From the books ... Alcoholics Anonymous (Big Book) and Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions (12 & 12)
Click
to display the full page from the Big Book1.
... past.
12&12 p.89,
Step Ten
2.
... past.
12&12 p.89,
Step Ten
3.
... past.
12&12 p.89,
Step Ten
4.
... past.
BB p.10,
Bill's Story
I could almost hear the sound of the preacher's voice as I sat, on still Sundays, way over there on the hillside; there was that proffered temperance
pledge I never signed; my grandfather's
good natured contempt of some church folk and their doings; his insistence that the spheres really had their music; but his denial of the
preacher's right to tell him how he must listen; his fearlessness as he spoke
of these things just before he died; these recollections welled
up from the past.
5.
... past.
BB p.69,
How It Works
6.
... past.
BB p.75,
Into Action
We pocket our pride and go to it, illuminating every twist of character, every dark cranny of the past.
7.
... past.
BB p.76,
Into Action
8.
... past.
BB p.77,
Into Action
Simply we tell him that we
will never get over drinking until we have done our utmost to straighten out the past.
9.
... past.
BB p.84,
Into Action
10.
... past.
BB p.124,
The Family Afterward
The family may be possessed by the idea that
future happiness can be
based only upon forgetfulness of the past.
11.
... past.
BB p.132,
The Family Afterward
12.
... past.
BB p.132,
The Family Afterward
Outsiders are sometimes shocked when we
burst into merriment over a seemingly tragic experience out of the past.
13.
... past?
BB p.140,
To Employers
14.
... past.
BB p.151,
A Vision For You
15.
... past.
BB p.164,
A Vision For You
16.
... past absurdities
be forgotten?
BB p.140,
To Employers
17.
... past acts,
and to take responsibility for ...
12&12 p.87,
Step Nine
For the readiness to take
the full consequences
of our past acts, and to take responsibility for
the well-being of others at the same time, is the very spirit of Step Nine.
18.
... past and
present.
12&12 p.46,
Step Four
This the sponsor promptly proves by talking freely and easily, and without exhibitionism, about his own defects, past and present.
19.
... past and
present, what sex situations have ...
12&12 p.52,
Step Four
Questioning directed to this end might run like this: Looking at both past and present, what sex situations have caused me anxiety, bitterness, frustration, or depression?
20.
... past and
why you are now endeavoring ...
BB p.94,
Working With Others
Outline the program of
action, explaining how
you made a self-appraisal, how you straightened out your
past and why you are now endeavoring to be helpful to him.
21.
... past as
we now see it, being ...
BB p.83,
Into Action
We ought to sit down with the family and frankly analyze the past as we now see it, being very careful not to criticize them.
22.
... past associations,
or his present choice.
BB p.28,
There Is A Solution
This should be an entirely personal affair which each one decides for himself in the
light of past associations, or his present choice.
23.
... past, for
the drinking career of almost ...
BB p.123,
The Family Afterward
Now and then the family will be plagued by spectres from the past, for
the drinking career of
almost every alcoholic has been marked
by escapades, funny, humiliating, shameful
or tragic.
24.
... past; here
sat a miracle directly across ...
BB p.11,
Bill's Story
25.
... past if
we can.
BB p.70,
How It Works
We have listed the people
we have hurt by our conduct, and are willing to
straighten out the past if we can.
26.
... past is
the greatest possession you have ...
BB p.124,
The Family Afterward
Cling to the thought that,
in God's hands, the dark past is the greatest possession you
have -- the key to life and happiness for others.
27.
... past life
as it has affected other ...
12&12 p.79,
Step Eight
Though in some cases we
cannot make restitution
at all, and in some cases action ought to be deferred, we should nevertheless make an accurate and really exhaustive survey of our
past life as it has affected other people.
28.
... past may
be of infinite value to ...
BB p.124,
The Family Afterward
29.
... past misdeeds
so they become a blight, ...
BB p.124,
The Family Afterward
30.
... past nor
wish to shut the door ...
BB p.83,
Into Action
31.
... past occurrences
should not be discussed.
BB p.125,
The Family Afterward
So we think that unless
some good and useful purpose is to be served,
past occurrences should
not be discussed.
32.
... past performances.
BB p.141,
To Employers
33.
... past quarter-century
has been the explosion of ...
BB xxiii,
Foreword to Fourth Edition
Literature has played
a major role in A.A.'s growth, and a striking phenomenon of
the past quarter-century has been the explosion of translations of our basic literature into many languages and dialects.
34.
... past, they
think father owes them more ...
BB p.126,
The Family Afterward
Having been neglected and misused in the past, they think father owes them more than they are getting.
35.
... past thus
becomes the principal asset of ...
BB p.124,
The Family Afterward
The alcoholic's past thus becomes the principal asset of the family and frequently it
is almost the only one!
36.
... past to
good account.
BB p.124,
The Family Afterward
37.
... past, we
consider how, with our newfound ...
12&12 p.77,
Step Eight
First, we take a look backward and try to discover where we have
been at fault; next we make a vigorous attempt to repair the damage we have done; and third, having thus cleaned away the debris of the past, we consider how, with our newfound knowledge of ourselves, we may develop
the best possible relations with every human being we know.
38.
... past we
have made decisions based on ...
BB p.62,
How It Works
Sometimes they hurt us,
seemingly without provocation, but we invariably find that at
some time in the past we have
made decisions based on self which later placed us in a position to be hurt.
39.
... past will
be forgotten and the fact ...
BB p.147,
To Employers
If you take it, your past will be forgotten and the fact that you went away for treatment will not be mentioned.
40.
... past wrongs,
why all this concern for ...
BB p.128,
The Family Afterward
If he means to right his
past wrongs, why all this concern for everyone in the world but
his family?
Passages from the Big Book Alcoholics Anonymous
and the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
are reprinted with permission of A.A. World Services, Inc.
The A.A. Preamble, copyright ©
The A.A. Grapevine, Inc., is reprinted with permission.
Permission to reprint does not in any way imply affiliation with or
endorsement by either Alcoholics Anonymous or The A.A. Grapevine, Inc.
Copyright © 2005-2012, Recovery Press LLC; All Rights Reserved.