The Love of the Fellowship
“Today secure in the love of the fellowship, we can finally look another human being
in the eye and be grateful for who we are.”
Basic Text p. 89
When we were using, few of us could tolerate looking someone in the eye-we were
ashamed of who we were. Our minds were not occupied with anything decent or
healthy, and we knew it. Our time, money, and energy weren’t spent building loving
relationships, sharing with others, or seeking to better our communities. We were
trapped in a spiral of obsession and compulsion that went only in one direction:
downward.
In recovery, our journey down that spiral path has been cut short. But what is it that
has turned us around, drawing us back upward into the open spaces of the wide, free
world? The love of the fellowship has done this.
In the company of other addicts, we knew we would not be rejected. By the example
of other addicts, we were shown how to begin taking a positive part in the life
around us. When we were unsure which way to turn, when we stumbled, when we
had to correct a wrong we’d done, we knew our fellow members were there to
encourage us.
Slowly, we’ve gotten the feel of our freedom. No longer are we locked up in our
disease; we are free to build and grow and share along with everyone else. And
when we need support to take our next step, it is there. The security we’ve found in
the love of the fellowship has made our new lives possible.
Just for today: I can look anyone in the eye without shame. I am grateful for the
loving support that has made this possible.