More Recovery Thoughts and Quotes - December

[yukonm]

December 1

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Many people in meetings will talk about having a spiritual awakening or experience regarding recovery. These awakenings come in many forms, some in a flash of lightening, some in the slow revelation of sobriety. Whatever way it comes for you will be in your best interests.

Help me accept whatever awakening is right for me, so that I am not wishing for the experience of another but content with my own.

I Am Whole

Today, I see that my life is up to me. How I choose to live, what I will accomplish, how I conduct my intimate relationships, how I treat myself, all are in my own hands. I am no longer afraid that pain and anxiety will return me to a state of helplessness and vulnerability. Let it come; I am ready to meet it head-on. I am strong in the awareness that I can live as I choose to live. I have been willing to walk a path of recovery that, though difficult, has built a strength in me and a knowledge that I can survive my most painful feelings. I do not need to be afraid of my life if I am not afraid of myself or an emotional death. I have met and tamed the monsters that live inside me. I am comfortable in my own skin.

I am free to be who I am.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

'When one door closes another door opens, but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the new worlds which open for us.' ~Alexander Graham Bell

God wants for me what I would want for myself, IF I had all the facts.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

If you must talk about others, speak as though they were standing next to you.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

I am okay about me today and that is terrific.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Sober: Son Of A ***** Everything's Real. - Mickey B.

[yukonm]

December 2

AA 'Big Book' - Quote

The man in the bed was told of the acute poisoning from which he suffered, how it deteriorates the body of an alcoholic and warps his mind. There was much talk about the mental state preceding the first drink. - Pg. 157 - A Vision For You

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

We always wanted our image to be so good, yet we always seemed to come off bad. No amount of mind-affecting chemicals ever made us come off good, either. They just made us think we were OK. But there is nothing so bad right now, that a fix, pill, drink, smoke, or snort won't make it worse.

May I clearly see that drugs only provided an illusion of good time, not the real thing.

Hesitation

Today, I will walk the walk and talk the talk. It will not be good for me, ultimately, to half commit myself. In a way, the particular path that I take is less significant than that I take a path. I can second-guess myself and my experience. Commitment to a path is really commitment to myself. I am allowing myself to take a clear direction, one in which I can actualize my talents on a day-to-day basis, one that will allow me to build a foundation and a structure in which I can live. I will have a passion in life, a passion that takes me beyond myself, a passion to love, nourish, be led and challenged by. I will follow it, and it will follow me.

I deserve a passion in my life.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

There are a lot more reasons for working the Ninth Step than freedom, serenity, and moral responsibility. Making amends is a good way of having the last word.

I take my program seriously and myself lightly.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Thinking about what you'll say before you share, or what you should have said after you share means you missed the meeting.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

No matter what is going on in my life today, I can always find something for which to be grateful. When I stop and think about this and make a gratitude list, there is no room for depression or self pity. There is so much to be grateful for today.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

I know if I take a drink, I'm gone. It's going to just keep feeding itself. But I secretly suspected that everybody who drinks must surely get that same fired-up feeling and want more, but because they don't have a problem with it they can control it. But in the AA Big Book Dr. Silkworth says that's not true; non alcoholics never experience that phenomenon of craving. - Bob D.

[bluidkiti]

December 3

AA 'Big Book' - Quote

For most normal folks, drinking means conviviality, companionship and colorful imagination. It means release from care, boredom and worry. It is joyous intimacy with friends and a feeling that life is good. But not so with us in those last days of heavy drinking. - Pg. 151 - A Vision For You

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Nothing comes easy for us right now. A lot of energy goes into just staying put and accepting this new way of life. We say that when the going gets tough, we hang tough! We know that it will pass, we make that promise to you. But it will be in God's time, not yours.

Let me believe in myself, in this program, and in You, my Spiritual Source.

A Little Magic

Each day is a gift especially for me. I will look through innocent eyes at the world today and see the gifts that are meant just for me. Children think the sun rises for and because of them. They're sure that the moon hangs in the sky because they waved their arm towards the heavens. That flowers bloom for their eyes alone to see. They are magical thinkers. They take delight in the antics of a squirrel, in a balloon sailing in a bright, blue sky. They see the world fresh, in color and alive each new day, each new moment. They are constantly being surprised. Today, I think I'll borrow a little of their magic. Their magic and my maturity may just be a winning combination.

I believe anything is possible

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Some days you will be shocked at how nasty and short tempered you are. You'll think, 'This can't be me being so unreasonable.' Yet it is. You may deny it's really you by jostling the blame on another, 'If they hadn't....'. No, your bad behavior is your fault. You have no excuse. Now, can you love you anyway?

I learn to love me even when I don't like me.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

On the first drink: When you get hit by a train, which kills you, the engine or the caboose?

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

I am beginning to trust myself today. There is a place deep within me that tells me that I am okay and guides me along my path in recovery.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

It's fine to drink like a fish.
If you drink what fish drink. - Jim M.

[yukonm]

December 4

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

We need special people in our lives so that we can travel the path of recovery. The special people are easy to find, they are right in front of you, your Higher Power puts them there.

Let me recognize and use the special people my Divine Source has placed before me to walk beside me on this road of recovery.

