“It’s as though I finally got that ‘How To’ manual I always wanted when I was younger.”

– Lightweight, Life with Hope, second edition, pages 186-187

This quote is from the story Lightweight in Life with Hope. I’d never wondered about a how-to manual growing up, but I related to this idea all the same. I grew up thinking everyone knew more than me. When I had a dilemma before recovery, I would ask eight different people what I should do, and get eight different answers. Only after working the Steps, did I begin to trust that I have my own answers, instead of relying on someone else.

I came to recovery unable to trust anyone or anything; mostly I couldn’t trust myself. I’d wanted to quit marijuana years before I was able, and I was constantly making other people my Higher Power. Eventually, working the program, and forming real friendships with other recovering addicts who were safe, has helped me learn how to trust myself. I finally got the tools I didn’t know I needed to help me learn to live a happy, joyous, and free life, clean, one day at a time.

Final thought: Today, I have a program and a fellowship to help me live life on life’s terms.