I can’t make past wrongs disappear, but I can take actions that will help me to let them go. When I make amends, I do what I can to correct the situation. Then I an put the past in its rightful place and leave it there.

It’s as if we were holding one end of a rope and an alcoholic grabbed the other end and started to tug.  Most of us would react automatically.  We would tug back.  It never occurs to us that we don’t have to play.

I will not let fear of disappointment prevent me from enjoying this day. I have a great capacity for happiness.  I want to grow in my willingness to make room in my life for good times, having faith in their arrival and patience in my anticipation.

I too, have lapses from the Al-Anon pattern I have tried so hard to follow.  When I fall into my old habits of self-pity and reproaching, my relapse is just as involuntary and forgivable as that of the alcoholic.

Humility is a greatly misunderstood quality.  It is not weakness; it is strength.  It does not mean submission, resignation or compliance; all these imply we still have lurking reservations.  In humility, there is total willingness to accept God’s help because because we have finally been convinced that, without it, we cannot achieve our goals.

Instead of questioning why things happened as they did, I was able to accept them as part of my destiny, as an opportunity for growth offered by my higher power.

Spiritual mastery is no different from any other type of learning.  It takes skill, and skill takes practice.  Learning to hear and follow the subtle guidance of a power greater than ourselves requires lots of practice.  Our job is to supply the willingness and the time.

An emotionally mature person knows that self-pity is futile and childish — a way of placing the blame for disappointments on others.

What would happen if I stopped trying to change the alcoholic or anyone else?

Hard as it is to look at our own part in our problems, acceptance of Step One brings relief from impossible responsibilities.  We were trying to fix a disease — and, someone else’s disease at that!

Just for today I will be happy. This assumes to be true what Abraham Lincoln said, that “Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be.”

Today I know that my goal is freedom.  Today I can laugh even if somebody else is sad or angry.  I am convinced that each human being is free to choose a role in the theater of life.  If somebody else chooses the role of musician and plays a waltz, it is up to me to dance or not.

Knowing I am powerless and accepting powerlessness are two different matters.   I knew I was powerless when I walked into my first meeting.

Do I want comfort and a straightening out of my thinking? Or do I expect advice on a serious personal crisis?  I cannot saddle someone else with the responsibility of telling me what to do.

Just for today, I will try to live through this day only, and not tackle all my problems at once. I can do something for 12 hours that would appall me if I felt that I had to keep it up for a lifetime.

An emotionally mature person does not automatically resent criticism, realizing that it may contain a suggestion for self-improvement.