JUL 27, 25..IN A WAY.. WE HAVE NO NEW IDEAS..

 IN A WAY.. WE IN A.A. HAVE NO NEW, ORIGINAL, PRINCIPLES..

If you take a long, hard look at our principles, Trust God, Clean House, Trust Others as well as our 12 Steps and our 12 Traditions, almost all major religions as well as other spiritual seekers in many other fields of thought, have come to use the same basic spiritual principles we use.

This really leapt out at me when NATIONAL TODAY featured the below Holiday back on July the 19th.

 Across the United States, the third Saturday in July recognizes Toss Away the "Could Haves" and "Should Haves" Day. 

In short, don't go through life with regrets.

How about these concepts.

Let go of the past and live for the present. 

The first step to participating in this day is to find a pen and paper. 

Then write down your "could haves" and "should haves" on the paper. 

Finally, throw away the list. 

Once you have thrown your "could haves" and "should haves" in the trash, make the following resolution:

"From this day forward, I choose not to live in the past. The past is history that I can not change. I can do something about the present; I choose to live in the present."

Don’t dwell on the things you cannot control. We call this Acceptance and we say the Serenity Prayer!

Focus on the things that matter. You must prioritize the present and be optimistic about the future. Spend less time asking yourself questions like “why did I do that?”. Altering the past is firmly out of our control, so we must focus on the here and now. Wasting time on regrets will accomplish nothing. The idea is to live life to the fullest to have no regrets when it ends. 

To see the full NATIONAL TODAY writing just click onto the below link.

https://nationaltoday.com/toss-away-the-could-haves-and-should-haves-day/

Now here is where we do differ. It is my experience that we in A.A. work far harder and with much more diligence to practice our principles than do those in other religious and spiritual fields.

Good stuff!

DEC 31, 24 .. NEW YEAR'S EVE 2024..

 New Year's Eve 2024. 

Where did 2024 disappear to?

We just finished Christmas.

For some reason, that takes me immediately back to Charles Dickens' and to his Ebenezer Scrooge and to Ghosts of Christmas Past.

I wonder how many of us could write about our own Ghosts of New Year's Eves?

And of our own fireworks.

In his way, Ebenezer Scrooge solved his troubled past with some spiritual tools embodied in our 12 Steps.

Step 4 Inventory. Step 5 Confession. Step 9 Amends. Step 11 Prayer. Step 12 Helping others.

On New Year's Eve 2024, Patti and I wish each and every one of you a very happy, safe, and sober day.

MAY 29, 18 .. STEP FIVE

Step 5  : Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

Step 5 certainly seems very straight forward.

I again repeat the words of Step 5, with emphasis placed upon three words .. 

Step 5 - Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

Step 5 does not say one's sponsor.

Step 5 does not say (plural) human beings. You do your Step 5 with one other person. IF you so choose, you certainly can do it with several people, BUT the emphasis here is on another human being

You most certainly can share it with a sponsor but Step 5 does not mandate that you do so.

You may think, "Who else can I share my 4th Step with?"

That list is endless! 

IF you choose not to share your 4th Step with your sponsor, you may do so with a religious person such as a minister / rabbi / priest, a professional therapist, a taxi driver, you may go to another city and find a temporary sponsor in a meeting to share your 4th Step with. Again that list of other human beings is endless.

IF you do choose to share it with someone totally outside of AA, I suggest that, before sharing your 4th Step with them, you at the very least explain to them what you are doing and why you are doing it. You may even want to read to them applicable parts of the Big Book and the 12 Steps and 12 Traditions that mention / discuss the 4th and 5th Steps.

Now I come to something that I feel is very important.

I want to bring up something that I seldom ever hear mentioned in Step 5 discussions.

Some professional therapists / religious clergy / para-legals / etc et al, may have taken a formal oath as part of their employment, that they will report to legal authorities any knowledge they hear about certain crimes.

Some crimes have no statue of limitations. 

So before you reveal certain (call them very dark) aspects of your 4th Step, be aware you may be opening yourself up to serious legal implications. Members of the fellowship have been imprisoned because of revealing serious crimes to another during their 5th Step.

Good Luck as you take this very important step.