August 31, 2025 - Keep It Simple

Keep It Simple. Today is Sunday. I'm going to church. After the worship part there is a coffee hour. I bake cookies for them to use during coffee hour. Usually, I have something going on in the afternoon, like a committee meeting or a workshop, so I only bring one dozen cookies to coffee hour and then I have a dozen for later in the day. Today, I just have church in the morning. So, I'm thinking if I bring a dozen to coffee hour, then I can have a dozen for the meeting on Monday night. But, will they still be fresh. This slogan reminds me not to over-complicate things but to keep them simple. I'll just bring all the cookies to coffee hour and tomorow I'll bake more.

August 30, 2025 - Selfishness

 Selfishness and self-centeredness. That we think is the root of our troubles. - Alcoholics Anonymous, page 62. Selfishness is one of my character defects. According to the spiritual program of action that I try to follow, I should continue to watch for selfishness and when I see it manifesting in my life, I should ask God to remove it. I recall the definition I read once about humility. Thinking of myself less. Hopefully I am losing interest in myself and what I can do for myself and I'm becoming more interested in others and what I can do for them.

August 29, 2025 - Patience

 Patience was never one of my good qualities. Yesterday, I bought a new cell phone. The last one I had I bought before Covid. They didn't have any more of those so the guy sold me a samsung galaxy A06. It looks nice, has sufficient memory, takes nice photos. But, it won't recognize the old SIM Card from the other phone. So, can't get my old contacts and can't get it to transfer my old data so its basically useless after I leave my home's wi-fi network. But, I didn't throw it across the room or beat it to death with a ball peen hammer. I just tried a few things and since none of those things worked, I'm taking it to my cell phone service provider to see if they can figure it out. I have learned that although I know a lot of things about a lot of things, I do not know everything and sometimes I just have to take my problem to a higher source and see what He can do.

August 28, 2025 - Live and Let Live

 Live and Let Live. There are two parts to this slogan. I often focus on the second part, to Let Live. I realize that I live my life according to spiritual principles and that not everyone else has those spiritual principles. They may even have a lack of principles, but that is okay and I should let them live their lives they way the see fit. That teaches me tolerance. But, I also should live my life. A friend of mine has spoken to me recently about self-care and how that is important in one's own life. The principles by which I live are such things as acceptance, gratitude, and humility. Acceptance requires living life on life's terms. Gratitude is wanting all that I have. And humility is thinking of myself less.  

August 26, 2025 - Sponsorship

 Sponsorship is the word today. I just was talking to someone about that and I repeated something I heard once. Get one and Be one. I know that I got a sponsor early on in my recovery. I did not ask him to be my sponsor and he did not volunteer to be my sponsor. He was doing the talking and I was doing the listening. We did the twelve steps together and so I refer to him as my sponsor. Over the years, I have been a sponsor to many men and to a few women. I am convinced that having a sponsor saved my life and by being a sponsor, that continues to save my life.

August 26, 2025 - Insanity

 Insanity. The word comes from the Latin insanitas, meaning “unsoundness of mind”. And while it’s often misattributed to Einstein, the quote “doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results” isn’t actually a formal definition—but it’s a popular cultural take on irrational behavior. At least that's the answer that AI gave me. Where alcohol was concerned, I definitely was strangely insane. Based on repeated occurrences of bad behaviour and even worse results, and despite the fact that things never went as well as I imagined they would, I kept doing it. I often say that during the first ten minutes after my first drink, when I was twelve years old that everything in Bernie's world was just the way Bernie wanted it to be, all the guys were afraid of me and all the girls were in love with me. And I chased after that ten minutes for twenty-nine years and never found that feeling again, but I kept looking. I kept doing the same thing over and over, thinking it would be different and it never was. Finally, at age 41, I stopped.

August 25, 2025 - Trust

 Trust is the word. At its core, trust is a belief in the reliability, integrity, or ability of someone or something. It’s what allows us to feel safe enough to be vulnerable, to take risks, and to rely on others without constant fear of betrayal or disappointment. In AA we say trust God, clean house, help others. Helping others is our one true aim. But, we cannot transmit something we haven't got, so we clean our house first. Even when an airplane is crashing, before you help others you must put your own oxygen mask on. And, before you attempt a housecleaning in the sense that the twelve steps require, you should first place your trust in God as you understand God. Often easier said than done.

August 24, 2025 - One Day At A Time

 One day a time reminds me that I cannot change a single thing I did yesterday or predict anything I will do tomorrow. I can only control what I do today. When I decided to quit drinking alcohol, I was not able to fathom never drinking again. What will I do on new year's eve? What will I do on my birthday? What will I do on your birthday? But, really, all I had to concern myself with was whether or not I would drink that day. Not having a drink or a drug for one 24-hour period was much more manageable. That was 10,129 days ago, one day at a time.

