I have to stop and think and absorb this gift we have been given, as a result of getting sober. The gift of love.
I often think about this, but rarely mention it. However a friend of mine in this program brought this up lately, because they are going to express this, one way or another, in a talk they were asked to give, about a friend, who just passed away.
Like I said, I often think about this over time in here. Way back I can recall listening to a young minister, who was addressing us in church one day. He told us that there were four things we had to learn to put in our lives, each and everyday. The first one was perseverance. The next was hope. And then faith. And finally love.
After I learned the Second Step, and the need to become spiritual, or possibly going back and drinking alcohol and dying, that’s when, for me, that this began to play a big role in my living a sober life. And slowly I started to learn how to do this. Again, a day at at time. I also learned along the way, that if I drop one, they all go. I had to learn how to stick to them.
And all of this began early on, because it started by beginning to have hope, which then went into faith. And all that opened a lot of doors for me in the Steps. However, although I hadn’t really begun to practice love, I did start to achieve caring for others. And then, over time, compassion. And finally love. And love is something I very often don’t even have to think about. Its there.
Anyway, I have come to believe that love comes from my Higher Power. Through me to others. And I think that’s because I have been given this new way of life. The happiness and love, which came to me, as a result of being freed of alcohol, and given this new way of life. Makes me grateful to not only my Higher Power, but all those old timers, my old sponsor and his wife, and all the others in here, who have helped me to grow and stay sober. Thanks.