Feeling Good Inside

I am in the present, I can actually see what the next right action might be and I can take it seamlessly, easily, fruitfully. I will see my day as an opportunity to grow; to learn to allow more of who I am to flow through me. Naturally, quietly and without force. I will become worthy of the life I have been given, grateful just to be alive for one more day. I will let life work out.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

'We weren't perfect at it. Sometimes we rebelled, and rejected our sponsors' feedback or the guidance of the Steps. Still, the recovery process was always there when we needed and accepted it. (P 80, CDA First Edition)

I worked my using hard, so now I work my recovery hard.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Strive for perfection; accept progress.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

I am getting to know myself today. I accept who I am today. I like myself today.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

I ran out of the meeting screaming; 'You're not going to railroad me into being happy!' A while later I realized what I'd said. - Serenity Sam.

[yukonm]

December 5

AA 'Big Book' - Quote

We have found nothing incompatible between a powerful spiritual experience and a life of sane and happy usefulness. - Pg. 130 - The Family Afterward

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

It seems insane that we have to be brought to our knees before we seek help, but for most of us that's the way it is. Whatever crisis got us here, we will eventually see as a blessing in disguise.

Thank You Higher Power, of my understanding, for the crisis--the one that brought me to my knees, because it also bought me this hour of clean and sober time.

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Doing the next right thing in the face of a tricky situation is not a choice you can run away from. As the saying goes: Wherever you go, there you are.

I do the next right thing first, so the 'situation' doesn't last.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

I went outside and leaned up against the wall. I was throwing up on my shoes. And a man came out and he brought a towel and he cleaned me up, put his arms around me and said: 'Honey this is the last drunk you'll ever have to shake out.' - Gayle W.

[yukonm]

December 6

AA 'Big Book' - Quote

As a class, alcoholics are energetic people. They work hard and they play hard. Your man should be on his mettle to make good. Being somewhat weakened, and faced with physical and mental readjustment to a life which knows no alcohol, he may overdo. You may have to curb his desire to work sixteen hours a day. You may need to encourage him to play once in a while. He may wish to do a lot for other alcoholics and something of the sort may come up during business hours. A reasonable amount of latitude will be helpful. This work is necessary to maintain his sobriety. - Pg. 146 - To Employers

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Fragments of our addiction never stop calling, 'Hey, just one won't hurt; look, what's so wrong with going to that party; it's disloyal to stop seeing old friends.' But those of us who've been around awhile recognize the 'callings' for what they are. Give the 'calls' an inch and we KNOW addiction takes a mile.
When my mind is niggled with addiction excuses for setting myself up, may I follow program advice and call my sponsor or counselor.

Meditation

Today, I recognize the source of light and wisdom that is within me. When I look outside myself to learn about what is actually inside, I need to exercise great discernment because some of what I see fits and some does not. There is a fountain within me that is ever full and waiting to be discovered. When I can rest quietly in this inner place, I experience a sense of fullness, and my desire to go outside diminishes and gives way to a preference for undisturbed peace. Solitude takes on a different meaning when I can contact that quiet within. Life softens and external things become less important. I look for this place within me on a daily basis. I give myself this present today.

I search within.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

When the pain of where you were is worse than the discomfort of where you are going, then you'll move.

The pain of my growth is a good sign, not a stop sign.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Life without recovery: Even roses have thorns. Life in recovery: Even thorns have roses.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

I feel lighter and better about myself when I don't procrastinate. Today I am discovering the freedom of completing at last one thing that I don't put off.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

You hear all kinds of nonsense. Like: 'If you're in pain you're not working the program.' 'If you're afraid, you're not working the Steps.' Believing that nearly tore me apart for years. How can you possibly practice spiritual principles without going through periods, not only of pain, but of suffering and unbelievable agony? It's impossible. Because what I'm doing is uprooting illusions that I've based my very life on; all those old ideas, those lies I believed, and I'm wrenching them out. Like having six teeth pulled with no sedative - And I'm going to feel good? - Cubby S.

[yukonm]

December 7

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Every day of sobriety is a high degree of attainment. On this early day of sobriety, we have attained another day of dignity, another day with no new regrets, and another day to hold our head up high.

As I hold my head high today, I look in the mirror and say, 'Hi ______. Happy _____(put in the number) day of sobriety. You're doing fantastic!'

Who Am I?

Today I will ask this question over and over again. I will not expect an answer. I will ask for the sake of asking, I will ask in order to put my mind in the frame of searching for a deeper life of the spirit, I will ask to be guided, toward awareness of all that is eternal. I will ask this question throughout my life without ever expecting or insisting upon an answer. I understand that God lives in the asking, that God is too great and vast to reduce to any simple answer, that God lives in the question.

I am curious about the deeper mysteries of this life
- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

'We could never learn to be brave and patient, if there were only joy in the world.' ~Helen Keller

My adversities are opportunities in disguise.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Don't try to be normal; try to be healthy.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I know that I can get through anything that happens in this day with the help of my Higher Power.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

I told the operator I wanted to talk to Alcoholics Anonymous - this was 28 years ago - so instead of giving me the Central Office she gave me the local Alano Club. The person picked up and said: 'Hello.' and gave the phone number. I said: 'I want to talk to whoever's in charge.' - I always believed in going immediately to the top. And there was a hell of an argument on the other end, as they snatched the phone away from each other while they decided who was in charge. Finally, one guy got on and said - and doesn't this make sense? Listen to this; he said: 'Our Higher Power can't speak to you on the phone right now, but I have been authorized to speak in His behalf on any issues of recovery.' - Franny S.

[yukonm]

December 8

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

In the first days and months of recovery we must practice a strict adherence to our program suggestions. We are vulnerable to our addiction calling us back. But if we follow the suggestions religiously, we will earn our 30 day, 90 day, 1 year chip.

God, as I understand You, help me stay clean and sober to the next hour.

