I quote our A.A. Big Book, page 417..
And acceptance is the answer to all my problems today. When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing, or situation -- some fact of my life -- unacceptable to me, and I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing, or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment. .. .. Until I could accept my alcoholism, I could not stay sober; unless I accept life completely on life's terms, I cannot be happy. I need to concentrate not so much on what needs to be changed in the world as on what needs to be changed in me and in my attitudes.
Yes indeed. In the above passage, I left out one line that is in the Big Book.
That line is: Nothing, absolutely nothing, happens in God's world by mistake.
I was lucky enough to have known Doctor Paul and to have been in his home when he was alive.
Doctor Paul told me he wishes he had never written this one line because it is the philosophy of pre-destination. God has given mankind the gift of the power of free choice. If nothing happens by mistake why try because it has been decided for you by God.
I found the below images and writings about Acceptance online, courtesy of NATIONAL TODAY / NATIONAL DAY CALENDAR..
International Day of Acceptance is observed every year on January 20 and it is the day to fill our hearts with the sublime powers of acceptance. It is important to be accepting of certain things in life. This is a day when people all over the world come together to support and embrace the challenges that come along with life.
Acceptance is defined as the assent of a situation, process, or condition without an attempt to change it. We have all at some point in our lives experienced a situation where we were cast off or excluded from a group or a social gathering. Remember the time when you were not picked for a team or when your friends went out to a movie without you. Imagine if being excluded was just a regular part of your day-to-day life.
In an ideal world, all individuals would be accepted just as they are, no matter how different, no matter how unique.
Acceptance in simple terms is perceiving reality as it is, what people, places, things and events are rather than what you want them to be. That being said, acceptance doesn’t mean that you can’t work on changing things and that what you’re accepting will be that way forever.
When you learn to accept and you make peace with the way things are, you step out of your way and step forward on the growth path. The more you practice acceptance, the more you see that each moment has a purpose, a lesson to learn, a reason for unfolding the way that it does.
Respecting both similarities and differences of others is good for us. Situations in our lives keep on changing constantly. Accepting every type of situation that we might face, be it good or bad will give us lasting peace and contentment.
We are not limited by our abilities but rather by our imagination and our will to act. The truth is we are all capable of great things. Encourage the people around you to stay strong and achieve things beyond their abilities.
You should avoid indulging yourself in making people who are different from you feel embarrassed. Try to be respectful and accept all forms of diversity.