August 23, 2025 - Into Action

 Into Action is the theme for today. I decided many years ago that the life I was living was not a healthy one and I chose to adopt a better way of life. But, my life didn't just magically change, I had to take action and make changes, and I need to keep making changes, keep taking action else I will slip back into my old way of thinking. If I fail to enlarge my spiritual way of life, I will relapse. The experiences of those who have gone before me are a testament to that.

August 22, 2025 - Service

 My word today is service. Some say it's my middle name. Bill W once said that service, as AA uses it, is anything that makes a twelfth step possible. The twelfth step being to carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers. That can mean putting a meeting on in detox or at a shelter for homeless or displaced persons, talking to somebody about AA, setting up chairs at a meeting, shaking someone's hand, being a committee chair or being a sponsor, making coffee at a meeting, the list goes on and on.

Not meant to be a brag, but just as an example. Currently, I am District Committee Member, I am chair of the 2026 Midwinter Roundup committee, I serve as a corrections correspondent, I sponsor about a dozen persons, I bake cookies and bring them to various meetings, and when I go to my home group, I usually help set up the meeting. None of those commitments is any more important than the other. They are all ways to be of service, all are ways to carry the message.

I have been sober since November of 1997 and I have been doing service since November of 1997. I think the two are connected.

August 21, 2025 - Acceptance

 Much has been written about Acceptance. I have a little book that my stepdaughter gave to me as a gift one day. In that book, it says, " Acceptance and rejection are not merely opposites. Acceptance is a gift whereas rejection is a weapon. Happy is he who lets the weapon rust and crumble through misuse. Happier still is he who cares for the gift daily and polishes it to a brilliant luster." It does not say where the quote is from.

Gratitude and Acceptance are good tools when used together.

August 20, 2025 - But For The Grace of God

 In Christian theology, God's grace is defined as an undeserved favor, mercy, or love, that is shown to humanity. I like to think of it as my higher power sparing me from drinking or from other calamities that happen to people around me that don't happen to me. Like, when I see someone relapse and wind up throwing their blessings away, knowing that I am no better than they are, and that could just as easily have been me, I say to myself but for the grace of god there go I. 

August 19, 2025 - Faith

 Faith is the word I picked today. I remember reading, in the Bible, Seek ye the Kingdom of heaven and all else will follow. It doesnt't say you have to find it, you just have to seek it. Even in the 12th step fellowship I am in, it says God could and would if he were sought, but I don't have to find God, I just have to seek Him and through the seeking of God, I develop faith, faith that all will be well if I continue to do His will. Faith that I may be restored to sanity. Faith that I may be relieved of the anger within me. Faith to replace the fear I had.

Faith is trusting in something without the need for proof.

August 18, 2025 - How Important Is It

 How Important is it. Depends on what IT is. If IT is my sobriety than it takes precedence over everything else. Because, after all, anything that I put in front of my alcoholism I will likely end up losing anyway. So if IT is something that I thought was important....it probably isn't.

August 17, 2025 - Responsibility

Responsibility is my word for today. I think the thing I always need to remember is to keep the responsibilities I have and not to concern myself with things that are not my responsibility, such as you keeping the responsibilities that you have.

August 16, 2025 - Gratitude

 Each morning, when I arise, I read from the AA book 24 Hours A Day and I read from an Al-anon book Courage to Change. Then, I pick my word for today from my God Box and I share that word with a bunch of like-minded folk. Yesterday, one of those people said that her friend out west could certainly benefit from this. So, I told her to tell her friend to reach out and connect with me. She did and as a result I met another beautiful soul. For that, I am grateful today.

Gratitude is not about having everything you want; it is about wanting everything you have.

August 15, 2025 - Hope

 Hope is the word today. In our preamble, it says we share our experience, our strength and our HOPE in order to stay sober and help others achieve sobriety. Hope is a desire that things will improve, and in our case it is a testament that things will get better. In the 3rd Step Prayer, we ask God as we understand God, to take away our difficulties, our defects of character, so that victory over them may show those we would help of His Power, His Love, and His Way of Life, to give them Hope that if they come here with us and practice this way of life, their life will become more manageable.

August 14, 2025 - Insanity

 Insanity has been said to be doing the same thing, over and over, expecting a different result. I heard a speaker from Kentucky say that insanity was being in a twelve step program and not doing the twelve steps. Another guy I heard said that insanity is knowing what to do and not doing it, or was that knowing what not to do and doing it anyway.

August 13, 2025 - Surrender

 The word today is Surrender. In the first week of December, 1997, I was in a country church in Meductic, New Brunswick. I surrendered that day to a God that I barely understood and have not found it necessary to take a drink since that day. It is one of the paradoxes of the 12-step philosophy is that by admitting complete defeat, we begin to achieve victory. That's an indirect quote from their literature, but still true today.

