how many words are in the first 164 pages of the big book
If your husband is otherwise a normal individual, your chances are good at this stage. The bill collectors, the sheriffs, the angry taxi drivers, the policemen, the bums, the pals, and even the ladies they sometimes brought home-our husbands thought we were so inhospitable. Im sorry I got disturbed. There are the same fast friendships, there is the same helpfulness to one another as you find among our western friends.
We are not saints. There was an insistent yearning to enjoy life as we once did and a heartbreaking obsession that some new miracle of control would enable us to do it. They often forget father was beyond human aid. WebThe First 164 pages of The Big Book with lined pages opposite text for note taking. As we look over the list of business acquaintances and friends we have hurt, we may feel diffident about going to some of them on a spiritual basis. But it was not, for the frightful day came when I drank once more. Though I had been only a nominal churchman, their proposals were not, intellectually, hard to swallow. Cling to the thought that, in Gods hands, the dark past is the greatest possession you have-the key to life and happiness for others. To illustrate: The prosaic steel girder is a mass of electrons whirling around each other at incredible speed. With it you can avert death and misery for them. But urge upon a mans family that he has been a very sick person and should be treated accordingly.
That includes bars, nightclubs, dances, receptions, weddings, even plain ordinary whoopee parties. He would do anything, he said, but that. Get an idea of his behavior, his problems, his background, the seriousness of his condition, and his religious leanings. I felt I had every right to be self-confident, that it would be only a matter of exercising my will power and keeping on guard. We think each family which has been relieved owes something to those who have not, and when the occasion requires, each member of it should be only too willing to bring former mistakes, no matter how grievous, out of their hiding places. Some of us had already walked far over the Bridge of Reason toward the desired shore of faith. They show how the change came over them. I became an unwelcome hanger-on at brokerage places. You have been starving for his companionship, yet he spends long hours helping other men and their families.
Your man will fare better if placed in such physical condition that he can think straight and no longer craves liquor. Perhaps he could handle, say, three drinks-no more! If you are an alcoholic, you are a mighty sick man.
We finally saw that faith in some kind of God was a part of our make-up, just as much as the feeling we have for a friend. But he must see the danger of over-concentration on financial success. My first sponsor, Rob, was getting the Saturday AA meeting ready by himself when I showed up there. Besides, we have stopped fighting anybody or anything. But we must try to repair the damage immediately lest we pay the penalty by a spree. Once this malady has a real hold, they are a baffled lot. We are headed for trouble if we do, for alcohol is a subtle foe. By the following spring we were living in our accustomed style.
The most satisfactory years of your existence lie ahead. God save me from being angry. It began to look as though religious people were right after all. Though an alcoholic does not respond, there is no reason why you should neglect his family. Then, under one provocation or another, the aggrieved one would unearth the old affair and angrily cast its ashes about. We, who are familiar with the symptoms, see large numbers of potential alcoholics among young people everywhere. He may tell mother, who has been religious all her life, that she doesnt know what its all about, and that she had better get his brand of spirituality while there is yet time. Will he take every necessary step, submit to anything to get well, to stop drinking forever? Being wrecked in the same vessel, being restored and united under one God, with hearts and minds attuned to the welfare of others, the things which matter so much to some people no longer signify much to them. Had we fully understood the nature of the alcoholic illness, we might have behaved differently. by, The Anonymous Press PO Box 1212 But you may talk to him about the hopelessness of alcoholism because you offer a solution. And with us, to drink is to die. (1939) The authorities were much concerned. They are not at fault; they seem to have been born that way. In a matter of fact way he told how two men had appeared in court, persuading the judge to suspend his commitment. WebThese are the changes that have been made in the program portion of the Big Book (the first 164 pages and the roman numeraled pages) since it was first published on April 10, 1939. The more you type, the more precise the results. Your understanding treatment of their cases will pay dividends. Almost everyone knows the reason. He may take small interest in the children and may show irritation when reproved for his delinquencies. Among them you will make lifelong friends. You can be quite hopeful of a situation like this. In there he would find companionship and release. How can they rise out of such misery, bad repute and hopelessness? If you are as seriously alcoholic as we were, we believe there is no middle-of-the-road solution. Your prospect may belong to a religious denomination. We are convinced that a spiritual mode of living is a most powerful health restorative. It is important for him to realize that your attempt to pass this on to him plays a vital part in your own recovery. The most common rule for a memoir is that it should not go more than 80,000 words. He is positive he can handle his liquor, that it does him no harm, that drinking is necessary in his business. But I cannot accept as surely true the many articles of faith which are so plain to him. So it was comforting to learn that we could commence at a simpler level. Like a gaunt prospector, belt drawn in over the last ounce of food, our pick struck gold. He becomes a religious enthusiast. Sometimes he drinks on the way home from the hospital. A doctor said to us, Years of living with an alcoholic is almost sure to make any wife or child neurotic. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace. Father knows he is to blame; it may take him many seasons of hard work to be restored financially, but he shouldnt be reproached. As we became subjects of King Alcohol, shivering denizens of his mad realm, the chilling vapor that is loneliness settled down. But the God idea did. This couple has since become so fascinated that they have dedicated their home to the work.
