I had to laugh today, when I was reading Bill W.’s The Language of the Heart. He had written an article The Antidote to Fear: Prudence, Trust, and Faith. So I took a look at it, and it had nothing to do with the individual alcoholic. It was about AA as a whole and how we got past the dilemmas of the past.
But then I thought about the words prudence, trust, and faith. It made me think about my own life in sobriety. After all, the word prudence was listed as one of the suggested requirements in one of the most fearful of all the Steps; the Ninth in the 12&12.
Prudence is the exercise of good judgment, according to the definition. I read that, as a virtue, it’s the mother of emotional health. Something I can always use in my quest to stay sober.
Instead of letting fear determine my thoughts or actions for me, prudence tells me to take a step back and think, not with fear in charge of my thoughts. Which always reminds me of the counsel of my sponsor. He often said, “When in doubt, don’t.”
And the thought of my sponsor tells me that, when fear enters the picture, to go to another alcoholic and talk to them about what is causing me this fear. Acting out, because of fear, has I know led others back to a drink. I don’t want to go there.
Anyway, as I went to that book today, I was seeking inspiration for myself, and not the whole program. But in spite of that I found some practical thoughts in the words themselves. Prudence especially. Because prudence, as a spiritual principle, is definitely something I know I need to practice in my sobriety. That and trust and faith.