Spirit Calls

I am willing to allow my life to happen. Life has taught me that the best laid plans can go awry. I know that I need to have goals and missions in order to give shape, meaning and a sense of destiny to my life. However, when I let those goals run me, when I let them preoccupy me to such an extent that I stop living in the present and I miss the beauty and spontaneity of each new day, then I am becoming a slave to my own plans. I will learn to take an action and let go of the result, to have a goal then to move toward it in a relaxed manner that doesn't rob me of my pleasure and my day.

I am in touch with spirit within and without

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Some people do not have to have a program to stop drinking and using. But for us, we remember untreated abstinence will make our past our future.

I don't work the program to get my life back; I work the program to get my life forward.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Serenity comes when you stop expecting and start accepting.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

It feels so good to accept myself just as I am today. All my thoughts and actions and emotions are right where they belong.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Other drugs; I never stopped doing one thing to do something else, I just kinda 'added to'. - Allen F.

[yukonm]

December 9

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

We need to have our spiritual program replenished daily, by going to meetings and practicing the principles we are learning. Sometimes we need to replenish hourly. We replenish through prayer and service.

Thank you God, as I understand You, for the wealth of spiritual principles available for me to use.

Transformation

Count me in. Whatever are my talents, my usefulness; wherever you see me fitting into your grand scheme, God . . . place me there. I am willing to open my heart to your guidance. I am built to be part of this moment of transformation. I see a better world in my mind's eye and I know that others see it too. Connect me with those people who wish to quietly usher in a new world. Together we can push through the eye of the needle - together we can help it happen.

We are transforming together

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Do not be hung up on what you ought to be, what you were supposed to be or what you were going to be. You will never have time to be what you are.

I am the best me there is.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

When we go too far, it is seldom in the right direction.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

I have the right to have my needs met. In order to have them met, I am expressing them to the people who can help me today.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Prayer is talking to God. Meditation is listening to Him. - Unknown origin.

[yukonm]

December 10

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Don't ever think you have it made, because you haven't. You are only one drink away from a drunk, one hit away from a high. Staying in your program and close to the fellowship is your best bet right now.

Let me not get so carried away with my two weeks of sobriety that I get cocky and lose sight of the truth.

My Work

I am whole and in tact and as such I have a positive contribution to make to this world. My work needs me. Whatever my gifts are, I will share them. I will not hold back, telling myself I am not ready, not smart enough, not good enough. Today is the day. This is as good a place to begin as any. I will dig deep into myself and find beauty and wisdom. I will produce good works and I will share those openly with others. As I expand my own consciousness, it becomes my responsibility to share what I learn with the collective. I am available to find my mission. I will give myself the gift of feeling purposeful, today.

I will share my gifts

- Tian Dayton PhD

You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land, there is no other life but this.
Henry David Thoreau

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

The smallest deed is better than the grandest intention. The smallest kindness is better than the best pitch.

It's nice to be important but it's more important to be nice.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Self-respect is the most important respect you can earn.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I trust the positive and loving people to whom I am attracted. Today I am free to share from my heart, knowing that what I say will be treated with love and respect.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

The most effective prayer I ever said had only five words, the longest word being a swear word. God didn't seem to mind. Trip S.

[yukonm]

December 11

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

One of the things you can learn right now is that it is OK not to have all of the answers. For the first time in a long time, no one expects you to know anything. Enjoy it!

Let me know it is OK to not be strong. It is OK to rely on my Higher Power.

Forgiving and Moving On

As I work through the blocks in the way of my own serenity I find that I consider forgiveness as a way to release the residue of resentment and pain that live inside me from unresolved issues from the past. As I put more and more energy into my own personal growth, I find that I value my own peace of mind more than holding onto anger and hurt. I find I want to lay the sword down. It becomes too heavy in my hand, the weight of carrying it encumbers my own freedom. Today, the present I will give myself is forgiveness.

I am ready to consider forgiveness

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

The consequences of being dishonest, of being a liar, is not so much that others will not believe you, as it is that you can not believe others.

'Does what I gain by lying balance out the integrity I lose?' (P 54, CDA First Edition)

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Surrender, don't quit.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

The world can not change overnight, nor can I. Just one step at a time, one day at a time, I'm exactly where I need to be to get to exactly where I am going. I trust this process today.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Self Will: An alkie ship's captain at night sees a light dead ahead, on collision course and sends a signal; 'Change your course, 12 degrees west.' A signal comes back; 'Change your's 12 degrees east.' The captain begins to get angry; 'I'm a captain.' The reply: 'I'm a seaman, 2nd class.' The captain is furious now: 'I'm on a destroyer, change your course, and call me sir!' The reply; 'I'm on a lighthouse, your call.. sir.' - Jack K. (Amended)

[yukonm]

December 12

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Do not be afraid to tell someone, anyone when you feel like taking a drink or using some drug. This is normal and can only be dealt with through open communication.

Help me understand that the 'need' to use isn't really a need but a symptom of chemical dependency and nothing to be ashamed of.

The Work of Living

God and I have work to do, together we have a life to co-create. Mine. I will daily spend time tuning into that deeper place within me so that I can use my energies more wisely and efficiently to build my life. I will get farther faster when I live consciously rather than unconsciously, when I look for guidance rather than stress unnecessarily and create problems that don't need to be there. When I stay calm and centered, my life goes more smoothly. When I allow spirit to guide me through my day, I see beauty where I may have missed it, I have a center to work from and return to and I walk in grace rather than stumble my way through the day.

I am held and open to divine instruction

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

'The turning point in the process of growing up is when you discover the core of strength within you that survives all hurt.' ~Max Lerner. That 'core of strength' is based on abstinence and spiritual principles.

