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

  • The Dream Slayer

    Written by, Bill H. Here is a word that silently destroys more dreams, more relationships, and more personal growth than anything else……that word is trying. Notice what happens in your body when you hear yourself or hear someone else say, I’ll try. There’s a softening, there’s a pulling back, an energetic step away from a…

    The Dream Slayer
  • Heard in a Meeting

    “First it was magic, then it was misery” Published in A New Leaf – July 2026

    Heard in a Meeting
  • What Changed, What Didn’t

    Written by, Aurelie E. There are momentsthat split time in two—before thisand everything after. Loss that knocks the wind out of a life.Grief that teaches the bodynew postures of survival.Love that arrives like a hand on your backwhen you didn’t know you were bending.Joy so clean, it feels borrowed.Kindness that saves you quietlyand never asks to…

    What Changed, What Didn’t
  • Heard in an MA Meeting

    “By respecting myself, my world changes for the better.” Published in A New Leaf – June 2026

    Heard in an MA Meeting
  • 18 Months Mile-Stone

    Created by, Chris P. Published By A New Leaf – March 2026

    18 Months Mile-Stone
  • An MA Miracle

    Written by, Stefania M. *Trigger Warning: Sexual Abuse, Child Abuse and Threats Against Life* Hi everyone, my name is Stefania, and I am a marijuana addict. Generation X here and grew up as a hard core Italian. A generation of new breakthroughs, independence and resilience. The generation of “Lachie” kids. Also a beautiful culture, one…

    An MA Miracle