June 9 2012 | AA 12 Steps In Action | Step 6 Spiritual Willingness Alcoholics Anonymous Today's AA daily reflection: "living in the now… Spiritual is living to truth in the moment…" Daydreams are very necessary diversions. Being able to remember events from the past which have an impact on today. Using vision and intuition and a sense of direction are vital. And we live in the moment of now where everything happens…
In a few moments at any time of day I can keep myself connected to reality. How am I feeling? My emotions and mood connecting me to what is going on inside. Why do I need to know this? Because my mood impacts directly on my thinking. What can I do? If I know my mood, happy sad joyful angry, or as we say "hungry angry lonely tired" I know where my thinking will go and the actions I can take to keep safe and motivated to the next right step…
Our mood about life, affected by events around us, globally with so much news and locally by every connection we have. Our mood can be affected directly by our own circumstances, family, community and society and in my case especially by fellowship. Today I have sorrow for a friend who died, sorrow about my mother's health. I have joy and relief that most elements today are manageable. And I don't feel hungry, angry, lonely or tired in the moment of now… Mind you it is early in the day…!
June in the daily reflections of the fellowship is all about step six and extremes of personality traits, and these are described as defects of character. We can easily identify extreme attitudes and behaviour, similar to the seven deadly sins. Yet the same can be true with the virtues if they too have no foundation in reality. And that is why recovery need be one day at a time, we will have extreme feelings and sometimes actions taken, but we tend to find our path sooner rather than later away from extreme reactions to more balanced responses as we practice, make progress and do not anchor ourselves to perfection in the moment of now… We simply keep on learning what works with each step we take…
AA Daily Reflections ~ "LIVING IN THE NOW... First, we try living in the now just in order to stay sober - and it works. Once the idea has become a part of our thinking, we find that living life in 24 hour segments is an effective and satisfying way to handle many other matters as well. LIVING SOBER, p. 7
“One Day At A. Time.” To a newcomer this and other one-liners of A.A. may seem ridiculous. The passwords of the A.A. Fellowship can become lifelines in moments of stress. Each day can be like a rose unfurling according to the plan of a Power greater than myself. My program should be planted in the right location, just as it will need to be groomed, nourished, and protected from disease. My planting will require patience, and my realizing that some flowers will be more perfect than others. Each stage of the petals’ unfolding can bring wonder and delight if I do not interfere or let my expectations override my acceptance - and this brings serenity.
Step 6 is a step of preparation and reflection. I have been preparing for a significant change in my life and now I need to make sure that I am ready. I need to make sure in my own heart and mind that I am truly willing for God to remove these defects of character that have enabled my addictive behaviors. It might mean letting go of other things in my life in order to allow God to do the work that needs to be done. I need to determine if I am truly ready."
DonInLondon 2005-2011
Any time, any place and anywhere, the twelve steps are timeless principles because they never wear out. The steps, at your service and always work in the moment. How am I feeling, why and what can I do today? Part of my morning meditations now is to know my outlook so I can be free to live life on life's terms today, freedom to be me...
Letting go and letting good prevail. As I came out of the darkest of times in addiction, it was a slow and steady progress of shrugging off the old outlooks. No drink, no oblivion, no dread. Paranoia haunted me a long while. Then room to find faith courage and confidence to live life today…
Helicopter Views... When we can only see life our own way, we have one view, our own view. When we feel pressure we feel life more at the extremes. Taking account of others and their point of view in the here and now, offers opportunity to be right sized with everyone just for today..
Slow Down To Now.. Reaction to new situations with old behaviour. Anger resentment, frustration are evoked by experiences today. Old behaviour can overwhelm and distort the present moment. Take in each new situation, consider how to respond as reality is. In recovery, can do, cannot do...
A life time in a day... At the end of each day, We will know more about who we are, how life can challenge us and our attitudes, how we are open, honest and willing to change. Where we had strong feelings, where we have gratitude and where we have solace, where we have acceptance...
The easier softer way... To live in reality, to experience our feelings as they are happening, to be a part of the big picture. To develop esteem, faith and courage in real time, to be human, to love, be loved and useful, to share experience strength and hope, happy or sad as life is...
