Gifts of the Program

Written by, Terri R.

I got my nine month chip at a Glendale MA meeting this week. I am the type of person who reflects on my progress whenever I reach a milestone like this. Course, I am very proud of myself. However, I’m also thinking of all the gifts I received from the program in the past nine months. Not only do I have my sobriety, but I have my friends, my higher power, and my future.

In my opinion, my friends are one of the most precious gifts I have received in MA. During the end of my using, I had no friends, like many of us marijuana addicts.  Today, I have more friends than I have ever had. What’s more, they are REAL friends. They love me unconditionally, and  I love them.  I have learned the true meaning of friendship in MA.

My Higher Power is my greatest gift from the program. I am not a religious person, but I believe I have become a spiritual person. My Higher Power guides and supports me in a way I have never known before. I think I am in conscious contact with God, at most times, and for that I am very grateful.

The most exciting thing I have gotten from my time in MA is my future. Before I got sober, I did not really have any goals for my future. As long as I could get high, I didn’t care what else I did. Now that has all changed. In September, I will be starting my third semester in college, and I am deciding what my major will be. The wonderful thing is that now I can do anything. Now that I am sober, I have confidence in myself. My future is not set in stone, but I know that if I am sober, whatever my Higher Power and I decide will be wonderful.

Published in A New Leaf – September 1991

  • Forgetting

    By Remy C. I have a problem. I can’t eat, sleep, or smile. I’m not smoking yet. I just have untreated depression and anxiety and can’t afford therapy. When I find access to marijuana, I think my problem is solved. I can eat. I can sleep. I can smile. I can at least until I…

    Forgetting
  • My Recovery!

    By Ernest W. I smoked cannabis (marijuana) for 20 years. I went into a partial hospitalization program, attended a few hours a day of a 12-step structured program with other support classes, and received education about addiction, and confessed my problem. I got a referral to Marijuana Anonymous. I had thought smoking several times a…

    My Recovery!
  • A Third Step Prayer

    By Anonymous Source, I devote myself to all that is, and offer my lifeforce essence in heartfelt desire to the betterment of myself and those around me in solidarity and oneness—for I am my siblings, and we are all one people. Allow my hardships, successes, and my life on your terms, to be a testament…

    A Third Step Prayer
  • Becoming a Sponsor

    By, Ras M. I have really come to embrace being a Sponsor. It was only a year and a half ago that the idea gave me the heebeegeebees. I’d already had a few not so great experiences with newcomers who would reach out in inappropriate ways. It’s been a journey of fortifying my own boundaries,…

    Becoming a Sponsor
  • A Prayer On My 30th Day Sober

    By, Fran B. Great Spirit, make my eyes clearer each dayRight my visionHeal my broken heartHelp me to know that tears won’t kill me, but smoke and alcohol willHelp me to learn to love myselfHelp me find hope and a new way of lifeGive me a purpose—a reason to go on that runs deeperA through…

    A Prayer On My 30th Day Sober
  • Hiding Behind My Mask

    By, Cassie C. Why me?Why am I the one, who has to hide their true self behind this mask?To be accepted?This world is socruel, so cold, sonarrowminded.I know I have a past.They tell me not to hide my true self.So why am I being forced to hide behind this mask?To be accepted.To be wanted.To be…

    Hiding Behind My Mask