Recently, while discussing the addiction problem of a friend’s fifteen year old daughter, my immediate temptation was to think that this was unique and different, a special problem that needed to be dealt with in an extraordinary manner. I thought—there must be some kind of therapy, magic medication or miracle action which could fix the problem once and for all. Rescue and fix—that’s the answer. These thoughts raced through my head and I’m sure through her parent’s minds as well. How can we make the problem just go away?
“The Gift of Sponsorship”
“Love is seeing yourself in another without fear”
When my sponsor and I started into the 12 Steps, she gave me a carefully defined set of assignments. I became extremely grateful for the set of guidelines she provided for me. I needed definite directions because I was undisciplined and scattered. My thought processes were vague and mushy. Part of this problem was because I was withdrawing from an addiction I had indulged in for years and part came from the fact that I hadn’t focused on learning anything new for quite a while. Not everyone needs this and there are many ways to sponsor a newcomer or even someone who has been around for a while, but I sure did.
When I asked her to be my sponsor, I requested that she teach me a way to pass this on to others. I had become convinced that if I didn’t learn to pass this on, I would not be allowed to continue to come to the meetings. Thank God, this is not true, but it was enough to force me into asking for help. I then asked what I could do to pay her back for this and she told me that the only way I would be able to repay her was to make the effort to pass this on to at least one other person. I agreed because I really needed her help to change my life and I had come to believe that the 12 Steps might just work for me. Even though I had asked and had been told, I still did not realize the commitment she was making to me or the commitment I was making and how it would change my attitude and outlook on life.
©2024 fifield's THE STUDIO - Website Design by eLumina Communications