Wisdom Of The Rooms - 2017

[bluidkiti]

August 21

Quote of the Week

“Does it feel sober?”

When I first got sober, the only thing that changed for me was that I no longer drank. Most everything else, though, remained the same. I still stole money at my job, cheated in my relationships, and lied to my family and myself. I still remember when I heard at a meeting, “How do you know when a newcomer is lying? When his lips are moving.” That hit home in a very uncomfortable way.

As I began navigating the new world of the Steps, I kept running into the phrase, “rigorous honesty.” At first I kept looking for ways around that, but as I did my various inventories – a fear inventory, a resentment inventory, a relationship inventory – I realized I had to finally get honest with myself if I was to have any chance at this recovery thing. It took a long time for me to overcome my tendency to be dishonest, but each time I told the truth, I felt much better.

In recovery, they say that you “grow a conscience.” I sure did. After a while, it got harder and harder to live with even little white lies, and I soon saw and felt the wisdom of being rigorously honest. Today, I know the path to freedom isn’t in getting what I want by lying, it’s in speaking my truth and being accepted for who I am. These days when I have a decision to make, I just ask myself what feels the most sober.

The answer that most resonates with my conscience is the right one.