“I am not an addict; I am a user,” declared the character Sherlock Holmes in the new series preview. He had a serious problem he couldn’t detect — his addiction to opium and cocaine. His passion and precision in describing his use of the drugs his friends thought he was abusing made smile.
Now, I was never as precise as Sherlock Holmes about my substance use and abuse of alcohol; I just insisted to myself, I can handle this. And so I put on the mask of “social drinker.” But, eventually that mask couldn’t cover up the craziness that was breaking out in my life and brain. In time, at just the right time, I gave up that little illusion that alcohol was my friend.
How about you, friend? Got any masks to lay down?
From the AA Big Book, Page 31-32: “We do not like to pronounce any individual as alcoholic, but you can quickly diagnose yourself. Step over to the nearest barroom and try some controlled drinking. Try to drink and stop abruptly. Try it more than once. It will not take long for you to decide, if you are honest with yourself about it. It may be worth a bad case of jitters if you get a full knowledge of your condition.”
I found a centuries’ old quote that reminded me taking Step 1 puts me on solid rock!
The mirror will only lie, when you look at it through a mask. ~Anthony Liccione
Happy New Year!