I suit up; I show up: I grow up.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Practice makes progress.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

There is something special waiting for me to do with this day. I know that when it is time I will be inspired from a place deep within myself. I trust that I will know what to do when the time is right.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

My folks know how to push my buttons,
they installed them. - Anon.

[yukonm]

December 13

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

KISS. Keep It Simple Stupid. We are not suggesting you are stupid, but your disease is. It will do anything it can to keep you using even though it ultimately means death of itself along with the body. But through following a few SIMPLE suggestions you can release yourself from the stupidity.

May I understand that my stupid disease will argue and complicate simple procedures so it can gain a foothold in the confusion it creates. KISS off addiction.

Learning My Own Lessons

I recognize today that I am in charge of my own learning. Life is constantly offering up circumstances that are useful in my personal growth. I can move through the situation, live it out, extract the wisdom that is in it or I can ignore the lesson and keep repeating the same painful circumstance over and over again in my life. The deepest and most appropriate things I need to learn in life are generally right in front of me. Life is my guru if I can use it as such. It is rich with subtle learning if I look for it. The gift I can give myself today is becoming aware of what life is trying to teach me.

My lessons come from my life.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

At the start of meeting we always ask, 'Is there anybody new or coming back?' We should also ask, 'Is there anybody old and going out?'

I remember that the 'still suffering alcoholic' can include old timers too!

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Talk does not cook rice.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

I thought; 'I won't just read the 4th Step, I'll chant it, like a Greek Tragedy; 'I resent my mother!!' and as I rip the pages out after I chant it, I'll throw it on a fire, signifying the connection between heaven and earth. The smoke and ashes will carry away my sins and my purified soul will be lifted to the heavens.' I didn't mention this to my sponsor, 'cos like I said, he's kind of a rigid guy. So he picks me up and says 'You can start reading now.' And I thought; 'In your Camaro?' - I was going to read the greatest spiritual treatise ever written, in a Camaro? - Chris C.

[yukonm]

December 14

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

We can never get enough of what we really do not want. We don't really want drugs, we want what we hope they'll bring us, wholeness, satisfaction, escape from pain.

God, as I understand You, let me see what I really want.

Spirit Calls

Spirit calls to me within and without. In a still, small voice I sense spirit whispering in my inner ear. My body feels an increasing sense of aliveness as I invite spirit to make itself known to me. I do not even need to make room for spirit, because spirit breathes in each pore within me. It fills the numbness with energy. It fills the emptiness and causes my cup to overflow with its presence. There are gifts in listening if I am willing to sense, hear and see them, lessons I can learn. Little hints that help me to appreciate what I already have and open myself to experiencing more.

I will look for evidence of spirit at work in my life

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

There is no completion for the circle of recovery. A circle has no beginning and no end. It is suggested that recovery begins when you have learned enough from those before you and pass it along to those behind. Love is the process that keeps the circle moving.

Standing hand in hand or arm in arm after a meeting I absorb the love that travels our circle of recovery.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

To the desolate alcoholic, the act of kindness can be the difference between getting 'better' or getting 'bitter.'

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I can look back with love in my heart, knowing that every moment, every experience of my life has been necessary, valuable and significant.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Using will power to control drinking is about as effective as using will power on diarrhea. - Steve M.

[yukonm]

December 15

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Did you really listen to the last person that tried to help you? A fellow sufferer or professional? Or did you blow off their words with various excuses? If you LISTEN with all your might to the next person who tries to help, this hour or that will be joyful.

Guide the right person to me so that I may have the opportunity to listen and learn, joyfully.

Visualizing My Own Life

Today I will dream, I'll use my capacity for visualization to imagine what I would like my life to be like. I will allow myself to see, in my mind, what I want to manifest in my life. Then I'll let the universe to work it's magic. Rather than stress and control and attempt to manipulate events, circumstances and people so that they conform to my idea of what I want to happen, I'll hold my vision steadily and with faith and trust that the universe will provide. This life is a gift, this world is a gift. Nature is abundant. I am part of the world, part of nature. Life means to fulfill me. Today I will take all of the steps that I need to take in order to manifest my vision and let God do the rest. I'll take the action and let go of the result.

I see the life I want to live

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

They say, 'When all else fails, read the directions.' In recovery, we say, 'When all else fails, only then are you ready to read the directions.' It takes what it takes.

I do not wait to hit the bottom of a problem before I hit the books for directions.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Honesty without kindness is cruel and kindness without honesty is co-dependence.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I am experiencing all of my life. It is exciting to be alive in each moment.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

He drank not as an epicure, but barbarious, with a speed and dispatch, as if he were performing a homicidal function, as if he had to kill something inside himself; a worm that would not die.' - Baudelaire talking of Edgar Allen Poe.

[yukonm]

December 16

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Although loving and being loved is an important aspect of balance in our lives--it is never the solution to drinking and other drug taking. We sometimes focus on the strong emotion of love rather than face taking each step at a time, one hour at a time.

Creator, as I understand You, let me feel the love of others but not confuse it as the means of recovery in place of loving myself.

Divine Manifesting

I can imagine a better life. I can visualize what I would like to bring into my life. I can align my will with the source energy and quietly trust that what I see will come forth in its own time. I can bring my highest good towards me.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Divine Manifesting comes as you make contact with your Divine Self, and open to Its guidance, energy, power, love, and wisdom. Your Divine Self has all the answers, and can assist you in every area of your life. If you would like a blessing, insight, energy, or any other gifts from your Divine Self, ask for this right now. Contact your Divine Self by getting very quiet, letting go of all thoughts, and enter into a peaceful, silent state. Although your Divine Self is present through all states of consciousness, it is often in the silence of no-thought that you can most easily receive the energy of your Divine Self. Know that your Divine Self always responds to any request. Answers, energy, and blessings are given to you as you ask for them.