June 9 2007
Let Go Accept & move On - DonInLondon ‘Day In the Life’
What is this thing of letting go? We talk about a lot in our fellowship. At least it seems I do and also about right sizing me. We all do and we get a bit more practice even when we prefer we had enough!
Letting Go
We need let go of power and control over just about everything we can imagine so we free ourselves. Free ourselves of trying to manage often what is none of our business and none of our concern. It’s been another week learning letting go. And strangely like every human who leads a different life these days, it takes time to let go. Let go frustration and misunderstandings. Let go what is not good for us and let go the attitudes of mind which bind us up in powering up our ego, our desire to control and our desire to master our world.
Nature
This world and nature, it works its own way and shifts the balance of anything and everything as we know from hard sciences like physics, chemistry and biology. Other hard sciences see how mankind influences nature through our over use of natural resources and carbon burning. We are changing climate irrevocably. We know it and many would deny it, because they will never face the consequences in their lifetime. We are poor custodians of our new generations future and we make light of truth as we always delay and filter out the obvious necessity to stop polluting and stop burning other generations lives. We live rich and accept the paucity of what follows? It seems we do.
People
We the people, we are driven by our nature and outlook Sometimes distorted and very egocentric, and we plunder and use up and expend our inner resources in search of happiness and love. And we don’t even often know we are doing just that. We are very good at looking for ways to fix and make our lives feel good and one long party.
Life
We have one life and the forces of nature and our own vulnerability will catch up with us if we are out of balance. Like so many, I expended great effort and worked hard, played hard and somewhere lost a plot to make life work in the day. Always a weather eye to what next and stuck sometimes in troughs and lows I could not understand.
I shied away from looking the in the mirror for a long time. A long time till I was truly burned out and done for. And like any out of balance humans the consequences of behaving as if there is no tomorrow and life must be lived as fast as one can, well nature takes over and we are worn down.
Addicted to Fixing
Fixing ourselves with people, places and things. Believing we know better, we know more than the next and a horrible addiction to doing the wrong thing to do the right thing. We experience it because we do it, and we experience it because others do it, we all have our experiences and reasons. Often fear and needing to fit in, it seems we can do the most havoc when we are least aware.
Oblivion
Many of us sought oblivion, many seeking still some magic remedy which makes it ok. And letting and believing that a power greater than ourselves will supply the answers to all our problems today? So we might wish, it’s not really quite that simple, or is it?
Belief in a Higher Power
And many believe in the higher power. As to what that higher power is, as I have suggested it can be defined as many ways as there are people on this planet and everyone who has lived and perished. Explanation and definitions can be accepted by each and every one of us who has a power greater than themselves to defer final judgments to. And in truth many just wish for what they want and not what they need, and this is always a conundrum for those misunderstanding the powers that are being.
My Higher Power?
Collective wisdoms shared in Fellowships, Nature and Providence, a Universe so vast it has no end. All these powers are greater than me. So I need context here and now. My outlook and a power greater than me is here right now.
My higher power is indeed good conscience and the best of living to the good. Is that enough for me? It is and when I hear talk of powerless over people places and things, I accept it as the way it is, a day at a time. And often feel like denial might be better when my wants outstrip my needs.
Simply love, inclusion and choice. Equal and no bigger or smaller than any other.
Ego Fear Bravery
My Dad, my higher power for a long time, he was well and truly hurt by life from the day he was born, and his legacy to me is his experience as much as mine in breaking free from programming from him and my genetic roots.
No blame
We need not find blame or we play to our ego and fret to long at outcomes already in place. Time moves us along or we get stuck and lost, then fear the truth as reality slips into imaginings and dreams.
Fear, bravery and ego will have us believing in our God like status so fast we play at God, and imagine what a God might be, from illustrations made over centuries to some so far removed its beyond our current reality in this spiritual world of now. I need remind myself I am not God and that will do to understand this one life and context where it may go.
Faith Courage Confidence
As much as we have the negative we can turn to our positive, and have faith, courage and gain confidence to live a right sized life.
My faith is in collective wisdoms and good conscience developed over many thousands of years as each generation has met life head on and then found all manner of ways to distort what nature offers and we reject as ego plays and worse addictions become obsessions overwhelming transform to permanent parts of our psyche.