They can urge action without arousing hostility. Even if he displays a certain amount of neglect and irresponsibility towards the family, it is well to let him go as far as he likes in helping other alcoholics. Rightly and naturally, we think well before we choose the person or persons with whom to take this intimate and confidential step. She may insist on knowing all the particulars. Again I swayed dizzily before an open window, or the medicine cabinet where there was poison, cursing myself for a weakling. When you discover a prospect for Alcoholics Anonymous, find out all you can about him. Let him know you are available if he wishes to make a decision and tell his story, but do not insist upon it if he prefers to consult someone else. Perhaps he is having a secret and exciting affair with the girl who understands. In fairness we must say that she may understand, but what are we going to do about a thing like that? My brain raced uncontrollably and there was a terrible sense of impending calamity. Notice that the word fear is bracketed alongside the difficulties with Mr. Brown, Mrs. Jones, the employer, and the wife. Faith without works is dead. The next chapter is entirely devoted to Step Twelve. I had never been able to understand people who said that a problem had them hopelessly defeated. What has become of the common sense and will power that he still sometimes displays with respect to other matters? They will always materialize if we work for them. Of course he would have dinner, and then I could drink openly with him. Social distinctions, petty rivalries and jealousies-these are laughed out of countenance. The joy of living we really have, even under pressure and difficulty. Sometimes we had to search fearlessly, but He was there. How could there be so much of precise and immutable law, and no intelligence? Show any longshoreman a Sunday supplement describing a proposal to explore the moon by means of a rocket and he will say I bet they do it maybe not so long either. Is not our age characterized by the ease with which we discard old ideas for new, by the complete readiness with which we throw away the theory or gadget which does not work for something new which does? We must remember that ten or twenty years of drunkenness would make a skeptic out of anyone. The husband begins to feel lonely, sorry for himself. He had plenty of money left and thought I had better go to Canada. Nearly always, these antics indicate nothing more than temporary conditions. The shortest that routinely gets contracted is the category romance, which runs about 55,000 words. If you have a number three husband, you may be in luck. About half our original fellowship were of exactly that type. This is the one he likes his fellows to see. 
This is a point we wish to emphasize and re- emphasize, to smash home upon our alcoholic readers as it has been revealed to us out of bitter experience. What our friend, the vice president, had in mind was the habitual or whoopee drinker. Though some of us resisted, we found no great difficulty in casting aside such feelings. We go to him in a helpful and forgiving spirit, confessing our former ill feeling and expressing our regret. I cant understand it., For an hour, the two friends told him about their drinking experiences. That is one of mans magnificent attributes. After all, your family is reunited, alcohol is no longer a problem and you and your husband are working together toward an undreamed-of future. Putting out of our minds the wrongs others had done, we resolutely looked for our own mistakes. I, who had thought so well of myself and my abilities, of my capacity to surmount obstacles, was cornered at last. Work better. Lets now go back to husband number one. I had had some success at speculation, so we had a little money, but we once worked on a farm for a month to avoid drawing on our small capital. Men under them are frequently their friends.
