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The argument could be made that the basic foundation of recovery is learning to let go.

We addicts began using a defect of character / crutch (alcohol, anger, cigarettes, pornography, control) to help us traverse a crippling problem but we became so dependant on the crutch that it became our crippling problem.

We need to learn to let go of the crutch, but we’re afraid. We’re a afraid we cannot go on without the crutch, that we are defined by it and that it our crutch is now a part of us.

We are afraid that if we let go, we will fall.

But what if the branch we are desperatey clinging to isn’t a branch at all?

What if the branch we are holding on to is an anchor holding us down? And what if by letting go of the defect, we let ourselves fly to the heights we can’t reach while clinging to the weight of our crutch?

Throw down your crutch and soar!

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For those of us in AA:

This post relates directly to Steps 6 & 7. In Step 6, we became willing to have our Higher Power remove our defects of character and in Step 7, humbly asked him/her to do so.

Our defects of character are our crutches and our anchors. Step 6 is recognizing these defects and simply saying “My anger / fear / lust / control issues / jealousy / laziness / resentments… are not a part of me. They don’t define me. I really want to be rid of them.”

Step 7 is catching yourself using these crutches and mentally saying out loud (praying), “I am not able to control this part of my life, so I’ll stop trying to manage it and let my Higher Power remove it from me.”

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Just a reminder that i ‘m on vacation in a place that has very limited internet access and so i won’t be able to respond to comments with my usual ruthless efficiency. Please don’t think i ‘m not reading them (i most definitely am), and please continue to leave them (they make my day).