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“During days and nights of darkness as I face the demons of self, the knowledge that my God is always in charge keeps me trudging to the end of each journey. With God, AA, and willingness I can meet the other me and begin putting my fractured self together again.”

“I believe most of us would agree that the general idea of anonymity is sound, because it encourages alcoholics and the families of alcoholics to approach us for help. Still fearful of being stigmatized, they regard our anonymity as an assurance their problems will be kept confidential; that the alcoholic skeleton in the family closet will not wander in the streets.”

“AA's greatest power is not in the program itself, but in the examples of the men [and women] who have followed it.”

“My home group's primary purpose is to carry the AA message to the alcoholic who still suffers. Some of those have much sobriety, because the alcoholic who still suffers is not necessarily a newcomer. However, when newcomers do show up at our home group we try to focus our discussion on what's in the Big Book and how it can help them if they are willing to follow some simple suggestions.”

“Through Step Five, God has removed my shame about being an alcoholic.”

“I can recognize that I’m caught up in my will when I desperately struggle to slam a square peg into a round hole. That’s the time for me to back off and trust that God’s will is far better than mine.”

“Over the years I've gone to different types of groups to meet different needs in my life or to share experience, strength, and hope about a particular problem I was struggling with. Some days I've been part of the solution for another suffering alcoholic; other days I've been the one who was suffering.

“Thanks to our Fifth Tradition, no matter what my needs or my location I can find an AA group where I can talk about -- and listen to -- not drinking one day at a time, practicing the principles in all of my affairs, and being happily and usefully whole.”

“The word ‘alcoholic’ does not turn me off anymore; in fact, it is music to my ears when it applies to me.”