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“Are you willing to be amazed?”

“The little things that happen, the spoken word, the kind smile, the nod of encouragement -- the fellowship that goes with the program -- these things I will never forget.”

“The word ‘anonymous’ has for us an immense spiritual significance. Subtly but powerfully it reminds us that we are always to place principles before personalities; that we have renounced personal glorification in public; that our movement not only preaches, but actually practices a truly humble modesty.”

“The ideal of AA, however short we may be of it personally, is a thing of beauty and perfection. It is a Power greater than ourselves which has lifted us out of the quicksand and set us safe on shore.”

“When I effectively practice my program, I am only a cheap dime-store garden hose carrying God’s message of hope, recovery, and forgiveness.”

“What I have learned in the past twelve years is that my relationship with God and my spiritual practice is the only answer, even when I’m not sure of the question.”

“With each passing year we increasingly realize the immense importance of adequately presenting the program to every new prospect who is in the least inclined to listen. Many of us feel this to be our greatest obligation to him and our failure to do so our greatest dereliction. The difference between a good approach and a bad one can mean life or death to those who seek our help.”

“For thousands of alcoholics yet to come, AA does have an answer. But there is one condition. We must, at all costs, preserve our essential unity; it must be made unbreakably secure. Without permanent unity there can be little lasting recovery for anyone. Hence our future depends upon the creation and observance of a sound group Tradition. First things will always need to be first: humility before success, and unity before fame.”

“It has been difficult for me to accept myself and some of my decisions ... But I’ve done the best I can with the information available, even if it might not be someone else’s best.”

“Throughout the world, AAs are twelfth-stepping with thousands of new prospects a month. Between one and two thousand of these stick on our first presentation; past experience shows that most of the remainder will come back to us later on. Almost entirely unorganized and completely nonprofessional, this mighty spiritual current is now flowing from alcoholics who are well to those who are sick. One alcoholic talking to another; that's all.”

“In the fear of accumulated wealth and bureaucracy, we should not discover an alibi for failure to pay AA’s legitimate service expenses. For fear of controversy, our leadership should not go timid when lively debate and forthright action is a necessity.”

“It surely may be said that the future looks bright. Much more hospitalization, based on the certainty that we are a sick people and that plenty can be done about it, is now on the way. We ought gratefully to acknowledge the work of those agencies outside AA who are strenuously helping this life-redeeming trend along.”

“God has continued to send me many miracles since the first one occurred the day he gave me the courage and willingness to go to my first AA meeting.”

“There is very little in life that I must personally handle or that someone else couldn't do as well. On the other hand, no one else in the world can take my place at my meetings.”

“When I've examined a situation all ways from Sunday, and the only thing I can see are bad consequences, then I can say, ‘God, I don't have the least idea what to do.’ That seems to be the magic phrase for me. Then something happens, and it is usually an action I hadn't thought of doing, and the result is good for all.”