12 Steps

I’ve been reading a book in which the main character is an alcoholic and currently off liquor. He often refers to ‘The 12 Steps’ I only had some knowledge about this so did some research. These are they:

The Twelve Promises of Alcoholics Anonymous
"...If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are half way through.
1. We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness
2. We will not regret the past, nor wish to shut the door on it
3. We will comprehend the word serenity
4. We will know peace
5. No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others
6. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear
7. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain insight into our fellows
8. Self-seeking will slip away
9. Our whole attitude and outlook will change
10. Fear of people and economic insecurity will leave us
11. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us
12. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves
Are these extravagant promises? We think not. They are being fulfilled among us -- sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. They will always materialize if we work for them..."
Well, seem perfectly reasonable to me. There is, of course, a lot more to taking these steps than just knowing them. However, it strikes me as a reasonable set of aims and hopes for a future free from addiction or abuse in any form. Just as the key to any project is a statement of what one intends to achieve. I think my life would be better if I were able to direct myself along these lines. Just how much one requires the experience of being totally fcuked up to show the commitment, I don’t know – and, hopefully, will never know. I think that for now I will just stick with the Buddhist precepts but – certainly – respect to those who do walk the 12 Steps.