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“Today I think I can trace a clear linkage between my guilt and my pride. Both of them were certainly attention-getters. In pride I could say, ‘Look at me, I am wonderful.’ In guilt I would moan, ‘I’m awful.’ Therefore guilt is really the reverse of the coin of pride. Guilt aims at self-destruction, and pride aims at the destruction of others.”

“Sobriety isn’t a discrete list of tasks that you do and then check off; it’s a state of being that pervades every aspect of your life.”

“For me, there is no better feeling than the one I get running into another alcoholic when I’m feeling down. We alcoholics are bonded together by the sadness of a deadly disease and the miracle of a spiritual solution.”

“I know that my errors of yesterday still have their effect; that my shortcomings of today may likewise affect our future. So it is, with each and all of us.”

“Tolerance is the art of seeing yourself as others see you -- and not getting mad about it.”

“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.”