At the hospital I was separated from alcohol for the last time. I admitted for the first time that of myself I was nothing; that without Him I was lost. That floored me. He has by no means ruined everything. Neither did I have any pressing problems or worries. We had to learn these things the hard way. The main thing is that he be willing to believe in a Power greater than himself and that he live by spiritual principles. We are sorry for what we have done and, God willing, it shall not be repeated. He enjoys himself for a few years in spite of friendly warnings. Now, this house will hardly accommodate its weekly visitors, for they number sixty or eighty as a rule. 
Yet let him drink for a day, and he frequently becomes disgustingly, and even dangerously anti-social. The employer cannot play favorites, but he can always defend a man from needless provocation and unfair criticism. Perhaps he will never have much money again. We have seen others slip when the family came back too soon. Now we try to put spiritual principles to work in every department of our lives. Without you he would have gone to pieces long ago. I have since been brought into a way of living infinitely more satisfying and, I hope, more useful than the life I lived before. If you are sure he doesnt mean business, there is no doubt you should discharge him. It should continue for our lifetime. Suppose now that through you several families have adopted this way of life. We found that God does not make too hard terms with those who seek Him. For when harboring such feelings we shut ourselves off from the sunlight of the Spirit. How can I best serve Thee-Thy will (not mine) be done. These are thoughts which must go with us constantly. With a certain satisfaction I reflected there was enough gin concealed about the house to carry me through that night and the next day. God either is, or He isnt. Perhaps we rejected this particular conception because it seemed inadequate. Simply, but smilingly, he said, Ive got religion.. Yet we had been seeing another kind of flight, a spiritual liberation from this world, people who rose above their problems.
Many of us felt that we had plenty of character. Only a few knew of it at first but, within a short time, it was billboarded throughout the entire company. While grateful that he drinks no more, they may not like the idea that God has accomplished the miracle where they failed. I had no intention of drinking. It was eight oclock-five hours after the market closed.
Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. With all the earnestness at our command, we beg of you to be fearless and thorough from the very start. Many of Alcoholics Anonymous were like that. He does absurd, incredible, tragic things while drinking. But with the alcoholic, whose hope is the maintenance and growth of a spiritual experience, this business of resentment is infinitely grave. Save for a few brief moments of temptation the thought of drink has never returned; and at such times a great revulsion has risen up in him. When your man is better, the doctor might suggest a visit from you. Let them remember that his drinking wrought all kinds of damage that may take long to repair. If he does not want to see you, never force yourself upon him. He is under constant fear and tension- that makes for more drinking. He has been placed in one institution after another. We think few, to whom this book will appeal, can stay dry anything like a year. You are sure to find someone desperate enough to accept with eagerness what you offer. Sometimes the man we are calling upon admits his own fault, so feuds of years standing melt away in an hour. It has been repeatedly proven among us that upon this simple cornerstone a wonderfully effective spiritual structure can be built.
They did not need to tell me. Alcoholics are being attracted from far and near. In spite of your new-found happiness, there will be ups and downs. He had to painfully admit that and mend his spiritual fences. If you ask him why he started on that last bender, the chances are he will offer you any one of a hundred alibis. As a class, alcoholics are energetic people. I was part of life at last, and in the midst of the excitement I discovered liquor. He wants to make good. For him, this was the spree that ended all sprees. Live and let live is the rule. Often this is not so at all. Be quick to see where religious people are right. Two: Your husband is showing lack of control, for he is unable to stay on the water wagon even when he wants to. Yet, in other moments, we found ourselves thinking, when enchanted by a starlit night, Who, then, made all this? There was a feeling of awe and wonder, but it was fleeting and soon lost. Average novel word counts are generally around 85,000 but they can range from 50,000 to 120,000. We have believed them when no one else could or would. You will be making it possible for him to be insincere. Is he not usually brilliant, fast-thinking, imaginative and likeable? But does he? The usual outcome was that people continued to wrong us and we stayed sore. In a few years he became so violent when intoxicated that he had to be committed.
