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with gratitude for the great day in which I was now living. No
more would it be necessary for me to act for, decide for, or
protect A.A.
For a moment, I dreaded the coming change. But this mood
quickly passed. The conscience of A.A. as moved by the
guidance of God could be depended upon to insure A.A.'s
future. Clearly my job henceforth was to let go and let God.
A.A. COMES OF AGE
A Way Out of Depression
"During acute depression, avoid trying to set your whole life
in order all at once. If you take on assignments so heavy that
you are sure to fail in them at the moment, then you are
allowing yourself to be tricked by your unconscious. Thus
you will continue to make sure of your failure, and when it
comes you will have another alibi for still more retreat into
depression.
"In short, the `all or nothing' attitude is a most destructive
one. It is best to begin with whatever the irreducible
minimums of activity are. Then work for an enlargement of
these -- day by day. Don't be disconcerted by setbacks -- just
start over."
Spiritual Axiom
It is a spiritual axiom that every time we are disturbed, no
matter what the cause, there is something wrong with us. If
somebody hurts us and we are sore, we are in the wrong.
But are there no exceptions to this rule? What about
"justifiable" anger? If somebody cheats us, aren't we entitled
to be mad? And shouldn't we be properly angry with selfrighteous folks?
For us of A.A. these adventures in anger are sometimes very
dangerous. We have found that even justified anger ought to
be left to those better qualified to handle it.
TWELVE AND TWELVE, P. 90
Learning Trust
Our entire A.A. program rests upon the principle of mutual
trust. We trust God, we trust A.A., and we trust each other.
Therefore, we trust our leaders in world service. The "Right
of Decision" that we offer them is not only the practical
means by which they may act and lead effectively, but it is
also the symbol of our implicit confidence.
If you arrive at A.A. with no religious convictions, you can, if
you wish, make A.A. itself or even your A.A. group your
"Higher Power". Here's a large group of people who have
solved their alcohol problem. In this respect they are
certainly a power greater than you. Even this minimum of
faith will be enough.
Many members who have crossed the treshold just this way
will tell you that, once across, their faith broadened and
deepened. Relieved of the alcohol obsession, their lives
unaccountably transformed, they came to believe in a Higher
Power, and most of them began to talk of God.
Telling the Worst
Though the variations were many, my main theme was
always "How godawful I am!" Just as I often exaggerated my
modest attainments by pride, soI exaggerated my defects
through guilt. I would race about, confessing all (and a great
deal more) to whoever would listen. Believe it or not, I took
this widespread exposure of my sins to be great humility on
my part, and considered it a great spiritualasset and
consolation!
But later on I realized at depth that the great harms I had
done others were not truly regretted. These episodes were
merely the basis for storytelling and exhibitionism. With this
realization came the beginning of a certain amount of
humility.
GRAPEVINE, JUNE 1961
Tolerance Keeps Us Sober
"Honesty with ourselves and others gets us sober, but it is
tolerance that keeps us that way.
"Experience shows that few alcoholics will long stay away
from a group because they don't like the way it is run. Most
return and adjust themselves to whatever conditions they
must. Some go to a different group, or form a new one.
"In other words, once an alcoholic fully realizes that he
cannot get well alone, he will soemhow find a way to get well
and stay well in the company of others. It has been that way
from the beginning of A.A. and probably always will be so."
In the Sunlight at Last
When the thought was expressed that there might be a God
personal to me, I didn't like the idea. So my friend Ebby made
what then seemed a novel suggestion. He said, "Why don't
you choose your own conception of God?"
That statement hit me hard. It melted the icy intellectual
mountain in whose shadow I had lived and shivered many
years. I stood in the sunlight at last.
It may be possible to find explanations of spiritual
experiences such as ours, but I have often tried to explain
my own and have succeeded only in giving the story of it. I
know the feeling it gave me and the results it has brought,
but I realize I may never fully understand its deeper why and
how.
High and Low
When our membership was small, we dealt with "low-bottom
cases" only. Many less desperate alcoholics tried A.A., but
did not succeed because they could not make the admission
of their hopelessness.
In the following years, this changed. Alcoholics who still had
their health, their families, their jobs, and even two cars in
the garage, began to recognize their alcoholism. As this
trend grew, they were joined by young people who were
scarcely more than potential alcoholics. How could people

with gratitude for the great day in which I was now living. No

more would it be necessary for me to act for, decide for, or

protect A.A.

