Self-pity

AROUND THE TABLES, long ago, I noted that the veterans who were happy in their sobriety rarely fixed a discussion group's attention on their problems. Instead, these happy "elders" (whether sixty-one or twenty-one) focused on the "dealing with" aspect of problems. They didn't go into the difficulties these things were causing in their lives. They said, in effect, "We use these inconveniences to grow by developing solutions."