Michael Z's Weekly Quote
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Canada. About as far south as you can get
Posts: 4,768
Michael Z's Weekly Quote
January 14, 2013
Quote of the Week
"In recovery there are no losers, just slow winners."
I remember being in early recovery and feeling so bad that I just knew it wasn't working. I'd tell my sponsor about it, and I can still hear him saying, "Michael, you're exactly where you should be, and that's exactly what you should be feeling right now." At first I thought he was just handing me a line, but after a while I believed him and learned to trust in the slow progress I was making in recovery.
Years later I'd hear other newcomers complain about how bad they felt and about how terrible of a day they were having. I can still hear the old timers ask them if they had a drink that day. "No," they'd respond. "Then no matter bad you think you're doing, when you lay your head on your pillow tonight you're a winner." It was comforting to hear that back then, and it still is today.
Now that I've been in recovery a while I understand the wisdom in this week's quote. It doesn't matter what you're going through in recovery or how you feel, the fact that you are in recovery, that you have a program, and that you're developing or improving your conscious contact with a power greater than yourself means that you've already won. You may feel like a loser temporarily, but most of the time and in the long run you'll live a life filled with the joys and miracles of recovery.
Over time you, too, will come to see that in recovery there are no losers, just slow winners.
This helps answer the "How long does this last?" question .....
All the best.
Bob R
Quote of the Week
"In recovery there are no losers, just slow winners."
I remember being in early recovery and feeling so bad that I just knew it wasn't working. I'd tell my sponsor about it, and I can still hear him saying, "Michael, you're exactly where you should be, and that's exactly what you should be feeling right now." At first I thought he was just handing me a line, but after a while I believed him and learned to trust in the slow progress I was making in recovery.
Years later I'd hear other newcomers complain about how bad they felt and about how terrible of a day they were having. I can still hear the old timers ask them if they had a drink that day. "No," they'd respond. "Then no matter bad you think you're doing, when you lay your head on your pillow tonight you're a winner." It was comforting to hear that back then, and it still is today.
Now that I've been in recovery a while I understand the wisdom in this week's quote. It doesn't matter what you're going through in recovery or how you feel, the fact that you are in recovery, that you have a program, and that you're developing or improving your conscious contact with a power greater than yourself means that you've already won. You may feel like a loser temporarily, but most of the time and in the long run you'll live a life filled with the joys and miracles of recovery.
Over time you, too, will come to see that in recovery there are no losers, just slow winners.
This helps answer the "How long does this last?" question .....
All the best.
Bob R
Fellow Traveler and Seeker
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 2,408
I'll be honest, I've never been comfortable with the "loser" and "winner" titles. My sponsor uses the words "healthier ones" instead of "winners". I know for me, I felt like a loser (and been called that) more times than I care to admit, and getting into recovery, something that takes a lot of courage and is life saving, and being called a "loser" just doesn't make sense to me. I am glad to read this version of a poorly worded old slogan (that in my opinion needs to be expunged from the AA collective).
Thanks for the share
Thanks for the share
Currently Active Users Viewing this Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
