November 15 in The Little Blue Book ONE DAY at a TIME in AL-ANON:
One way Al-Anon is a big help is that it reminds me of truths I tend to forget. For example, I hear again and again at meetings, and read in the Al-Anon literature, “Alcoholism is a disease – the alcoholic is a sick human being – we do not punish people for being sick.”
I may give ample lip service to this idea, but when it comes to real acceptance my instinctive attitude toward the alcoholic is often hostile, as though he were an enemy, willfully bent on destroying me. I need Al-Anon’s constant reminders that such feelings hinder both my spiritual progress and improvement in the family situation. I must rid myself of the poison of resentment, indignation at a person I am not capable of judging fairly and useless pity for myself.
TODAY’S REMINDER
If I am suffering from bitterness against the alcoholic, I will cling to the thought that my growth and serenity depend on overcoming my animosity. Unless I free myself from it, I may carry it over into my relations with other people, even those who, in Al-Anon, are trying to help me.
“It is not men’s acts which disturb us – but our reaction to them. Take these away, and anger goes. No wrong act of another can bring shame on you.” – Marcus Aurelius