Your Daily Reprieve 02.27.14

Your Daily Reprieve for Thursday February 27, 2014

From Stuart, Florida

“Life is a gift, and it offers us the privilege, opportunity,

and responsibility to give something back by becoming more.”

Tony Robbins

"The core of our AA procedure is one alcoholic talking to another,

whether that be sitting on a curbstone, in a home, or at a meeting.

It's the message, not the place; it's the talk, not the alms."

~Grapevine: Bill W., May 1948

When we take the first drink we invite the dead certainty of physical illness, untold sorrows, shame and degradation. That first drink has built more hospitals, jails, poorhouses and insane asylums than any other cause. All the drinks that follow are simply compounding the felony.There are some people that can drink intelligently, but these people avoid difficulties. We are not in that class and experience has proven it. Years of sobriety will not enable us to join that class, and again, experience has proven it. Why do you persist in trying, what are you trying to prove? That you are the exception to the rule? If you are the exception you automatically become a freak. ~The Eye Opener

The great gift of family life is to be intimately acquainted with people you might never even introduced yourself to had life not done it for you.
~Kendall Hailey

Big Book Quote

"On the other hand -- and strange as this may seem to those who do not
understand -- once a psychic change has occurred, the very same person
who seemed doomed, who had so many problems he despaired of ever
solving them, suddenly finds himself easily able to control his desire
for alcohol, the only effort necessary being that required to follow a
few simple rules."

~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, The Doctors Opinion, pg. xxix~

Daily Share!

AA Share of the Day

PETER NOONE

HERMAN'S HERMITS

COLLEGE PARK, MD 4-4-98

This is an Alcoholics Anonymous talk by Peter Noone, the lead singer of the very popular 1960s British Pop Band, Herman's Hermits. For years in the 1960s Peter and his band recorded some of the most popular music in the world. In this AA talk, Peter tells us that he was drinking throughout the entire period that his band was so successful. Peter delivered this AA message in College Park, Maryland on April 4th, 1998. Based on the great rapport that Peter has with the very attentive crowd, you'd think that his career was that of a public speaker and humorist rather than a musician. His talk is extremely funny. A large part of this is because he doesn't take himself too seriously. While growing up in England, all of Peter's early heroes were drunks; the Irish poets, the drunken Welsh musicians - all of these people were admired by Peter. While attending a large Catholic school in England, Peter very quickly got the reputation of being a party boy. A little later on, while becoming a young man in the 1960s, Peter says he was definitely a product of that generation. Anybody that says they CAN remember the 60s weren't really there. After getting very drunk for the first time, Peter liked it so much that he did it again and again for the next 30 years. Because of his heavy drinking, there was a period of time that Peter did not put a lot of effort into his work. Peter admits that just about every time that he and his band were on the Ed Sullivan Show, he performed drunk. One of those times, Ed Sullivan invited him to go to Sunday mass the next day at St Patrick's Cathedral. For some reason he accepted the invitation and then went out partying with the Rolling Stones who were also on the show that evening. The next morning he found himself very ill and craving another drink while sitting next to Ed Sullivan in St. Patrick's Cathedral. Peter goes on and talks about his recovery. He really struggled with the humility aspect of this program. Being a self promoting musician nearly all of his life was in direct contrast to this way of life. Peter closes his talk by saying, "I wish you all whatever is your destiny and I hope it's staying sober. God Bless you. Thank you very much."

http://tinyurl.com/mt9tf5v

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Celebrate Your Anniversary Here

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If you are celebrating an anniversary this month,

please send along the date and any message you would

like to share with the other 2200 people on this email list and

perhaps as many as 10000 others who have it forwarded.

You need to remind me every year!

Send your day, your location and number of years to:

