“We admitted we were powerless over alcohol-that our lives had become unmanageable.”
Copyright © 1939, 1955, 1976, Alcoholics Anonymous World Service®, All rights reserved.
Being somewhat of a control addict, this step, Step One, was and continues to be an ongoing learning process.
Left to fend for myself by my own wits and wile, I thought that I did a pretty good job of getting what I wanted out of life. It was all those other jerks out there that stood in my way.
All of my troubles I thought stemmed from others not doing what I wanted them to do. If they would only listen! If they would only see that if they let me have my way, then everybody would be happy. If I wasn’t happy: Nobody was going to be happy.
I could stop drinking any time I wanted and did for…a few days at a time. But I always found a reason to drink again, usually with disastrous results.
As far as my life being unmanageable, it wasn’t my fault. It was those other block heads that kept getting in my way. I had everything under control.
Then the roof caved in.
I not only hit bottom; I augured in
I was forced to see reality and my part in my downfall.
The first step was the beginning of my humility. For the first time in my life I had to ask someone else for help, ask outsiders into my most intimate areas of being and then allow them to show me the way out of my misery. It wasn’t until I relinquished control that I became humble enough to learn a new way to live.
Today, the first step continues to show me that I am not the center of the universe, but a small part of creation that has purpose and meaning to the whole. I am reminded on a daily basis of my inability to control people, places and things. Alone, I am insignificant. But as part of the whole, I have learned the value and strength of “We”.
Step One is about conceding to the truth of our lives. Step One is about asking for help. Step One is about giving up our old ideas.
Step Two |