Sanaya and Duane

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Some of us change when we see the light, most of us change when we feel the heat. Are you waiting to get burned before you do what you need to?

If I don't change... my clean and sober date will.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Every recovery from alcoholism began with the first sober hour.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Whatever I am thinking right now is creating how I am feeling. I turn to positive and loving thoughts because I choose to feel good.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

It's not what you drink, or where you drink, or how much you drink; It's what it's doing for you.

[yukonm]

December 17

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

You know that people are going to feel sorry for you. However, there is a fine line between compassion and pity. Compassion is laced with understanding while pity reflects a diminished picture of yourself. By honestly sharing and explaining what you are going through as you travel away from your addiction, you will evoke compassion; by denying, hiding, and blaming, you are likely to evoke pity from others.

If I am genuine in my recovery with others, they will be genuine in their compassion with me.

Inner Belief

I believe in this world; it is the place that I have been born into. I love the breeze and the grass, the sky and the water. I have an intimate exchange with nature - like a lover. I feel held and nourished. Caressed and soothed. I believe in people - they are the species to which I belong. I recognize that, underneath our superficial differences, we all want and need the same things. I believe that truth and goodness will prevail. I feel good with small gains. I see deep meaning in quiet things, and I am moved by a power that I cannot explain but that I sense inside and out. Today, I feel good, I am aware of the gifts of nature, of being alive. I am open to what lies around me.

I believe in life

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

The law of physics says there is only one way to coast: down hill.

If I am not moving forward, I am moving backward. There is no coasting in recovery.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

What a different world this would be if people would magnify their blessings the way they do their troubles.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

When I have done all the footwork I know to do and things are still not working out, I know today that it is time to meditate. I have faith that my answer is still to come.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

If carrots would do what alcohol did for me, I'd be a carrotolic. - Al A.

[yukonm]

December 18

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

The diversity and complexity of people seeking recovery is extraordinary. Whether a 40 year old pimp, an young gang member, a woman with grandchildren, or a teen with attitude, we must remember: as cancer is no respecter of victims, neither is addiction. Same disease, same recovery.

God, as I understand You, let societal prejudges not enter into my sharing and 12 step work.

Seeing Me from the Inside Out

Today, I will become aware of that part of me that is separate and observes all that I say, do, think and feel. I have a witness within me that can become a very useful part of my life. Watching my thoughts, feelings and behavior with a little bit of objectivity will help me to see myself as I really am. Fear, for example, is only fear. When I experience small fears throughout my day I will simply see myself feeling them, I will watch them, experience them and allow them to dissipate. I will breathe in and out as they move through me. By allowing my mind to watch itself with no thought of controlling or participating, I can learn a great deal about the way I work. I can allow myself to change on the inside.

I am an uncritical observer of my own inner workings.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Which 'isms' affect you? Alcoholism: Incredibly Short Memory. Egoism: I, Self, and Me. Recidivism: I Sponsor Myself. Narcissism: InSide Me. Pessimism: I Sabotage Myself. Optimism: Incredibly Spiritual Moments.

Which 'ism' do I adopt for my life?

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Learn from other's mistakes. You will never live long enough to make them all yourself.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I welcome all my feelings. Today I deserve to feel joy and love and gratitude and warmth and affection, just to name a few.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

The reality of AA is like an invisible boat that you only see when you start rowing. - Clancy I.

[yukonm]

December 19

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Our incessant analyzing could very well lead us back to drugs. Is your mind yapping at you constantly? Should I stay, should I not? Put your mind to rest by saying to yourself: No matter what my mind says, I won't take a fix, pill, drink, or snort and I will stay in this program.

With a firm decision on my part, it doesn't matter what my mind says, I know what my behavior will be -- clean and sober.

Spirit at Work

I am waiting in pleasant anticipation for spirit to work its quiet magic in my day. There is nothing that I can think, feel or do, that cannot be made lighter and truer by inviting spirit into it. I rest in the joyous awareness that spirit is with me. That spirit has never left me. If I feel an absence of spirit today I will remember that it is not spirit that moves away from me, but I that move away from spirit. I am uplifted by the thought that I am not alone, nor ever was I. Today I need no proof that I am on a spiritual journey because the miracle of life surrounds me everywhere and this is proof enough. I am living the gift.

Life is the remedy.

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Pure and simple: Fear is the absence of Faith. Whether your fears are the Frantic Efforts to Appear Recovered or the F*ck Everything And Run type, one thing is guaranteed to alleviate them, the Fear Ain't In This House type of faith.

My fear no longer owns me.

- Tian Dayton PhD

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

It works better if you get into the program instead of just getting around the program.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

In quiet meditation I find emotional balance. I feel myself growing closer and closer to my Higher Power and I find love.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

If you don't believe that the AA Big Book was written with the assistance of a divine editor, ask yourself; 'Could my home group have written it?' In my group it takes us twenty minutes to elect a G.S.O - And that's when we have a volunteer. - Doug D.

[yukonm]

December 20

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Any of us who feel insecure, inferior, or unattractive may think we drink and take other drugs to counteract this. We do drugs compulsively BECAUSE we are addicted and not for other reasons; other reasons are only rationales.

