Any good action will always bring rich rewards in personal well-being. In helping others, we are only passing on the good that has come to us. Second, we sidestep the swollen egotism that could arise if we view ourselves as rescuers. First, we do not place the other person in a demeaning role or make him or her obligated to us.
#AA DAILY REFLECTIONS APRIL 2ND FULL#
Two things happen when we help others in the full knowledge that we are really helping only ourselves. We are not saints, and our spiritual progress is interrupted the moment we begin to act more saintly than we really are. In giving assistance, guard against posing as an idealist or even a Good Samaritan.
It may sound selfish, but you should always help others for no reason other than your own benefit. So we in the audience smile and say to ourselves, “Well, that guy is just reeling with the spiritual angle–except that he doesn’t seem to know it yet!”
It is apparent to everyone else present that he has received a great gift, and that this gift is all out of proportion to anything that may be expected from simple A.A. meetings and hear the speaker declare, “But I haven’t yet got the spiritual angle.” Prior to this statement, he has described a miracle of transformation which has occurred in him–not only his release from alcohol, but a complete change in his whole attitude toward life and the living of it. I pray that I may carry on in spite of hindrances. I pray that I may be an example to others of a better way of living. But I will try to live the way I believe God wants me to live, no matter what others say. I may be actuated by different motives than some people. I may have different ways and a different standard of living than some others. Even if the discipline keeps me separated from some people who are without discipline, nevertheless I will carry on. I must not let myself go in resentments, hates, fears, pride, lust, or gossip. I must try never to yield one point that I have already won. Am I convinced that the alcoholic world is not a pleasant place for me to live in? You’re in a squirrel cage and you can’t get out. You’re on the merry-go-round and you can’t get off. You eventually land in a hospital or jail. And the next morning it begins all over again. In that alcoholic world, one drink always leads to another and you can’t stop till you’re paralyzed. It was only when I sobered up and worked on my inventory, that I could no longer blame anyone. As I continued to work on the Step, I learned that I always had drunk to rid myself of those feelings. I also discovered I felt different because I was black. When I did my Fourth Step, following the Big Book guidelines, I noticed that my grudge list was filled with my prejudices and my blaming others for my not being able to succeed and to live up to my potential. Where other people were concerned, we had to drop the word “blame” from our speech and thought. First of all, we had to admit that we had many of these defects, even though such disclosures were painful and humiliating.
We could perceive them quickly in others, but only slowly in ourselves. To see how erratic emotions victimized us often took a long time.
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