Revolutions
Tonight talk of revolutions and a revolution indeed to stop the nature and nurture which drives some of us to obsession and addiction, and then to let it go, as we may in any one day. There is no end thankfully to this recovering outlook.
Indeed a reminder and timely share as revolution was desperately needed to stop my insanity and early endings and the same for a lot of us in the fellowship. Death is easy as a way to end the pain, and final. And life the harder option in our early revolutionary days as we turn back to sober living if ever we had such a living, seeking sanity and how to make life work in this one day we have.
The revolution is never ending of course as we find as we go, and more come and join in as our fellowship grows. And as we learn from all who try again, there is no way to return to old obsessive ways, without of course that final consequence of life lost and not lived as it may.
So tonight a lot of reflections and acceptance for me and let go and all it entails.
A message from a friend tonight, pretty much where some acceptance can be found. Yet sprinkled with words which suggest power over me. I am used to these words and indeed often they come as the ego is alive, sharing the decision unequally I now do see. Which is as it may be when fear bites at our ankles and pride and all we can muster to make it seem right. I am relieved it’s over.
Arriving at an end and with humility, I leave the words as they are and will not reply. For there is nothing more to be said. Not without ego and imbalance I now see. And to play the game, well there you see, it’s a game and ego is ready and self willing. I am smiling to myself. Not so evolved as I may feel I might be. We are everything we have learned and acceptance is definitely the key. One day long I hasten to add. We are human and progress and me? I am progressing as I may, and slowly.
Boundaries and Stuff
We serve ourselves well when observe and share boundaries, what we are prepared to do in fellowship, friendship and living. We can do only so much and then find we are more a utility than anything else and often in recovery we accept what we do. And accept our utility to an extent. For in there somewhere there is reciprocity? Not always, and there is another debate another time.
And then as we are able we make our way as we can, open honest and willing and yet we will find, those concepts so poorly understood. We need be aware how we are used, and check out our choices, as all of us can.
And accept our gullibility and with a conscious let go. Accept and move on. And in good conscience leave times spent where they are in the past.
Feelings
We feel differently as life unfolds, the brazen and the falsehoods lived as fear and faking may so. And I realise these days as yesterday, that faking anything to make it so, well it’s not going to work, not for me. And that faking as a suggestion, makes me everything I don’t want to be. Something I cannot maintain or live as truth undermines and makes me take stock.
So I let go, and feel all there is to feel in me. And relief is there as times settle down. Like all human doings we feel all the bad and good there comes in letting life happen and acceptance offers freedom from our bonds, prisoners to falsehoods and superficial living.
Deep
The deep of human doings, the heights we can achieve in one day. The more we can live and recognise truth, open and willing ways, utilise our wisdom and accept that we meet as we enable, and better for knowing the difference.
Life hurts and delivers our lessons as we need them and in good conscience we forgive and let go. Forgive and let go as we may, a day at a time.. Sometimes we need a few days to settle and make good our next adventure, or we would not be human. And we need our humanity or we are lost to time.
I need not be my own prisoner to fortunes imagined and lost as the Holy Grail is within us and not outside us, in this ever present, present moment of now.
Step 6 "Spiritual Willingness" Reading Video Link:
wrongs. Chapter 6, Into Action, Big Book From: Page 72 Thru: Page 75, the bottom of the page. 12 And 12 Step 5."
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June ~ Video Reading Chapter Six Into Action Link:
I do not speak for Alcoholics Anonymous I speak for myself. Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of unique and authentic people who speak for themselves where they will to share experience, strength and hope about recovery on a daily basis. Anonymity affords
sanctuary to find how to live sober and be open, honest and willing to learn life day by day. For me "truth," "love" and "wisdom" offer the best spiritual experience by living reality today. Into the fabric of recovery from alcoholism are woven the Twelve Steps and the
Twelve Traditions, steps to be open, honest and willing to learn, traditions to live unity, service and recovery.
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Spiritual principles ~ Forgiveness Acceptance Surrender Faith Open-mindedness Honesty Willingness Moral-inventory Amends Humility Persistence Spiritual-growth Service
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