From AA’s 12 Steps and 12 Traditions:
CREATION gave us instincts for a
purpose. Without them we wouldn't be complete human beings. If men and women
didn't exert themselves to be secure in their persons, made no effort to
harvest food or construct shelter, there would be no survival. If they didn't
reproduce, the earth wouldn't be populated. If there were no social instinct,
if men cared nothing for the society of one another, there would be no society.
So these desires-for the sex relation, for material and emotional security, and
for companionship-are perfectly necessary and right, and surely God-given. Yet
these instincts, so necessary for our existence, often far exceed their proper
functions. Powerfully, blindly, many times subtly, they drive us, dominate us,
and insist upon ruling our lives. Our desires for sex, for material and
emotional security, and for an important place in society often tyrannize us.
When thus out of joint, man's natural desires cause him great trouble,
practically all the trouble there is. No human being, however good, is exempt
from these troubles. Nearly every serious emotional problem can be seen as a
case of misdirected instinct. When that happens, our great natural assets, the
instincts, have turned into physical and mental liabilities.
Step Four is our vigorous and
painstaking effort to discover what these liabilities in each of us have been,
and are.We want to find exactly how, when and where our natural desires have
warped us. We wish to look squarely at the unhappiness this has caused others
and ourselves. By discovering what our emotional deformities are, we can move
toward their correction. Without a willing and persistent effort to do this,
there can be little sobriety or contentment for us. Without a searching and
fearless moral inventory, most of us have found that the faith which really
works in daily living is still out of reach.
Before tackling the inventory problem
in detail, let's have a closer look at what the basic problem is. Simple
examples like the following take on a world of meaning when we think about
them. Suppose a person places sex desire ahead of everything else. In such a
case, this imperious urge can destroy his chances for material and emotional
security as well as his standing in the community. Another may develop such an
obsession for financial security that he wants to do nothing but hoard money.
Going to the extreme, he can become a miser, or even a recluse who denies
himself both family and friends.
Nor is the quest for security always
expressed in terms of money. How frequently we see a frightened human being
determined to depend completely upon a stronger person for guidance and protection.
This weak one, failing to meet life's responsibilities with his own resources,
never grows up. Disillusionment and helplessness are his lot. In time all his
protectors either flee or die, and he is once more left alone and afraid.
We have also seen men and women who go
power-mad, who devote themselves to attempting to rule their fellows. These
people often throw to the winds every chance for legitimate security and a
happy family life. Whenever a human being becomes a battleground for the
instincts, there can be no peace.
My trying to
use my instincts for safety, food, love and relationships, or in the AA
vernacular of money, property and prestige, for comfort far exceeding their
proper functions lead well off the beaten path to become lost and confused on
my journey through life. I was always
looking for a destination to keep me happy and stay forever instead of the
enjoyment of participating in the journey.
While I go a
meeting everyday and talk with others, I am still spending too much time at
home and do need to get out and interact more with others. Progress not perfection.
I am
grateful for the insight I have been blessed with as a result of this program
of recovery having turned experiences into wisdom. Now it is time to continue to turn wisdom
into virtue by taking more right action.
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