kobe-ja/AsBillSeesIt · Datasets at Hugging Face

text stringlengths 4 128
an all powerful, guiding, creative Intelligence, our perverse
streak comes to the surface and we set out to convince
ourselves that it isn't so. Were our contention true, it would
follow that life originated out of nothing, means nothing, and
proceeds nowhere.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, PP. 48-49
"Fearless and Searching"
My self-analysis has frequently been faulty .
Sometimes I'vefailed to share my defects with the right
people; at other times, I've confessed their defects, rather
than my own; and still other times, my confession of defects
has been more in the nature of loud complaints about my
circumstances and my problems.
When A.A. suggests a fearless moral inventory, it must seem
to every newcomer that more is being asked of him than he
he can do. Every time he tries to look within himself, Pride
says, "You need not pass this way," and Fear says, "You
dare not look!"
But pride and fear of this sort turn out to be bogymen,
nothing else. Once we have a complete willingness to take
inventory, and exert ourselves to do the job thoroughly, a
wonderful light falls upon this foggy sceneene. As we
persist, a brandnew kind ofcinfidence is born, and the sense
of relief at finally facing ourselves is indescribable.
Individual Responsibilities
Let us emphasize that our reluctance to fight one another, or
anybody else, is not counted as some special virtue which
entitles us A.A.'s to feel superior to other people. Nor does
this reluctance mean that the members of A.A. are going to
back away from their individual responsibilities as citizens.
Here theyshould feel free to act as they see the right upon
the public issues of our times.
But when it comes to A.A. as a whole, that's quite a different
matter. As a group we do not enter into public controversy,
because we are sure that our Society will perish if we do.
TWELVE AND TWELVE, P. 177
Fear and Faith
The achievement of freedom from fear is a lifetime
undertaking, one that can never be wholly completed.
When under heavy attack, acute illness, or in other
conditions of serious insecurity, we shall all react to this
emotion -- well or badly, as the case may be. Only the selfdeceived will claim perfect freedom from fear.
We finally saw that faith in some kind of God was a part of
our make-up. Sometimes we had to search persistently, but
He was there. He was as much a fact as we were. We found
the Great Reality deep down within us.
The Step That Keeps Us Growing
Sometimes, when friends tell us how well we are doing, we
know better inside. We know we aren't doing well enough.
We still can't handle life, as life is. There must be a serious
flaw somewhere in our spiritual practice and development.
What, then, is it?
The chances are better than even that we shall locate our
trouble in our misunderstanding or neglect of A.A.'s Step
Eleven -- prayer, meditation, and the guidance of God.
The other Steps can keep most of us sober and somehow
functioning. But Step Eleven can keep us growing, if we try
hard and work at it continually.
GRAPEVINE, JUNE 1958
Neither Dependence nor Self-Sufficiency
When we insisted, like infants, that people protect and take
care of us or that the world owed us a living, then the result
was unfortunate. The people we most loved often pushed us
aside or perhaps deserted us entirely. Our disillusionment
was hard to bear.
We failed to see that, though adult in years, we were still
behaving childishly, trying to turn everybody -- friends,
wives, husbands, even the world itself -- into protective
parents. We refused to learn that overdependence upon
people is unsuccessful because all people are fallible, and
even the best of them will sometimes let us down, especially
when our demands for attention become unreasonable.
We are now on a different basis: the basis of trusting and
relying upon God. We trust infinite God rather than our finite
selves. Just to the extent that we do as we think He would
have us do, and humbly rely on Him, does He enable us to
match calamity with serenity.
Give Thanks
Though I still find it difficult to accept today's pain and
anxiety with any great degree of serenity -- as those more
advanced in the spiritual life seemable to do -- I can give
thanks for present pain nevertheless.
I find the willingness to do this by contemplating the lessons
learned from past suffering -- lessons which have led to the
blessings I now enjoy. I can remember how the agonies of
alcoholism, the pain of rebellion and thwarted pride, have
often led me to God's grace, and so to a new freedom.
GRAPEVINE, MARCH 1962
Behind Our Excuses
As excuse-makers and rationalizers, we drunks are
champions. It is the business of the psychiatrist to find the
deeper causes for our conduct. Though uninstructed in
psychiatry, we can, after a little time in A.A., see that our
motives have not been what we thought they were, and that
we have been motivated by forces previously unknown to us.
Therefore we ought to look, with the deepest respect,
interest, and profit, upon the example set us by psychiatry.
"Spiritual growth through the practice of A.A.'s Twelve Steps,
plus the aid of a good sponsor, can usually reveal most of
the deeper reasons for our character defects, at least to a

an all powerful, guiding, creative Intelligence, our perverse

streak comes to the surface and we set out to convince

ourselves that it isn't so. Were our contention true, it would

follow that life originated out of nothing, means nothing, and

proceeds nowhere.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, PP. 48-49

"Fearless and Searching"

My self-analysis has frequently been faulty .