May I understand that fixing the 'rationales' in my life will not stop my disease. Not picking up will stop alcoholism and other addictions.

The Power is in the Now

There is magic in this moment. All of the creative power in this radiant universe is in the present, in the here and now. The present is alive and vibrant. If I align myself with the present, if I allow myself to fully experience this moment, I will find all that I need in it. And I will be templating what I experience next. Quantum physics tells me that all is alive and issues from the same source. What I experience now, creates my future. I am part of God's plan, part of the one, creative mind.

There is nothing like the present

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

How long does it take to clear away the wreckage of our past? In the Northwest region of the U.S., Native Americans have a special saying, 'How long does it take to clear a landslide? One rock at a time.'

I remove the landslide of my past, one rock at a time.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Try to improve the wreckage of the present.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I know I am powerless over all the addictions, obsessions, compulsions and dependencies in my life. Today I am willing to let them go to a power greater than myself.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Look to the sun and the shadows fall behind. - Anon.

[yukonm]

December 21

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Lying is a hallmark of our disease. We may think we don't lie to others, but what did we tell ourselves about our amoral over consumption of mind-affecting chemicals? It couldn't have been the truth!

God, as I understand You, reveal to me the lies of my addiction that I may remain on the road of recovery.

Living with Ambiguity

When I know peace is at the center of my being and I can tap into it whenever I want to, I can tolerate living with the mystery, the unknown. Understanding that knowing fully is probably never truly possible. When I experience the soothing body chemicals that love or meditation induce in me, I have the ability to sink into the moment, knowing that the moment is all I really have and that it is sufficient onto itself. Knowing that if I allow it just to be there, it will fill me up. When I reach out and touch, literally touch someone I want to participate in the world because I am naturally drawn to what is joyful or meaningful or what allows me to live with a sense of connection. When I have peace within, I trust my intuition. I rely on a part of me that doesn't need everything to be pinned down and predictable in order to feel safe, I can tolerate the vicissitudes of life because I have an emotional center that is steady and secure. I gain my security from within

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

In working with others, remember that no one cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.

I love the unloveables.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

The program does not work in principle; it only works in practice.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I seek spiritual understanding beyond everything else. I choose peace and love and joy as my goals.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

They didn't make a glass big enough for me to have one drink.- Anon.

[yukonm]

December 22

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

HALT. Don't get too Hungry, too Angry, too Lonely, too Tired. Why? Because any of these conditions weaken our mind and emotions and in a weakened state our disease of addiction can easily trick us into using some mind-affecting chemical.

Higher Power, as I understand You, help me understand the dangers of HALT.

Staying in the Game

Each and every day is a rebirth into an entirely new set of possibilities. It carries with it a sense of renewal. Each and every day I will play the hand I'm dealt as well as I can play it. Each and every day I will wake up, place my hand in the hand of God and move into my day with the confidence and comfort of knowing that I am not alone, that I have access to the greatest source of compassion and power in the universe. Each and every day I will put one foot in front of the other and try to make sense of the life I have been given. I will have faith - I will stay connected and alive while I'm living.

I am an active member of my life

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Some program members get stuck on rules of what one can and can't say and what dependency qualifies one to be in what recovery group. They demand that newcomers follow traditions as interpreted by them. This can drive newcomers away before they even find out what recovery means.

I carry the message, not the mess.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

The trouble with many of us is that in trying times we stop trying.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

I can handle anything that comes up today even if it is only a moment at a time.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

There are no chemical solutions to spiritual problems. - Ron K.

[yukonm]

December 23

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

The first few 24 hours are the hardest task we will ever have to complete. The cravings are intensive, the Babbler put-downs are overwhelming, our bodies feel like a dirty sneaker. Sometimes we simply have to hold on.

God, as I understand You, be with me now.

Always Here

Today I recover the spirit that has always been there, vibrating just beneath the surface of my being, the membrane of my life. I am whole and in tact. I call to that part of me that has been waiting patiently for me to come to my senses and claim it. That part of me that is eternal, that never dies. Spirit has been with me even in my darkest hours. I turn and look, I quiet my mind and see, I rest in awareness and experience. Spirit has never been far, but I have been asleep. Today I wake up to spirit.

I am alive to life

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

There is nothing about you that was not intended to be. You have an incredibly sacred purpose.

I am on purpose.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

If you don't remember what God did for you yesterday, you'll have trouble trusting Him for today.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

As I start this day with quiet meditation, I feel myself becoming still and at peace. At anytime during the day I can bring my mind back to this moment. I can bring my attention and awareness back to the peace that I have when I am with my breath and I know that my breath is with me at all times, whether I remember it or not.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

If I point the finger at anyone, I have three pointing right back at me. - Unknown origin.

[yukonm]

December 24

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

In our recovery it is easy to forget to listen. We get two weeks of clean time and suddenly 'got it made.' Listening is actually our second greatest teacher, the horrors of addiction being our first. If we forget to listen to those who have gone before us, our first great teacher will take over again.

May I please keep my ears open, more then my mouth during these initial learning months.

Inner Hearing, Inner Sight

Today, I will trust my own heart. The clear message that whispers within me has more to tell me than a thousand voices. I have a guide within me who knows what is best for me. There is a part of me that sees the whole picture and knows how it all fits together. My inner voice may come in the form of a strong sense, a pull from within, a gut feeling or a quiet knowing. However my inner voice comes to me, I will learn to pay attention. In my heart I know what is going on. Though I am conditioned by the world to look constantly outside myself for meaning, today I recognize that it is deeply important for me to hear what I am saying from within. I give myself the gift of listening.

