Narcotics Anonymous

Just For Today - Daily Email Service

   August 17                                                   Tell the truth

   "A symptom of our disease is alienation, and honest sharing will free us
                                 to recover."

                                                            Basic Text, p. 80

                           ----=----

   Truth connects us to life while fear, isolation, and dishonesty alienate
   us from it.  As using addicts, we hid as much of the truth about ourselves
   from as much of the world as we possibly could.  Our fear kept us from
   opening ourselves up to those around us, providing protection against what
   others might do if we appeared vulnerable.  But our fear also kept us from
   connecting with our world.  We lived like alien beings on our own planet,
   always alone and getting lonelier by the minute.

   The Twelve Steps and the fellowship of recovering addicts give people like
   us a place where we can feel safe telling the truth about ourselves.   We
   are able to honestly admit our frustrating, humbling powerlessness over
   addiction because we meet many others who've been in the  same
   situation-we're safe among them.  And we keep on telling more of the
   truth about ourselves as we continue to work the steps.  The more we do,
   the more truly connected we feel to the world around us.

   Today, we need not hide from the reality of our relations with the people,
   places, and things in our lives.  We accept those relationships just as
   they are, and we own our part in them.  We take time every day to ask,
   "Am I telling the truth about myself?" Each time we do this, we draw
   that much further away from the alienation that characterizes our
   addiction, and that much closer to the freedom recovery can bring us.

                           ----=----

   Just for today:  Truth is my connection to reality.   Today, I will take
   time to ask myself, "Am I telling the truth?"