July 8

July 8 – AM

Page 89, Working with Others, Chapter 7

Perhaps you are not acquainted with any drinkers who want to recover.  You can easily find some by asking a few doctors, ministers, priests or hospitals.  They will be only too glad to assist you.  Don’t start out as an evangelist or reformer.  Unfortunately a lot of prejudice exists.  You will be handicapped if you arouse it.  Ministers and doctors are competent and you can learn much from them if you wish, but it happens that because of your own drinking experience you can be uniquely useful to other alcoholics.  So cooperate; never criticize.  To be helpful is our only aim.

July 8 – PM 

72-73, Into Action, Chapter 6

This is perhaps difficult—especially discussing our defects with another person.  We think we have done well enough in admitting these things to ourselves.  There is doubt about that.  In actual practice, we usually find a solitary self-appraisal insufficient.  Many of us thought it necessary to go much further.  We will be more reconciled to discussing ourselves with another person when we see good reasons why we should do so.  The best reason first:  If we skip this vital step, we may not overcome drinking.  Time after time newcomers have tried to keep to themselves certain facts about their lives.  Trying to avoid this humbling experience, they have turned to easier methods.  Almost invariably they got drunk.  Having persevered with the rest of the program, they wondered why they fell.  We think the reason is that they never completed their housecleaning.  They took inventory all right, but hung on to some of the worst items in stock.  They only thought they had lost their egoism and fear; they only thought they had humbled themselves.  But they had not learned enough of humility, fearlessness and honesty, in the sense we find it necessary, until they told someone else all their life story.