Walk In Dry Places…Too smart to stay sober

22 Nov, 2009 Recovery

Humility
“I’ve never seen anybody who’s too dumb to stay sober. But I’ve met a few people who were too smart.” These wise words by an older member sum up what we sometimes see…. people who feel turned off by the program because it seems to simple and involves so many people of ordinary education and backgrounds.
Alcoholism is much like other diseases in the way it strikes all people. Diabetes, for example, victimizes people of all intelligence and education levels. We could never believe that being smart would give us an advantage in dealing with such an illness.
In the same way, the very smart person, has no edge over others in gaining sobriety. In fact, pride in such gifts can be a stumbling block. It can be a barrier to the simple acceptance and surrender needed for success in the 12 Step Program.
We do have many very smart people in AA. They are also wise enough to know that nobody can outsmart John Barleycorn.
We can feel grateful for mental abilities and education that help us get along in the world. Our sobriety, however, is a separate type of gift that we did not create.
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Humility was a great stumbling block to me for sure…I had so many facets of my personality that I had to keep straight(I was a liar as well) I felt like I had to be in control all the time…But I also wanted you to feel sorry for me because my life was so messed up…When I finally was beaten…all the way to “my bottom” then was I able to say “I can’t do this” I became humble enough to be taught what I needed to do to get sober…Better…I turned my life over to the care of my higher power…God…& I got over in the passenger seat…Nowadays I have very little trouble with admitting that I need help & that other people need help too…The rewarding part of the deal is thru AA & my experience I have found out that I have something to offer others & I can be of service to them…I’ll finish with my favorite prayer…It’s called the 5 finger prayer…Place your hands together palm to palm with you thumbs pointing towards you…Now start with your little fingers they represent the people furthest away from you…Pray for them first…Move to your ring finger…Which is the weakest finger you have…Pray for the people in your life that are weak…next your middle finger…Now don’t get silly…It is the tallest finger so pray for the people in power…ie…Government…Police…you get the idea…Now your index finger…The one that points or instructs…Pray for the teachers & Preachers…Finally your thumbs for they are closest to you…Pray for yourself…This is a great way of thinking of others first…Till next time…Kenney