Alcoholics Anonymous Beginners & Refresher Class Sessions Prepared by Mike & Kathy L, West Orange, NJ Revision 1.0 May 5, For additional copies visit http://back.to/aabasics on the Internet ____________________________________________________________________________________ 55 "If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are halfway through. We are going to know anew freedom and anew happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace. No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows. Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change. Fear of people and of economic insecurity will leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. 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.” (page 83, para 4; page 84, para. What a message of hope It is almost beyond comprehension that all of these wonderful events will occur if we just make our amends to those whom we have harmed. But, they will happen - that's a guarantee. Lastly, we'd like to give you an example of someone who could not stay sober until he became willing to complete all his amends. This man is our Akron co-founder, Dr. Bob. He accomplished making all his amends in one day. Starting on the second paragraph of page 155, we read about Dr. Bob's Ninth Step: "When our friend related his experience, the man agreed that no amount of willpower he might muster could stop his drinking for long. A spiritual experience, he conceded, was absolutely necessary, but the price seemed high upon the basis suggested. He told how he lived inconstant worry about those who might find out about his alcoholism. He had, of course, the familiar alcoholic obsession that few knew of his drinking. Why, he argued, should he lose the remainder of his business, only to bring still more suffering to his family by foolishly admitting his plight to people from
