August 26, 2026 In General Information, Legacy of Recovery By Rick W.
Sometimes seeing the whole program makes it easier to understand the parts. I’m going to begin with a disclaimer because I can already hear somebody somewhere reaching for their Big Book. This is not an attempt to rewrite the Big Book. It isn’t a replacement for the Big Book. It isn’t a “new and improved” …
August 24, 2026 In Legacy of Recovery By Rick W.
I was sitting in home group tonight in a literature discussion meeting and I heard two things that I needed to hear from one of our members, she said, “Experience requires action. And it’s more than just information acquisition.” We were having this conversation in regards to the spiritual awakening. I don’t think most alcoholics …
August 22, 2026 In Legacy of Recovery By Rick W.
God didn’t clean you up so you could pretend you were never messy. Your story is someone else’s hope. There is something about that sentence that makes me uncomfortable. And I think it should. Because after we have been sober for a while, it is surprisingly easy to become embarrassed by the person who first …
August 18, 2026 In Legacy of Recovery By Rick W.
The Chapter Alcoholics May Be Missing I’ve heard it more times than I can count. “I hate To Wives.” “I skip that chapter.” “It’s outdated.” “Bill had no business writing it.” And I understand some of the criticism. The language belongs to another era. The assumptions about marriage, gender, and family life reflect 1939, not 2026. And there is an …
August 16, 2026 In Legacy of Recovery By Rick W.
There may be no prayer more closely associated with Alcoholics Anonymous than the Serenity Prayer. We say it at meetings. We say it before difficult conversations. We say it when life isn’t going our way. We say it when we’re afraid, angry, confused, or simply trying to get through the next five minutes without making …
August 13, 2026 In Legacy of Recovery By Rick W.
Sometimes a single word can shut down an entire conversation. Powerless. Surrender. God. Inventory. Amends. Say one of those words in an A.A. meeting and almost everybody in the room already has an idea about what it means. We don’t wait for the rest of the sentence. We hear the word, reach into our mental …
August 11, 2026 In General Information, Legacy of Recovery, Legacy of Service, Legacy of Unity By Rick W.
Bill’s famous milestone message published in the March 1960 issue of the AA Grapevine is striking because it is not really an anniversary piece. It is a warning against complacency disguised as a celebration. What caught me most is how many of the dangers he names, money, power, personality, publicity, governance, fear, and distraction from …
August 4, 2026 In Legacy of Recovery By Rick W.
Tonight, I was sitting in an A.A. meeting as we read page 100 of the Big Book. We were discussing working with others, spiritual fitness, and the remarkable things that become possible when we place ourselves in God’s hands. One man shared something he once heard from another member of A.A. Every morning, as soon …
August 1, 2026 In General Information, Legacy of Recovery, Legacy of Service, Legacy of Unity By Rick W.
Dr. Jung told Rowland. Rowland told Ebby. Ebby told Bill. Bill told Dr. Bob. Thank God someone told me. That simple progression is more than a clever slogan on a T-shirt I recently saw. It’s the story of Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s the story of my recovery. And if you’re sober today in A.A., it’s your …
July 26, 2026 In Legacy of Recovery By Rick W.
Yesterday, at the Texas State AA Convention, I heard Andy D. from Edmond, Oklahoma, describe himself during active alcoholism as a “big shot in the homeless shelter.” The phrase stayed with me. I have never lived in a homeless shelter, so I will not pretend to understand that experience. But I know exactly what it …