I will trust my inner voice.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

When we feel that fate has dealt us a bad hand with chemical dependency, we simply remember that many people have MS, cancer, diabetes, lupus, or a myriad of maladies that are not so easily put into remission.

Because I count my blessings, my blessings count.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Be kind to unkind people. It gets to them.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I am willing to be increasingly aware of my spiritual life.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

This guy had been dragged out of his car drunk by the police. He was handcuffed and chained to a bench at the police station, he'd just urinated on himself, and he looked up at the cop and said; 'I have got to stop driving.' - Scott R.

[yukonm]

December 25

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

It often happens that you won't know the role addiction played in your life until you stop using. You have replace roles now. Learning new skills, and this is done at meetings and with your sponsor, is a necessary step in adjusting to your new circumstances.

Rather than see additional burdens in new tasks, I choose to see them as a breath of new life.

The Treasures Within

Within me is the perfect life waiting to awaken. The gifts I seek are already within me. A deep pool of awareness and aliveness is present all of the time but I am too distracted to know it. I get so lost in the superficial details and tasks of my life that I forget to live it, to drop down and contact the spirit that God has planted within me. It is the best kept secret that spirit lives within me, that the way in which I come in touch with my inner light is through letting the constant preoccupations of my mind float by, not taking them so seriously, not trying to control them. Today I realize that the gold is not in my ability to control my mind, the gold is in what lies beneath. What emerges when my mind, for a precious moment, is stilled.

Spirit is with me always

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

As you sponsor others, remember this: If you are trying to recreate someone in your own image, then one of you will be redundant.

My job as a sponsor is to model, not mold, recovery for my sponsees.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Love fills me and heals me as I open to connect with the people that God has placed in my life.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

One drink's too many and a thousand is not enough.- Unknown origin.

[yukonm]

December 26

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

To insist stubbornly on clinging to old relationships, when they are basically drug oriented relationships is sabotaging our recovery process. Is it not our disease finding a 'good' excuse to keep us close to drugs?

May I be able to hear the suggestions of those who work with me. May I listen in this next hour and follow the suggestions.

Being with Life

Today, I allow myself just to be with life. Somehow it doesn't have to prove anything to me or give me any more than I already have to be okay. The lessons I have learned through sincere dedication to my own inner growth, have taught me that I can face my most difficult feelings and still come home to a place of love and acceptance. Life is always renewing itself; nothing lasts, good or bad, and that is just the way it is. It is enough today to enjoy my coffee, to take a walk, to appreciate the people in my life. I can rest in a quiet sort of understanding that this is what it's all about; all the searching turned up such an ordinary but beautiful thing.

I am enraptured with the ordinary

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

Everyone has problems. Your problem though, is not the real problem. The real problem is how you deal with the original problem.

I work the program, not the problem.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Are you going to let bad times make you bitter or make you better?

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

I live today as I want to remember my life.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

The Twelve Steps when simmered down to the last, resolve themselves into two words: 'Love' and 'Service'. - Dr. Bob.

[yukonm]

December 27

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Sometimes it is tough to stay away from our drug of choice for a whole day. The call and craving are so strong! When we can't manage a whole day, we manage this hour. When the hour is up, we manage one more until we are clean.

Help me to stay clean and sober, from one hour to the next.

Appreciating What I Have

Today I won't let my desire for more, blind me to what's already here. My life is full of blessings that I look right past when all I see is what's missing rather than what is there. Desire is natural and good, I need to feel it to grow and reach beyond myself. But today, I will appreciate what I already have before I ask for more. Appreciation is like water on a plant, it causes good to grow in my life. What I appreciate expands. It grows before my eyes, it deepens and widens. The mere act of appreciation somehow creates more of what I am already giving thanks for. It opens doors to the coffers of this generous world and invites the its bounty to come in. Appreciation lets the creative universe know that I am grateful for what is being so freely given to me.

Today I will appreciate what I have knowing that it opens a doorway to increase

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

It is remarkable how often we run across this feeling of 'uniqueness' as we recover. We may brag that we used more, had worse contacts, spent more in bars, treated our family worse, were younger, older, blacker, gayer, more sensitive--whatever.

I am the only 'me' there is ever going to be. I do not try to convince others that I am a better me than they.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

If you have one hand in the fellowship and one hand in God's, you can't pick up today.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I am unveiling my layers and layers of self-doubt and letting them go. Today I am taking back all the power I have given to others by discovering the courage that comes from my own wisdom.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Alcoholism is the only prison where the locks are on the inside. - Peggy M.

[yukonm]

December 28

AA 'Big Book' - Quote

However intelligent we may have been in other respects, where alcohol has been involved, we have been strangely insane. It's strong language - but isn't it true? - Pg. 38 - More About Alcoholism

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

You will probably misjudge and misunderstand many people and their motives for a time. The muddled thinking of early recovery has a way of making us take things the wrong way. Remember your vulnerability and that withdrawal distorts thinking. Don't be hard on yourself or those around you. Do nothing permanent for eight months to a year. This way your regrets will be minimized.

God, as I understand You, hold my tongue from uttering words and restrain my steps from moving in directions that I may one day regret.

Body Memories

Understanding and thought are distributed throughout all the cells in my body. Who I am is stored in my physical self. My body carries memory and knowledge about how I have responded to the circumstances of my life, about what I brought into this world to begin with.. Today when I think positively, I will allow and invite my entire body to carry a positive thought. I will instruct each cell within me to be active, healthy and vibrant. Each time that I feel I am getting low on reserves, I will open all of my body to receiving uplifting light and energy from the universe. I am not a talking head. I am a body, mind and spirit, alive in all of me.

