs.
