One Day at a Time in Al-Anon:
Heard at an Al-Anon meeting: “I have only one person’s guilt to carry: my own. If the alcoholic blames me for his difficulties, I will not accept that blame, but I will not defend myself, either, for that would only start a fruitless battle. I know he blames me because of his painful need to unload some of his remorse on somebody else. This should generate only compassion in me – not resentment or anger.”
Another member responds: “I wish I could believe that! When my husband gets through telling me off I feel as though the devil were sitting on my back with a fifty pound lead weight in each pocket!”
Today’s Reminder:
There is no need for me to accept blame for another person’s irrational actions. I will deal with my own shortcomings. If I do this honestly – following the Fourth to Tenth Steps – the change in me will be reflected in every person whose life touches mine.
“Let me weigh my misdeeds on an honest scale and make restitution as well as I can. But let not the scale be unbalanced by the weight of what others have done.”