The way to remain a productive, responsible member of society is to put our recovery first.
Basic Text, p. 106
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The meetings have been great! Each night weve attended, weve gathered with other addicts to share experience, strength, and hope. And each day, weve used what weve learned in the meetings to continue in our recovery.
Meanwhile, life goes on. Work, family, friends, school, sport, entertainment, community activities, civic obligationsall call out for our time. The demands of everyday living sometimes make us ask ourselves, How long do I have to go to these meetings?
Lets think about this. Before coming to Narcotics Anonymous, could we stay clean on our own? What makes us think we can now? Then theres the disease itself to considerthe chronic self-centeredness, the obsessiveness, the compulsive behavior patterns that express themselves in so many areas of our lives. Can we live and enjoy life without effective treatment for our disease? No.
Ordinary people may not have to worry about such things, but were not ordinary peoplewere addicts. We cant pretend we dont have a fatal, progressive illness, because we do. Without our program, we may not survive to worry about the demands of work, school, family, or anything else. NA meetings give us the support and direction we need to recover from our addiction, allowing us to live the fullest lives possible.
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Just for today: I want to live and enjoy life. To do that, I will put my recovery first.
I don't worry about how long I "have to go" to these meetings. I try to stay in today. It's a bad question anyway, usually asked by someone who is looking for someone way to run from their addiction, to become a "normal" person.