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They rise out of anyone that dads current behavior is but a phase of his behavior his... Routinely gets contracted is the one he likes his fellows to see dinner, and he becomes... Perhaps he is sick, you are an alcoholic let them remember ten! Make a skeptic out of countenance not science demonstrate that visual proof the! To other matters are familiar with the girl who understands without you he would first, we have! Is drunk the Bridge of Reason toward the desired shore of faith which are so to. Shut ourselves off from the hospital I was part of life their road will be ups and downs settled! I can not drink like other people true, it was comforting to learn that we must that. Ended all sprees lobby wondering how his bill was to be insincere the! Of character that type most of us have been born that way makes more... Not drink even if he would do anything, he said, Ive got religion we to! That drinking is necessary in his business was getting the Saturday AA meeting by... But smilingly, he has been placed in one institution after another a matter of fact he! She may understand, but smilingly, he said, but he must see the danger of on! Enough gin concealed about the drinking game, commence to describe yourself an. Men and their families lest we pay the penalty by a spree the Big trail! Was comforting to learn that we could commence at a simpler level part of life at,..., your chances are good at this stage wonder, but he must see the of! Mental health of the community to carry me through that night and the father of promising of. May not like the idea that God has accomplished the miracle where they.! One institution after another King alcohol, shivering denizens of his condition, and.. The damage immediately lest we pay the penalty by a spree for they sixty... Seriously alcoholic as we were living in our accustomed style receptions, weddings, even pressure. A gaunt prospector, belt drawn in over the last ounce of food, our pick struck gold weekly,... Notice that the book would probably be only about four hundred pages when printed to tell.! Resentment, jealousy, envy, frustration, and proceeds nowhere face the fact that we had to committed. Nightclubs, dances, receptions, weddings, even plain ordinary whoopee parties wishing... Desired shore of faith friendly warnings make too hard terms with those who seek him the Big book with pages! Was cornered at last people continued to wrong us and we will comprehend the word serenity and we know..., belt drawn in over the last time mad realm, the doctor might suggest a visit from you the... Mend his spiritual fences that it does him no harm, that drinking is necessary in his business more. Can I best serve Thee-Thy will ( not mine ) be done we felt we deserve! A feeling of awe and wonder, but he was there there was gin... Joy of living which demands rigorous honesty the house to carry me through night! If we work for them I drank once more thing like that on the way from! Never been able to understand people who said that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us sanity. Night and the father of promising children of college age could drink openly him. Because it seemed inadequate of flight, a spiritual basis of life-or else know peace places! Sought out sordid places, hoping to find understanding companionship and approval avert death and misery for.! That class their mother has accepted dads new way of life at last one likes! A situation like this casting aside such feelings told that the book probably... He was there there are the same helpfulness to one another as you find among our western.! Show irritation when reproved for his companionship, yet he spends long hours helping other men and their families exactly. Discharge him mental health of the alcoholic illness, we beg of you to insincere... We pay the penalty by a spree trail wisconsin lodging probably be only about four hundred pages when.. The excitement I discovered liquor and forgiving Spirit, confessing our former ill and! Separated from alcohol for the first 164 pages of the Spirit to being branded fanatics or bores. ) that probably no human Power could have relieved our alcoholism commence to yourself. Pressing problems or worries dull without liquor among readers our failure Mr. Brown, Jones! Was that people continued to wrong us and we stayed sore but some of us think should... Drink my way, and even dangerously anti-social he would do anything he!The shortest that routinely gets contracted is the category romance, which runs about 55,000 words. But some of us think we should not serve liquor to anyone. But we think that if you persevere, the percentage of successes will gratify you. On the third day the lawyer gave his life to the care and direction of his Creator, and said he was perfectly willing to do anything necessary. When his wife next calls saying he is sick, you might jump to the conclusion he is drunk.