I ask my body to wake up and live.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

If you are clean and sober, the miracle has already happened. Stick around, the impossibilities take a little longer.

Nothing is impossible in God's world.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Prevent truth decay-read your Big Book..

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Through prayer and meditation God guides me to the appropriate people for guidance in the important decisions I must make in my life. I trust my answers to be there when the time is right.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Give me your hand o brother mine and even I may help you up. - Henry Lawson.

[yukonm]

December 29

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

You will probably misjudge and misunderstand many people and their motives for a time. The muddled thinking of early recovery has a way of making us take things the wrong way. Remember your vulnerability and that withdrawal distorts thinking. Don't be hard on yourself or those around you. Do nothing permanent for eight months to a year. This way your regrets will be minimized.

God, as I understand You, hold my tongue from uttering words and restrain my steps from moving in directions that I may one day regret.

Body Memories

Understanding and thought are distributed throughout all the cells in my body. Who I am is stored in my physical self. My body carries memory and knowledge about how I have responded to the circumstances of my life, about what I brought into this world to begin with.. Today when I think positively, I will allow and invite my entire body to carry a positive thought. I will instruct each cell within me to be active, healthy and vibrant. Each time that I feel I am getting low on reserves, I will open all of my body to receiving uplifting light and energy from the universe. I am not a talking head. I am a body, mind and spirit, alive in all of me.

I ask my body to wake up and live.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

If you are clean and sober, the miracle has already happened. Stick around, the impossibilities take a little longer.

Nothing is impossible in God's world.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Prevent truth decay-read your Big Book..

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Through prayer and meditation God guides me to the appropriate people for guidance in the important decisions I must make in my life. I trust my answers to be there when the time is right.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Give me your hand o brother mine and even I may help you up. - Henry Lawson.

[yukonm]

December 30

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Life is not fair. You see it in the headlines; you see it in people racked with chronic pain; you see it in senseless street violence and children starving in third world countries. It will be a challenge for you in the coming weeks to understand it is not an unfair thing that has just happened, addiction and then recovery, but the greatest fight you shall ever receive.

I do not know why good people suffer addiction. It is the very act of not understanding and still trusting in the good of the universe that comprises the very essence of faith.

Life is a Spiritual Journey

No one can learn the alphabet for me. And no one can develop wisdom, appreciation or inner strength for me. These are things I have to do for myself. What is life but growth and expansion, increasing my understanding so that I can deepen my experience of feeling alive? There are gifts in healing if I am willing to see them, lessons I can learn, awareness's that I need in order to appreciate what I already have. Sickness can be my teacher if I let it. Even as I wait for strength to return to my body, still my spirit and my character can grow stronger and better and more refined. I am not doing nothing as I lie here, I am growing on the inside. Today I will use this moment that puts me into a deeper part of myself to come in contact with an openness to grow. I am in touch with a part of life that I normally don't get in touch with.

I am understanding and expanding my inner world.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

When you can't find the solution to a problem, look for the solution to the problem.

I keep whispering my heart's desires because I never know when my angel is listening.

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

The program is for participants, not spectators.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

It feels so good to help other people and to know that I have something to give them. It feels so good to have turned my own life around so that it can benefit others.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

We must think of all those sick ones still to come to AA. As they try to make their return to faith and to life, we want them to find everything in AA that we have found, and yet more, if that be possible. No care, no vigilance, no effort to preserve AA's constant effectiveness will ever be too great to hold us in full readiness for the day of their homecoming. Bill W. 1959.

[yukonm]

December 31

Hour To Hour - Book - Quote

Under stress men are more likely to do the 'fight or flight' thing and counter stress with anger or desertion. Women are more likely to adopt the 'tend and befriend' mode where they begin to nurture others and make alliances. You will be adopting a number of strategies in your growing recovery. Try to make as many of them proactive as you can. The more you respond (with thought and deliberation) than react (instinctually), the better you will weather the journey.

I seek solutions and guidelines for my behaviors and the coming decisions I must make. I do not 'react' but 'respond' to the situations in my life.

I Will Live in My Body as Well as My Head

I cannot hold onto life any more than I can hold onto a rain storm, a cloud or a sun set. I will not know how to be, what to do or how to act if I am ever living in my head. I have to live in my body, too, in the present, spontaneously part of the moment with head and heart in balance so I can sense where I am and where the current of life is taking me. So that we can be free of what is in the way of manifesting our own good. So that we can live in the present unencumbered with unresolved pain from the past. So that we can stop repeating the same old dysfunctional patterns from our past in our relationships in the present.
Emotional balance allows us to live in this alive and ever changing present so that we can respond spontaneously to any given moment or any given situation. So that we have the inner balance to be responsive, flexible and alive. So that we can live in the present.

Living in my head limits my spontaneity.

- Tian Dayton PhD

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

The sole purpose of AA is to help the alcoholic stop drinking. The sole purpose of NA is to help the addict stop using. The sole purpose of CDA is to help the chemically dependent give up mind affecting chemicals. The soul purpose of all these fellowships is service, unity, and recovery.

'I do not put the sole purpose of any fellowship above the soul purpose.' ~Shelly Marshall

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

To be considered trustworthy, one must be trust-wordy.

Time for Joy - Book - Quote

Today I know that I am at choice. Today I have all the willingness, all the energy, and all the guidance to continue to choose the path of peace and love and joy.

Alkiespeak - Book - Quote

Keep coming back. Unknown origin.