For someone like me, a chronic alcoholic, who is staying sober a day at a time, there isn’t anything more important to me than this day. I say that to myself for a number of reasons. One of them is that I know I want to take this day so I can participate in this fellowship by going to a meeting. But that’s not the only reason. It’s a day I can dedicate to my Higher Power, the God of my understanding, who I believe is responsible for me being here. I know I am so grateful that, when I begged the God of my understanding to stop me from drinking, I was relieved of the bondage of alcohol.
I could say a lot of things about this day, but there’s really one special reason I was thinking about this. That’s because I had been thinking about a friend of mine I met early on in their sobriety, who is going to celebrate their anniversary in about a week. Not that I’m leaving this day and going ahead of myself. Just thinking about this person with whom I have been a friend with a long long time in here.
I can well remember them coming to a meeting very early on. They were shaking so badly I can remember an old timer grabbing me and asking me to sit on the other side of this person so he and I could place our feet against their chair. Otherwise their shaking would have moved them around the room. It was that bad. Makes me laugh when I think back on this.
Over time we were able to share what was going on with us and grow along spiritual lines in this program. We changed and stayed sober a day at a time. And that is exactly why we both were here. We were dedicated to never drinking a drop of alcohol ever again. We both had our own horrible drinking stories and what alcohol had done to us. What our lives were like and how we were changing. We even had the same old timers who were helping both of us.
And when I look back, thinking about them, it fills me with gratitude. Along with another friend, who came in about a year later, we grew in friendship, which has lasted all these days and now years. Amazing to me, when I look back at all that has happened through this time. The truth is that we had supported each other through some tough times and still do today. When the going gets tough we are always there to help and support each other, bringing to our minds what has worked for us. And that’s practicing this spiritual way of life. Not always easy to open the doors we have to, but we do. One day at a time.
I can well remember I received a call that an acquaintance of ours had gone back out drinking and the two of us were to go over and help them. I didn’t want to go. I didn’t feel up to it at the time. I remember one of my sponsors calling me and telling to get out the door and into their car. Grumbling I went out and climbed in beside them and off we went. Me mumbling and grumbling all the way. Finally we got there and went in. I know the both of us were kind of shocked at their condition. But we stayed and did what we could to help them. They got sober. That call helped both of us I know. Practicing these spiritual principles as we were told to do.
Anyway I was reminded of all of this because today was the monthly anniversary meeting for our group. And I was reminded by a person in another state of their anniversary in the next week and its celebration. And to think we started out so many years ago doing this a day at a time…and still do. Talk about beyond our wildest dreams. Amazing. We owe this to the program, our sponsors, those old timers, the people around us today, and the God of our understanding. Makes us grateful I know. None of us can do this by ourselves.
Enough for now. Just thinking about sobriety one more day.