For a moment, I dreaded the coming change. But this mood

quickly passed. The conscience of A.A. as moved by the

guidance of God could be depended upon to insure A.A.'s

future. Clearly my job henceforth was to let go and let God.

A.A. COMES OF AGE

A Way Out of Depression

"During acute depression, avoid trying to set your whole life

in order all at once. If you take on assignments so heavy that

you are sure to fail in them at the moment, then you are

allowing yourself to be tricked by your unconscious. Thus

you will continue to make sure of your failure, and when it

comes you will have another alibi for still more retreat into

depression.

"In short, the `all or nothing' attitude is a most destructive

one. It is best to begin with whatever the irreducible

minimums of activity are. Then work for an enlargement of

these -- day by day. Don't be disconcerted by setbacks -- just

start over."

Spiritual Axiom

It is a spiritual axiom that every time we are disturbed, no

matter what the cause, there is something wrong with us. If

somebody hurts us and we are sore, we are in the wrong.

But are there no exceptions to this rule? What about

"justifiable" anger? If somebody cheats us, aren't we entitled

to be mad? And shouldn't we be properly angry with selfrighteous folks?

For us of A.A. these adventures in anger are sometimes very

dangerous. We have found that even justified anger ought to

be left to those better qualified to handle it.

TWELVE AND TWELVE, P. 90

Learning Trust

Our entire A.A. program rests upon the principle of mutual

trust. We trust God, we trust A.A., and we trust each other.

Therefore, we trust our leaders in world service. The "Right

of Decision" that we offer them is not only the practical

means by which they may act and lead effectively, but it is

also the symbol of our implicit confidence.

If you arrive at A.A. with no religious convictions, you can, if

you wish, make A.A. itself or even your A.A. group your

"Higher Power". Here's a large group of people who have

solved their alcohol problem. In this respect they are

certainly a power greater than you. Even this minimum of

faith will be enough.

Many members who have crossed the treshold just this way

will tell you that, once across, their faith broadened and

deepened. Relieved of the alcohol obsession, their lives

unaccountably transformed, they came to believe in a Higher

Power, and most of them began to talk of God.

Telling the Worst

Though the variations were many, my main theme was

always "How godawful I am!" Just as I often exaggerated my

modest attainments by pride, soI exaggerated my defects

through guilt. I would race about, confessing all (and a great

deal more) to whoever would listen. Believe it or not, I took

this widespread exposure of my sins to be great humility on

my part, and considered it a great spiritualasset and

consolation!

But later on I realized at depth that the great harms I had

done others were not truly regretted. These episodes were

merely the basis for storytelling and exhibitionism. With this

realization came the beginning of a certain amount of

humility.

GRAPEVINE, JUNE 1961

Tolerance Keeps Us Sober

"Honesty with ourselves and others gets us sober, but it is

tolerance that keeps us that way.

"Experience shows that few alcoholics will long stay away

from a group because they don't like the way it is run. Most

return and adjust themselves to whatever conditions they

must. Some go to a different group, or form a new one.

"In other words, once an alcoholic fully realizes that he

cannot get well alone, he will soemhow find a way to get well

and stay well in the company of others. It has been that way

from the beginning of A.A. and probably always will be so."

In the Sunlight at Last

When the thought was expressed that there might be a God

personal to me, I didn't like the idea. So my friend Ebby made

what then seemed a novel suggestion. He said, "Why don't

you choose your own conception of God?"

That statement hit me hard. It melted the icy intellectual

mountain in whose shadow I had lived and shivered many

years. I stood in the sunlight at last.

It may be possible to find explanations of spiritual

experiences such as ours, but I have often tried to explain

my own and have succeeded only in giving the story of it. I

know the feeling it gave me and the results it has brought,

but I realize I may never fully understand its deeper why and

how.

High and Low

When our membership was small, we dealt with "low-bottom

cases" only. Many less desperate alcoholics tried A.A., but

did not succeed because they could not make the admission

of their hopelessness.

In the following years, this changed. Alcoholics who still had

their health, their families, their jobs, and even two cars in

the garage, began to recognize their alcoholism. As this

trend grew, they were joined by young people who were

scarcely more than potential alcoholics. How could people