Sometimes I'vefailed to share my defects with the right

people; at other times, I've confessed their defects, rather

than my own; and still other times, my confession of defects

has been more in the nature of loud complaints about my

circumstances and my problems.

When A.A. suggests a fearless moral inventory, it must seem

to every newcomer that more is being asked of him than he

he can do. Every time he tries to look within himself, Pride

says, "You need not pass this way," and Fear says, "You

dare not look!"

But pride and fear of this sort turn out to be bogymen,

nothing else. Once we have a complete willingness to take

inventory, and exert ourselves to do the job thoroughly, a

wonderful light falls upon this foggy sceneene. As we

persist, a brandnew kind ofcinfidence is born, and the sense

of relief at finally facing ourselves is indescribable.

Individual Responsibilities

Let us emphasize that our reluctance to fight one another, or

anybody else, is not counted as some special virtue which

entitles us A.A.'s to feel superior to other people. Nor does

this reluctance mean that the members of A.A. are going to

back away from their individual responsibilities as citizens.

Here theyshould feel free to act as they see the right upon

the public issues of our times.

But when it comes to A.A. as a whole, that's quite a different

matter. As a group we do not enter into public controversy,

because we are sure that our Society will perish if we do.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, P. 177

Fear and Faith

The achievement of freedom from fear is a lifetime

undertaking, one that can never be wholly completed.

When under heavy attack, acute illness, or in other

conditions of serious insecurity, we shall all react to this

emotion -- well or badly, as the case may be. Only the selfdeceived will claim perfect freedom from fear.

We finally saw that faith in some kind of God was a part of

our make-up. Sometimes we had to search persistently, but

He was there. He was as much a fact as we were. We found

the Great Reality deep down within us.

The Step That Keeps Us Growing

Sometimes, when friends tell us how well we are doing, we

know better inside. We know we aren't doing well enough.

We still can't handle life, as life is. There must be a serious

flaw somewhere in our spiritual practice and development.

What, then, is it?

The chances are better than even that we shall locate our

trouble in our misunderstanding or neglect of A.A.'s Step

Eleven -- prayer, meditation, and the guidance of God.

The other Steps can keep most of us sober and somehow

functioning. But Step Eleven can keep us growing, if we try

hard and work at it continually.

GRAPEVINE, JUNE 1958

Neither Dependence nor Self-Sufficiency

When we insisted, like infants, that people protect and take

care of us or that the world owed us a living, then the result

was unfortunate. The people we most loved often pushed us

aside or perhaps deserted us entirely. Our disillusionment

was hard to bear.

We failed to see that, though adult in years, we were still

behaving childishly, trying to turn everybody -- friends,

wives, husbands, even the world itself -- into protective

parents. We refused to learn that overdependence upon

people is unsuccessful because all people are fallible, and

even the best of them will sometimes let us down, especially

when our demands for attention become unreasonable.

We are now on a different basis: the basis of trusting and

relying upon God. We trust infinite God rather than our finite

selves. Just to the extent that we do as we think He would

have us do, and humbly rely on Him, does He enable us to

match calamity with serenity.

Give Thanks

Though I still find it difficult to accept today's pain and

anxiety with any great degree of serenity -- as those more

advanced in the spiritual life seemable to do -- I can give

thanks for present pain nevertheless.

I find the willingness to do this by contemplating the lessons

learned from past suffering -- lessons which have led to the

blessings I now enjoy. I can remember how the agonies of

alcoholism, the pain of rebellion and thwarted pride, have

often led me to God's grace, and so to a new freedom.

GRAPEVINE, MARCH 1962

Behind Our Excuses

As excuse-makers and rationalizers, we drunks are

champions. It is the business of the psychiatrist to find the

deeper causes for our conduct. Though uninstructed in

psychiatry, we can, after a little time in A.A., see that our

motives have not been what we thought they were, and that

we have been motivated by forces previously unknown to us.

Therefore we ought to look, with the deepest respect,

interest, and profit, upon the example set us by psychiatry.

"Spiritual growth through the practice of A.A.'s Twelve Steps,

plus the aid of a good sponsor, can usually reveal most of

the deeper reasons for our character defects, at least to a