SERVICE
June 14, from “Strengthening My Recovery” daily reader
”Humility comes from God and is a sibling of anonymity, a foundational principle of the Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions. Through anonymity, we practice service with love.” BRB p.223
“In our families, humility and humiliation often got confused and led us to either become very passive, aggressive, or passive-aggressive. In working the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, we are given a different definition of humility. In ACA, humility is about being the one we were supposed to be before our families infected us with their dysfunction and before we recycled that dysfunction in our own lives. It is about being our True Selves.
Anonymity is naturally confused with our alcohol\dysfunctional family’s desire to keep secrets. The difference is that in ACA, we don’t share what others say or tell who was at our meetings as a way of giving security to each other. Knowing this allows us to feel safe to share our own story. When we are tempted to judge, ridicule, or speak of someone else, we are reminded that through the practice of protecting the anonymity and confidences of our fellow ACAs, we now have a higher purpose, a healthy limit that gives life rather than diminishes it.
The possibility of performing service in ACA flows powerfully from our understanding of these principles in our lives. The newcomer feels it, the old-timer appreciates it, and our Higher Power loves it.
On this day, love for my fellow ACAs, humility, and anonymity will provide me with a positive motivation for the service I may choose to give to ACA.”
My Experience:
I never thought about it, but anonymity is service. We don’t speak of who was in the meeting or who said what. Not in a secretive sort of way, like we are used to, but in a respectful way so we give people the place to unburden themselves. This is done without judgement, as we all can understand where this person is coming from and with love hope they recover. We are all willing to help in this recovery process in whatever capacity we can show service. Sometimes that is a knowing nod or glance, sometimes it is talking before or after the meeting, sometimes it is taking a phone call from someone, sometimes it comes in the form of a hug and sometimes it is agreeing to sponsor someone. What a great lesson in service!!
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