Two things jumped out at me, when I was going through the Fourth Tradition. The first was that a group could be AA, as long as it wasn’t affiliated with anything else. In other words, alcohol and alcoholism. Then the other thing was humility.
Thinking back to when I was new, I remember our group was very fixed on just why we were here. To stay sober. My recall was that there had been something, which almost broke them up. I don’t recall what, but I do remember they were very faithful to focusing on our being a program for alcoholics. Nothing more. And I was glad, because that’s what I so desperately needed. Alcohol had taken me almost to death’s door.
What it points out in this chapter is that we have to learn not to take ourselves like we know what we are doing. We had, as the man, who is the center of attention in the example displayed, states that we had to learn not to take ourselves too seriously. We have to learn to laugh at ourselves, which he did. I know from my own experiences in here that is exactly what I learned from my sponsor and those old timers. I often have to go to my mirror and make fun of myself. It works, as I have discovered.
As this chapter points out, we can experiment from time to time with somethings. As long as none of them have anything, which would interfere with practicing this program on only one thing. That’s staying sober from alcohol. I’ve seen some, who want to change this. They haven’t learned yet that this program works, because it has been faithful to what has made it so successful. Like it has been pointed out to me that there are those, who like I was when I came in. I thought I knew everything. I am so grateful that I was able to get the sponsor I did, who pointed out how wrong I was. I thought I knew everything, but I didn’t. I had to learn that the hard way. Talk about humiliation.
I often think, when I see this today, that there are those of us, who don’t want the help to point out to them, like they did me, that I didn’t know. Humility. Amazing how much these over sized egos of ours don’t want to admit our errors. I’ve seen this over and over. Nothing is new.
Anyway I know that I’m here to stay sober a day at a time. My primary purpose. I can only hope that we will all grow along spiritual lines and learn to laugh at our mistakes. And I have to listen to these old timers, like I have done over time. I can only say that I am grateful for all I have been given. For instance this program, as it is. Simplicity is the golden rule for a complicated drunk like myself..