Nobody ever said . . . . . .
 

With the Easter weekend just gone, involving all the variouschurch services and religious celebrations I got to thinking, I can do that reasonably well now two years into my sobriety, that for all the Easter message about suffering, forgivness and redemption with the promise of eternal life, I have never heard of one instance of those people who were responsible and very often played pertinent parts in the Easter story ever saying they were sorry, the best we get is the fact that Judas hanged himself.

The relevance of this to me is that through all my drinking days, when I new I was an alcoholic and desperately sought release from my illness and tried to do my best not just for myself but for others and had to live with the guilt, fear and self loathing, clinging on to what little bit of dignity I had left there were people who knowing my illness or my weakness took advantage of me, I never asked nor expected them for sympathy nor expected them to become,'enablers', exploited me, and not only kicked me when I was down but enjoyed doing it and yet whilst I have forgiven then, remembering I don't have to forgive their actions towards me, they in turn have never ever said ,"I'm sorry," to me, a sobering thought.MikeW.

Addendum
 

In submitting this thread I was not referring to the 4th and 5th steps and the benefits of pursuing them in recovery, nor did I expect those around me to support my alcoholism and become,'enablers' as so often happens. I was referring to those who not only stood by and did nothing, which would have been preferabble but those who saw my plight and used it to exploit me for there own ends although I must say thatwith the passage of time it has done them no good at all, perhaps then if they had found the humilityand compassion to apologise they , in my new found sobriety I would not only forgiven the but even welcomed them as friends, much better than having to slink around living with their guilt.

I am powerless over people, places and institutions but they have to live with their actions towards others, aswe all do.