Meetings always produce gems – treasures – pearls of wit and wisdom, sometimes tear-streaked, sometimes with belly-laughs. But reminders all that although we are many and varied, our stories are woven from many of the same threads, creating patterns of pain and recovery with which we can all identify.
Just recently I heard what I’d been told when I first same into the rooms – an old pearl if you will.
- What you put your drinking ahead of, you may well lose.
- What you put your sobriety ahead of, you may get to keep.
Then, I heard a new gem; I heard an AA describe how she keeps herself in hand;her graphic advice is so worth applying and passing on: Focus on what’s inside my hula-hoop, and maybe I can have a better day.
You know, I never was able to master a hula-hoop. Maybe now I can?
I also heard an AA describe a challenge her sponsor quietly offered her when she was a newcomer who doubted if there was a God, especially one who cared. Her sponsor suggested she do something she’d always heard was a no-no!
“Put God to the test,” her sponsor casually said. “Write out your prayers, questions, pain, and put them in a God-box – after awhile look and see how He has answered.”
Whoa . . . I needed that — What am I bringing to the God of my understanding, Christ, and writing out, waiting for an answer, in trust, belief and hope, He hears? Maybe not as much as I can.
Thanks for stopping by, gentle reader. Maybe what I have “taken” and passed on will strengthen you – and if you have any pearls, old or new to share, please do!
Love in Christ,
Sober and Grateful
