Mercy, Mercy

I am in a hurry to get out the door to meet my roadrunners club for our Saturday morning run. Forgive me if I am in the habit of calling it running. I do that. I have been running for a long time. It is a difficult thing to start walking instead of running. It makes me feel elderly. It makes me feel like someone might think I belong to a "silver sneakers" group that walks around the mall. Oh no, this is a group that gets people ready for marathons and ultra marathons. And a few of us (12 last week) are walkers. The eleven other walkers I was with last week have completed marathons and other major races. They are accomplished walkers. Some of them have walked half-marathons faster than I have run them. I am anxious to see how this walking thing is going to work out for me. But it is still hard to say I am walking.

I had intended to post here later, after having walked my 5 miles, had some fellowship with newish people, and some sunshine and nature. However, I checked some other blogs this morning and realized yet again that most of my favorite blogs aren't there any more. And then others I still read haven't posted anything yet this morning. And I thought about the lonely reader out there who might need a word of encouragement this morning.... and thought perhaps I might be the one to offer it.

So let me say, there are people in Alcoholics Anonymous who don't drink. I am one of them. I came to AA when I was absolutely desperate to stop drinking. I thought it was the end of my life, but I didn't know what else to do. I threw myself on the mercy of the unlikely people I met in AA and they provided what I needed to get me sober. They told me to not drink. They told me to stop taking myself so seriously. They told me to stop thinking about myself. period. full stop. To think of others. They told me to pray. They told me to ask God to help me to stay sober. They gave me phone numbers and told me to call them. They told me Don't drink, Don't think (that one always makes someone mad), go to meetings, read the big book, get a sponsor, Etc.....

I did what they said. And now it is 25 and a half years later. I am still sober. I have not had a drink in all those years. I am still doing the same things. I know a whole bunch of people who are doing the same thing. We all are staying sober. Because AA works.

I live a happy, fulfilling life. Hopefully I am a positive member of my family, my church, my workplace, and my community. All because I learned how to be a member of AA first.

Thank you!

xoxoxoxoxoxox