August 12, 2025 - Expectations.

 My word today is Expectations. I can make plans but I cannot plan the outcome of those plans. I had a plan for today. It has already changed because someone changed their mind. I did not get angry because really I had no expectations on her and on what would happen. I just conclude that God must have a plan of his own on what's going to happen today and it did not involve what I had in mind. We gets wiser as we gets older.

August 11, 2025 - Selfishness

 When I was still drinking, I was very selfish. I only did things for other people if I thought I would benefit also or if I thought it would make me look good. I also talked a lot about all the wonderful things I was doing to make the world a better place. I was, as they say, self-absorbed.

When I came here, to this life without drinking alcohol, I learned that selfishness and self-centeredness was the root of my trouble and that I had to be rid of the selfishness or it would kill me. Our literature tells me that I could try to get rid of self-will using self-will but it won't really work. I needed the help of my higher power, God. 

Today, I try to do God's will, not Bernie's will. God helps me think of others and place their needs ahead of my own. By taking an attitude such as that, I find I do get something out of it, but the motives have changed. I no longer do things for others so that I will get a reward but because I am being unselfish in my motives, I am rewarded in other ways.

August 10, 2025 - Amends

It is a natural thought to want to quickly make amends to those we have harmed by our actions or inactions, but we should always remember that we do that during Step Nine, not when we are on Step One or Two or Four or Five. The reason the steps are numbered is because we do them in order. Be patient and follow the path we have laid out for you. These are the steps we took. We know they work.

August 9, 2025 - One Day At A Time

 I remember when Nancy and I decided to walk this road together. I told her that I'd like to promise her the moon and the stars and that I'd love her until the end of time, but I didn't know what I'd be doing at the end of time. I only knew what I'd be doing that day, so all I could truly promise her was one day. Today. If we wanted to do it the next day we could decide on that day. That was March 24, 1998. 

Trying to imagine doing something or not doing something forever is a large task. But, deciding to do it or not do it for just 24 hours is much more manageable. Because, when we think about it, we have no control over what happens tomorrow or the day after that or the day after that, but we can choose to do things this day. and when tomorrow gets here, then it will be today and we can make those choices again.

August 8, 2025 - Pride

 Pride and fear are said to be the main stumbling blocks to true progress when character building. Pride says we don't have to look at that and fear says you better not look at that.

Pride is an opinion of oneself and one's achievements and is often a positive characteristic, yet when taken to extremes it can become arrogance and self-centeredness.

August 7, 2025 - Sponsorship

About 28 years ago, my sponsor repeatedly told me that I could not keep the sobriety I had unless I carried the message to other alcoholics. So, I started to sponsor other alcoholics. Not all of them got sober. But, everytime I sponsored an alcoholic, I stayed sober. I was told, and it's in our book, that having had the experience myself (of working the twelve steps), I can give these people much practical advice (of working the twelve steps). I can't tell them how to get their job back or how to get their spouse off their backs or how to successfully dodge their creditors. I just tell them how to avoid taking a drink and after they have been away from a drink for a period of time, those other life problems that they are having may work themselves out. So, only two things you need to know about a sponsor. Get one. and Be one.

August 6, 2025 - Willingness

 The word today is Willingness. I have learned that developing the quality of willingness is essential to the effectiveness of the 12 Step program. It concerns the daily taking of Step Three where we make a decision to turn our will (our thoughts and feelings) and our lives (our actions and behaviors) over to the care of God as we understand him. So, we place everything in the care of God. I might not always be willing to surrender the outcome of certain things to the will of God, but when I see how the results of other things I have placed in his care have turned out in a positive way, I am more inclined to do it.

August 5, 2025 - Patience

 When little Johnny told his teacher he was having trouble with the math, she gave him more math homework. When I told God I was having trouble with Patience, he gave me people to sponsor.

August 4, 2025 - Gratitude

 This morning, the word I picked was Gratitude. Yesterday, my wife had to be taken to the Emergency ward of the local hospital for severe abdominal pain. After ten hours, she was diagnosed with a kidney infection and a pulled muscle and given a prescription for antibiotics and pain meds. She is home today and just waiting for the medication to start taking effect. I am grateful for this, and I am sure she is as well.  It was explained to me once that gratitude is not having everything we want; it is wanting everything we have.

Name Change

 The name of this blog has changed. It used to be called As Bernie Sees It. The blog began as part of a joke someone said to me. "Is that how Bernie sees it?" But, now, it has become a series of posts based on the word I pick from my God Box every day. I realize that not everyone believes in God, so you might want to use another word. It won't bother me.