๐ง there is one ๐ง
Posted: Wed, Apr 9, 2025 06:57:51 AM
and only one requirement for membership: a DESIRE to stop using. i remember way back when i was starting to come around, because it got me out of work and the half-way house, i believed i could NEVER be a member as i had absolutely, positively no DESIRE to stop using, all i had the desire to do, is to get out from the clutches of the Twelfth Judaical District of Colorado. little did i realize that thousands of days later i would be looking back and wonder how i ever managed to clear that hurdle. the fact that i did not have that desire, has led me to sponsor some men who have that desire but for medical or other reasons are not totally abstinent. they are members, just as i am today and it was yet another hump for me to get over, as i progress in my recovery.
i can honestly say though, way back when, the THIRD TRADITION was my favorite and it still is to this day. although the traditions are guidelines for how groups are supposed to conduct their bidness, some days i have to pause and ask myself how i personally honor this tradition. am i warm and welcoming to the still struggling addict, who cannot seem to quite “get” this? do i dismiss those who live in a world in which they are always the victim and never the perpetrator of their own misery? do i keep a rating system in my head that defines the “winners and losers” in the rooms of recovery? sadly, for me anyhow, i wish i could say yes to the first question and no to the other two. i am not there yet, but at least i know the questions.
i have an appointment with a man who calls me his sponsor, who is struggling with a step work assignment. sadly, i know that i have to take responsibility for this, as he does not quite get what i am having him write about and it is driving him to frustration. my responsibility as his sponsor, is to create an atmosphere of recovery between us and uncover a path through this step for him to follow. he DESERVES and is ENTITLED to find a way through and i am REQUIRED to provide that direction for him. life is ironic, as in the path i have him on, is the path the men i sponsor have waled before without issues. back top the THIRD TRADITION here, even though they may have, he cannot and between the two of us, we have to find the ways and means for him to move forward. just for today, i will let go of what i “think” i know and see what i can uncover.
i can honestly say though, way back when, the THIRD TRADITION was my favorite and it still is to this day. although the traditions are guidelines for how groups are supposed to conduct their bidness, some days i have to pause and ask myself how i personally honor this tradition. am i warm and welcoming to the still struggling addict, who cannot seem to quite “get” this? do i dismiss those who live in a world in which they are always the victim and never the perpetrator of their own misery? do i keep a rating system in my head that defines the “winners and losers” in the rooms of recovery? sadly, for me anyhow, i wish i could say yes to the first question and no to the other two. i am not there yet, but at least i know the questions.
i have an appointment with a man who calls me his sponsor, who is struggling with a step work assignment. sadly, i know that i have to take responsibility for this, as he does not quite get what i am having him write about and it is driving him to frustration. my responsibility as his sponsor, is to create an atmosphere of recovery between us and uncover a path through this step for him to follow. he DESERVES and is ENTITLED to find a way through and i am REQUIRED to provide that direction for him. life is ironic, as in the path i have him on, is the path the men i sponsor have waled before without issues. back top the THIRD TRADITION here, even though they may have, he cannot and between the two of us, we have to find the ways and means for him to move forward. just for today, i will let go of what i “think” i know and see what i can uncover.
∞ DT ∞