Mar 03: Practicing These Principles in All Our Affairs

Practicing These Principles in All Our Affairs

I have been a lurker for quite some time now and I really have no excuse except fear. There have been numerous times when I have felt the need to share but always I have managed to convince myself that what I wanted to say was irrelevant or something that had already been said or even on occasion thinking that no-one would care to hear what I have to say especially because I have lurked for so long! I took on the lead because I knew that way I would share and maybe break the cycle in my head!

What I would like to talk about is how we go about practicing these principles in all of our affairs. This has come up for me in terms of honesty. It can sometimes be easy to behave and talk a certain way when face to face with AA people, but what am I like when away from the meetings or with people who don’t have a clue I’m in AA?

Am I still scrupulously honest or do I whitewash my dishonesty calling it ‘little white lies’? Do I cheat the shop assistant wherever possible? I have to admit that my own brand of honesty makes it impossible for me to steal anything even ‘accidentally’. I take back to the shop anything I find after I leave! (Which is very easy for me to do as I’m in a wheelchair and often I pile things up on my lap and when I get to the checkout occasionally things fall down into the cracks).

Do I justify my anger? Do I disagree with people, insisting that what I believe is the only way or that I’m right and therefore you must be wrong? Do I gossip? Oh yes, and disguise this with a, I don’t usually talk about others but have you heard? Or, did you know? Am I self-supporting or do I insist others bear my costs because they earn more than me or they’re luckier than I? Am I controlling? Do I swear? Do I indulge in self-pity? Am I a glutton? Do I get jealous and hurtful or spiteful with it? The list goes on.

What I do to combat all this is write a journal with meditation, prayer and AA reading. Although I have to admit that I have only recently taken this up again after an absence of some months. The thing that had become apparent o me was I was not practising these principles in all of my affairs.

So, I would love to know how other women in GROW “practice these principles”, and what tools you may use to help.