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February 2014 Anniversaries

2/1 Trish S. (Stuart, FL)…..1

2/1 Sue D. (Middleton, MA)…..15

2/1 Todd S. (Pittsburg, PA)…..2

2/1 Sean D. (Waterloo, NY)…..6

2/1 Danielle C. (Weymouth, MA)…..6

2/1 Gilly L. (London, UK)…..14

2/2 Tom R. (New York, NY)…..7

2/2 Susan B. (Hobe Sound, FL)…..13

2/2 Maureen B. (Oyster Bay, NY)…..25

2/2 Michele M. (Lighthouse Point, F)…..7

2/2 Karen S. (Warminster, PA)…..6

2/3 Meredith T. (Santa Fe, NM)…..17

2/4 John A. (Houston, TX)…..5

2/5 Jane S. (Goffstown, NH)…..5

2/6 Marni P. (Australia)…..9

2/6 Paul K. (So. Hadley, Cape Cod, MA & Key Largo, FL)…..30

2/7 Lorin C. (East Sandwich, MA)…..17

2/7 Tom M. (Georgetown, MA)…..32

2/7 Nate B. (Stuart, FL)…..8

2/7 Jordan G. (New York, NY)…..9

2/7 Wendy (Ringwood, UK)…..3

2/8 Leo H. (Newport, So Wales, UK)…..9

2/9 Darlene A. (Largo, FL)…..20

2/10 Woody N. (Bernardsville, NJ)…..26

2/10 Collette C. (Nantucket, MA)…..6

2/10 Kay H. (Lake Monticello, Palmyra, VA)...25

2/10 Paul B. (Portsmouth, NH)…..39

2/11 Steve B. (Ipswich, MA)…..34

2/12 Katy S. (Far Hills, NJ) …..1

2/12 Betty P. (Valparaiso, IN)…..32

2/12 Paul E. (Fort Lauderdale, FL)…..34

2/14 Yisrael C. (Jerusalem, Israel)…..34

2/14 Vanessa G. (Whitehorse, Yukon)…..3

2/15 Steve Y. (Kabul, Afghanistan)…..26

2/15 John T. (Tortola, B.V.I./Clinton, Conn)…..27

2/15 Ed G. (Stowe, VT/Nantucket, MA)…..27

2/17 Kristen B. (Stuart, FL)…..1

2/17 Pete R. (Basking Ridge, NJ)…..3

2/17 Woody W. (Michigan City, IN)…..31

2/17 Noel S. (Harrison, NY)…..5

2/17 David H. (Rye, NH)…..36

2/17 Kristen B. (Stuart, FL)…..1

2/17 David B. (Tortola, BVI/New Zealand)…..23

2/18 Scott W. (Hopewell, NJ)…..30

2/18 Mike R. (Weymouth, MA)…..3

2/18 Allan C. (No. Andover, MA)…..3

2/19 Barry K. (Marlowe, UK)…..3

2/20 Mary Stuart C. (Raleigh, NC)…..12

2/20 Jackie M. (Basking Ridge, NJ)…..8

2/20 Breon O. (Mamarone1ck, NY)…..

2/20 Cami M. (Lafayette, LA)…..4

2/22 Marshall T. (Nantucket, MA)…..16

2/23 Casey Q. (Hookset, NH)…..21

2/24 Stephanie S. (USVI)…..6

2/24 Matt L. (Kauai, HI)…..5

2/25 Jay S. (Stuart, FL)…..3

2/25 Alexandra M. (Belgrade, Serbia)…..2

2/25 Marty M. (Astoria, NY)…..6

2/26 Brooks M. (Stuart, FL)…..9

2/27 Jim M. (Bloomington, IN)…..9

2/28 Amy L. (Murray Hill, NY)…..9

2/28 Brian B. (Portsmouth, NH)…..4

826 Total Years of Sobriety

12&12

Tradition Seven - "Every A.A. group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions."

"The meeting that night was at New York's old 24th Street Clubhouse. During the intermission, the treasurer gave a timid talk on how broke the club was. (That was in the period when you couldn't mix money and A.A.) But finally he said it--the landlord would put us out if we didn't pay up. He concluded his remarks by saying, "Now boys, please go heavier on the hat tonight, will you?"

p. 163

Twenty Four Hours

A.A. Thought For The Day

When we first came into A.A., the first thing we did was
to admit that we couldn't do anything about our drinking.
We admitted that alcohol had us licked and that we were
helpless against it. We never could decide whether or not
to take a drink. We always took the drink. And since we
couldn't do anything about it ourselves, we put our whole
drink problem into the hands of God. We turned the whole
thing over to that Power greater than ourselves. And we
have nothing more to do about it, except to trust God to
take care of the problem for us. Have I done this honestly
and fully?

Meditation For The Day

This is the time for my spirit to touch the spirit of God.
I know that the feeling of the spirit-touch is more
important than all the sensations of material things. I
must seek a silence of spirit-touching with God. Just a
moment's contact and all the fever of life leaves me. Then
I am well, whole, calm and able to arise and minister to
others. God's touch is a potent healer. I must feel that
touch and sense God's presence.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that the fever of resentment, worry and fear may
melt into nothingness. I pray that health, joy, peace and
serenity may take its place.

Daily Thought

^*^*^*^*^
(\ ~~~ /)
( \(AA)/ )
(_ /AA\ _)
/AA\
^*^*^*^*^
Children of Chaos
Over the years, every conceivable deviation
from our Twelve Steps and Traditions has been tried.
That was sure to be,
since we are largely a band of ego-driven individuals.
Children of chaos, we have definitely played
with every brand of fire,
only to emerge unharmed and, we think, wiser.
These very deviations created a vast process
of trial and error which, under the grace of God,
has brought us to where we stand today.
c. 1952 AAWS, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 146
^*^*^*^*^

Thought to Consider . . .

Once we clear a hurdle, it doesn't seem so high

*~*~*AACRONYMS*~*~*
C H A O S = Can't Handle Another Overwhelming Situation

Daily Reflection

A UNIQUE STABILITY

Where does A.A. get its direction? . . . These practical folk

then read Tradition Two, and learn that the sole authority

in A.A. is a loving God as He may express Himself in the

group conscience. . . . The elder statesman is the one who

sees the wisdom of the group's decision, who holds no

resentment over his reduced status, whose judgment,

fortified by considerable experience, is sound, and who is

willing to sit quietly on the sidelines patiently awaiting

developments

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, pp. 132, 135

Into the fabric of recovery from alcoholism are woven the

Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions. As my recovery

progressed, I realized that the new mantle was tailor-made

for me. The elders of the group gently offered suggestions

when change seemed impossible. Everyone's shared

experiences became the substance for treasured friendships.

I know that the Fellowship is ready and equipped to aid

each suffering alcoholic at all crossroads in life. In a world

beset by many problems, I find this assurance a unique

stability. I cherish the gift of sobriety. I offer God my

gratitude for the strength I receive in a Fellowship that

truly exists for the good of all members.

Pot Luck

Ask, and ye shall receive.
--John 16:24

Somewhere in our past life, we may have picked up the idea that it's not all right to ask for help, that asking for help would be a sign of weakness. Recovery calls for some basic changes in our thinking, and when we feel vulnerable is the best time to reach out and ask for help from our Higher Power, from our program, and from our friends in recovery. It's hard for us, at first. We may be afraid of rejection, or of being laughed at for not knowing all the answers. But once we've taken the risk and openly asked for help, we realize our fears are a part of the past, and we can leave them behind us.

In asking for help, we acknowledge that we can't do it all by ourselves. We surrender once again to powerlessness. And we give others the joy and satisfaction of helping us.

Today if I'm feeling I'm on a "solo-fight," help me to reach out and find support just by asking.

You are reading from the book: