Topics are 1) friendship in AA 2) gratitude 3) staying sober through grief

  Donna S grateful recovering alcoholic   NJ
 
Gratitude.... I have such gratitude for the time I had with Mae ♥
She was an inspiration to me and so many others in this room...
She was always there for me ... such a giving lady who taught me mpre
 about patience and tolerance she showed me and others that it IS possible to get and stay sober in this room she was a big part of our Big Book Study Meeting and she is SO missed...but she WILL live forever in my heart!!!! ♥
Thank you Tina for ur tribute to Mae on ur blog ♥


 One of my sponsors use to always tell me when i was having a bad time of it
to make a gratitude list. Sometimes i did one a few times a day to remind me of what i was grateful for. Some days all i was grateful for was to be sober.
I still make a gratitude list ..not on paper all the time but in my head, when i start to feel the world is unfair cuz  of my health SO  i fer sure have to look for all the gratitude I do have  in this life..which adds up today
 I am sooooo very gratiful for all of you   = )

 I am grateful I dont have to drink today to have a good day ..or to have fun I am very blessed to have my sons want to come visit me and my brother and his wife came to sleep over the other day.  That never  EVER happened when i was drinking or dry as  i really hurt my brother when i was drinking. They came to visit and I disappeared to go get some alcohol and i lost track of time... he didn't come visit again for a long time.
 So I was bubbling over this past week end with my older son and his "wife" and my "grand daughters" who stayed the whole week end and then my brother & his wife for over night. My health was acting up a bit,  but I had a HOOT of a time.

I am grateful for all the wonderful "real" friends I have today and that i can be of service to new comers and a shoulder to lean on and be there for my friends who are in need. I wasn't a very good friend when i was drinking or when i was dry. I din't know how to be a friend or to have a real friend, till I sobered up and worked the 12 Steps into my life. Then the miracles started to happen.

 Staying Sober Through Grief, you can stay sober as  i know, my mom past away 2 1/2 years ago. I went through so much with her. The gratitude is , she was able to spend time with me SOBER. She got to see the beautiful daughter she knew was inside that witch i became.  Yes i had to go through the stages, if I don't it is
just like when i was drinking and like John P said live in denial, the anger, etc.
I looked to others to help me who were there to hug me, listen to me,
and pick me up when i was down and missing her so much. NEVER did I think bout drinking. I was told early on  you never have to feel like u did before and theres NO reason to ever pick up a drink again, they were right.

I've been through many hardships in sobriety.  I almost drank at one point
but because I was IN Alcoholics Anonymous, not around it,  and I shared with people what was going on, I didnt have to pick up that drink. Life is to short and to precious to me today to pick up a drink,  no matter what.

If ur new or struggling today.... know u r not alone...We are here for you..just reach out and ask for help..thats hard at first but the more you do it
the easier it gets.  I hated asking for help, still do sometimes, but I KNOW it WILL save my life and from picking up that first drink

 God Bless    Love u all  R.I.P. Mae

my share from Sunday Noon (EST) meeting at