MAY 29, 26 .. A.A. GRAPEVINE MAGAZINE.. STEP 5..

 I first began to read and eventually subscribe to the A.A. Grapevine in 1988. My wife and I have had a Grapevine subscription for more decades than we can recall.

My reading our Grapevine issues to my wife gives both of us great pleasure.

In the March 2026 issue, on page 47, was the below wisdom shared by John D., Big Lake, Minn.

"Membership in AA doesn't mean I will have a life free of trials and tribulations, but what it does give me is a new approach and a new faith to deal with life. What the program gives me is a Fellowship on which I can rely for help. What the program gives me is a faith in a Higher Power that sustains and comforts me. It lets me know that "God will do for us what we cannot do for ourselves."

What a great gift the AA Grapevine is for us.

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The month of May is the fifth month of the year. Many meetings discuss the Step of the Month as we go through the year.

The Fifth Step reads..

Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

It does not say specifically with whom we share Fourth Step Inventories.

Yes indeed! A good many members share their Fourth Step Inventories with their sponsors. However, not all of us choose to do this.

Some of us opt to share our 4th Step Inventories with a member of the Clergy (Priest / Minister), a professional Therapist or Counselor. The list can go on and on! But IF you choose to share with someone who is not in AA or who is not familiar with AA (a Taxi Driver) you might want to explain what you are doing.

Some members go to another town where they are not known and ask for a Temporary Sponsor to share their 4th Step.

Now it gets interesting!

Some professionals are under a code-of-conduct that they must tell various authorities if they learn about a felonious act or actions. Some felonies do not have a specified Statute of Limitations.

More than one AA Member has been returned to prison, some for life, because of information they gave a professional in a Fifth Step!

So be careful. 

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Thanks for your support.

APR 30, 26.. LIFE HAPPENS .. WHAT TO DO?

LIFE HAPPENS !!

What to do? 

Get Angry? Get Resentful? No!

Work your AA Program of Recovery!! That's what to do!!

In How it Works, Chapter 5 of our AA Big Book, we read the below words.

If  you have decided you want what we have, and are willing to go to any length to get it, then you are ready to take certain steps.

What is it we want? 

When we are new to AA we want to stop drinking. 

Then, as the years go by, what we really want is to be happy, joyous and free.

Recently, literally a week or so ago, a neighbor here in our Condo "really got under my skin big time" and continues daily to do so.

I told my wife, "I am not going to let this neighbor upset me!"

First a good friend has a saying .. "Get Over It!".

In the Doctor's Opinion, page xxviii, Dr. Silkworth wrote..

"Men and women drink essentially because they like the sensation produced by alcohol."

Translation.. "We drink to change how we feel!"

And I am not going to drink over this neighbor to change how I feel!

All of us have using the 12-Steps to assist us.

Also get into your AA Tool Kit.

Resentment is the number one offender. 

Resentment comes from Latin and French .. Re Sentir .. which translates into "To Feel Again". Repeatedly re-experiencing an insult or something that is upsetting us.

Expectations are resentments waiting to happen! Especially our own expectations of ourselves that we can't achieve!

Praying to God our Creator for assistance.

Bottom Line:

Daily I am extremely happy that using all the tools I have, I am rising above this irksome neighbor.

There you have it!

BUT when life gives you a challenge, you must want to get past it and be happy, joyous, and free. And you must be willing to go to any length to do so!

Your Ally .. S. W. in London, Ontario, Canada