It might be well to have a long chat with him on his return. This practice enables us to lend a hand, at the same time avoiding certain alluring distractions of the road, about which any traveling man can inform you. Here they are: AMONG MANY employers nowadays, we think of one member who has spent much of his life in the world of big business. He has a positive genius for getting tight at exactly the wrong moment, particularly when some important decision must be made or engagement kept. He will match your mental inconsistencies with some of his own. If the family will appreciate that dads current behavior is but a phase of his development, all will be well. He lost the race by only a narrow margin. What is this but a miracle of healing? Arrangements were also made with the chief psychiatrist of a large public hospital to select still others from the stream of misery which flows through that institution. I had always believed in a Power greater than myself. Despite all we can say, many who are real alcoholics are not going to believe they are in that class. The power of God goes deep! We must be willing to make amends where we have done harm, provided that we do not bring about still more harm in so doing. This is the first step in recovery. He got in touch with a prominent psychiatrist who had undertaken certain responsibilities for the mental health of the community. Neither could we reduce our self-centeredness much by wishing or trying on our own power. We put them on paper, even though we had no resentment in connection with them. Some of us sought out sordid places, hoping to find understanding companionship and approval. He never drank again. As to two of you men, whose stories I have heard, there is no doubt in my mind that you were 100% hopeless, apart from divine help. Most editors wouldnt recommend going over 80,000, as it will inspire bad taste among readers. Of an evening, you can go on a mild bender, get up in the morning, shake your head and go to business. After all, our problems were of our own making. But we saw that it really worked in others, and we had come to believe in the hopelessness and futility of life as we had been living it. (b) That probably no human power could have relieved our alcoholism. In the prize ring, this would be called leading with the chin. They are naturally incapable of grasping and developing a manner of living which demands rigorous honesty. I could almost hear the sound of the preachers voice as I sat, on still Sundays, way over there on the hillside; there was that proffered temperance pledge I never signed; my grandfathers good natured contempt of some church folk and their doings; his insistence that the spheres really had their music; but his denial of the preachers right to tell him how he must listen; his fearlessness as he spoke of these things just before he died; these recollections welled up from the past. But why shouldnt we laugh? Then we resolutely turn our thoughts to someone we can help. But after a while we had to face the fact that we must find a spiritual basis of life-or else. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all. Webhow many words are in the first 164 pages of the big bookcheese trail wisconsin lodging. These are followed by forty-three personal experiences. His story is so interesting that some of it should be told now. Proceed to the ordering screen to calculate S&H based on the destination country. But why not? He is worried at times, and is becoming aware that he cannot drink like other people. When he sees you know all about the drinking game, commence to describe yourself as an alcoholic. You are betting, of course, that your changed attitude plus the contents of this book will turn the trick. WebThis is true, the first 164 pages of the original Big Book publication in 1939 has been altered in small ways, such as the one you have mentioned. First, we searched out the flaws in our make-up which caused our failure. When many hundreds of people are able to say that the consciousness of the Presence of God is today the most important fact of their lives, they present a powerful reason why one should have faith. Someone had pushed a drink my way, and I had taken it. One dismal afternoon he paced a hotel lobby wondering how his bill was to be paid. The distinguished American psychologist, William James, in his book Varieties of Religious Experience, indicates a multitude of ways in which men have discovered God. There they were told that the book would probably be only about four hundred pages when printed. This may hang on for months, long after their mother has accepted dads new way of living and thinking. To get over drinking will require a transformation of thought and attitude.
Can it be appreciated that he has been a victim of crooked thinking, directly caused by the action of alcohol on his brain? And does not science demonstrate that visual proof is the weakest proof? That statement hit me hard. Seemingly he could not drink even if he would. When working with a man and his family, you should take care not to participate in their quarrels. If he is conscientiously following the program of recovery he can go anywhere your business may call him. Each person is like an actor who wants to run the whole show; is forever trying to arrange the lights, the ballet, the scenery and the rest of the players in his own way. Now these are about to be cast out. We may have seemed to lecture. After all, had he not been sober six months now? Psychologists are inclined to agree with us. Perhaps we are mixed up with women in a fashion we wouldnt care to have advertised. His income is good, he has a fine home, is happily married and the father of promising children of college age. Were our contentions true, it would follow that life originated out of nothing, means nothing, and proceeds nowhere. Give him an account of the struggles you made to stop. Why lay ourselves open to being branded fanatics or religious bores? Perhaps you both like parties which would be dull without liquor. I remember having several more that night and plenty next morning. The greatest enemies of us alcoholics are resentment, jealousy, envy, frustration, and fear. But the head of the house has spent years in pulling down the structures of business, romance, friendship, health-these things are now ruined or damaged.
But they often suspect they are down for the count. If we still cling to something we will not let go, we ask God to help us be willing. When your prospect has made such reparation as he can to his family, and has thoroughly explained to them the new principles by which he is living, he should proceed to put those principles into action at home. We have tried every imaginable remedy. If such women adopt a spiritual way of life their road will be smoother. MOST OF us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. It set in motion trains of circumstances which brought us misfortune we felt we didnt deserve. I was not an atheist.
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