I like this article...so many good tips/points. I noticed that attendance for our New Year's Eve AA meeting went up quite a bit than it had been in months--we had a full house (and we have a fairly large meeting room). The number of people picking up chips was not very many, however at tonight's meeting, we had more people picking up chips than I have seen in a long time (maybe last Jan. 1). So many people got sober on or around New Year's. It should be no big surprise, I guess, but I think for someone to get sober at or that close to the time of year when we would normally be tying on more than our usual amount seems at least to me, to be very challenging and admirable.
Here is an excerpt from the article....to read more about the things that we an do to stay sober please visit the link below and Happy New Year!
The Resolution to Quit Alcohol
"The New Year is a time when people make all types of resolutions. This is because waking up on the 1st of January is like getting a clean sheet. People want to do things a bit differently than the year before. A common resolution for people to make as the clock strikes midnight is to quit alcohol. Such a change can bring many benefits to the life of the individual. For some, it will mean escaping a life of misery. Unfortunately most people do not keep their resolution to quit alcohol for long. They may have reverted to their old drinking patterns within a matter of weeks. There are things that people can do to increase their chances of being successful with this resolution."
Ok.....I was confused because I thought a "resolution" is a "decision"....so whenever I am confused about something I do research to try and unmuddle my brain.....
The wikipedia definition of a resolution is "a firm decision to do or not to do something" and "the action of solving a problem, dispute, or contentious matter".
So that made me more confused and I looked up the Silkworth quote thingie (http://silkworth.net/silkworth/reclamation.html) and I found....
"If we can bring our detoxicated and cell normalized patient who has lost his craving for alcohol, to this viewpoint, he will be in a position to make a decision to forego its use. Without quibbling over words, we wish to differentiate between a decision and a resolution, or declaration, of which the alcoholic has probably made many. A resolution is an expression of a momentary emotional desire to reform. Its influence lasts only until he has an impulse to take a drink. A decision on the other hand, is the expression of a mental conviction, based on an intelligent conception of his condition. After a resolution is made the individual must fight constantly with himself; the old environmental forces are still arrayed against him, and he finally succumbs to his old means of escape. However, if he has made a decision, through understanding of facts appealing to his intelligence, he has changed his entire attitude. He can go back to his former environment, mix with his drinking friends (without concern, because his craving has been counteracted), and meet his worries and disappointments as a normal person: he is free from all the emotional restrictions that formerly activated him to drink. No will power is needed because he is not tempted.
We have seen this reasoning operate successfully in many cases, even as we have seen many failures following what we term resolutions or declarations."
....which resulted in more confusion to me, because my mind still wants to believe the wikipedia definition. Old habits are hard to break for me, I guess. Oh well. I won't try to "quibble over words" anymore in my head and I hope that the article is of interest and some who wander on here do find some of the suggestions helpful to help them stay sober.
To me, ... a resolution is a 'coming to terms' with one's situation ... to resolve that drink'n is bad for me and I resolve to not drink anymore ... and a decision is a step further than the resolution in that I decide to not drink anymore and I take steps to ensure that I follow through on 'not drink'n' anymore ... and when this is done successfully, I then lose the 'desire' to ever drink again ... like Baba sez ...
Of course if I do not maintain that thing (spiritual awakening)(God consciousness), then I stand a chance of slipping back into my old way of think'n ... ergo, I may drink again ...
We can never know for sure if we'll never drink again, but if we truly desire to stay sober, we'll do what it takes to keep our minds conscious of the actions we need to do on a daily basis ... and then do them ...
Pappy
Hope this helps!
__________________
'Those who leave everything in God's hand will eventually see God's hand in everything.'
