Mello Ron

"QUOTES"

" QUOTES"
"A recovering alcoholic without a sponsor
is much like a ship without a rudder." Anon
=========
DAILY

The Daily Guru
=====

A SCATTERING OF SEEDS

Everyone contributes to society–some by serving as horrible examples.
Ones
I spot a one.
He changes lanes abruptly
right in front of me, no signal.
My teeth clench.
He is number one in his machismo,
and I a separate one in irritation.
Another one is following my car
close enough to fill my mirror.
I want to slow down
and teach him a lesson,
but instead I simmer along
as one trapped.
I notice my cozy tailgater is flying
an American flag above his window,
loyal in some kind of patriotism,
separate in some kind of jingoism,
and I explore my intolerance.
By "ones" I mean sequestered minds,
"me" people in a universe of "not me."
Ones will celebrate their personal glory
then perish into their self-created void.
Ones will say we go around just once,
done, with no later come-arounds,
so that when the gustoed body quits,
the mind joins Big Zero forever.
Why don’t I think the same as that?
With not one proof that holds a drop,
I see a future human state
unhindered by me-centric rivalries.
Birthing time and time again,
evolving life by life eternally
(or so I’ve read), we’ll someday
give up being ones, and enter
fully the community of Unity
where competition isn’t.
Though now I seem a one
to any other one
as the other one, for now,
may seem a one to me,
I hear an inner-speaking
Spirit say that all of us
are one with Utmost One
and separated mainly by
our walled-off minds and
pretty bags of bones.
Alan Harris
======
HUMOR

Hot mamma Morris, an 82 year-old man, went to the
doctor to get a physical. A few days later, the doctor
saw Morris walking down the street with a  gorgeous
young woman on his arm. A couple of days later, the
doctor spoke to Morris and said, ‘You’re really doing
great, aren’t you?’ Morris replied, ‘Just doing what
you said, Dr. “Get a hot mamma and  be cheerful.
”’ The doctor said, ‘I didn’t say that. I said,
“You’ve got a heart murmur; be careful.”’

============

" QUOTES"
" My mind is like yours, it’s tuned to K- Fuck." Anon
=========
DAILY
Twelve Steps of a Relapse
1. I decided I could handle any emotional
problem if other people would just
quit trying to run my life.
2. I firmly believe that there is no greater
power than myself and anyone
who says differently is insane.
3. I made a decision to remove my will
and my life from God, who didn’t
understand me anyway.
4. I made a searching and thorough
moral inventory of everyone I know, so
they couldn’t fool me and take
advantage of my good nature.
5. I sought these people out and tried
to get them to admit to me, by God,
the exact nature of their wrongs.
6. I became willing to help these people
to get rid of their defects of
character.
7. I was humble enough to ask these
people to remove their shortcomings.
8. I kept a list of all the people who
had harmed me and waited patiently
for a chance to get even with them.
9. I got even with these people whenever
possible except when to do so would
get me in trouble.
10. I continued to take everyone’s inventory
and when they were wrong, which
is most of the time, I promptly made them admit it.
11. Sought through the concentration of my
will power to get God, who didn’t
understand me anyway, to see that my
ideas were best and he ought to give me
the power to carry them out.
12. Having maintained my emotional problems,
as a result of these steps, I
recommend them to others who want to lose
their hard earned status and wish
to be left alone to practice neurosis in
everything they do for the rest of
their lives.
==========
AL-ANON (related)
Dear New Member,
Welcome! No matter how fearful you are,
please don’t leave the meeting.
I was so scared to go to my first Al-Anon meeting.
I had promised myself that I’d sit in the back
of the room and not talk. But when I went into
the meeting room, everyone was sitting
around a table. The people were friendly
and kind, although I was still uneasy.
Sure I cried at the meeting. That was because
the members were expressing what I was feeling.
The pain and disappointment of living with active
alcoholism is unbearable alone.
After the meeting, which was an hour and a half,
I received hugs before leaving with plenty of
literature and members’ phone numbers.
One member called me the next day and
she soon became my Sponsor.
The most important message I took home
after my first meeting was that I was powerless
over alcohol and it wasn’t my fault that
my husband drank so much.
That was a big weight off my shoulders. anon
=================
ABRAHAM
1.Learn to manage the contrast
We want you to stop beating up on yourself
when you find yourself exploring contrast.
So many deliberate creators are now feeling
uncomfortable about contrast as if they are
doing something wrong. We want you to
learn to manage the contrast, to mine the
contrast. We want the contrast to be the
stuff from which your hopes and dreams
and desires are made of rather then
something that feels ominous as if it will overtake you.
So many people, in fact most of the world,
speaks as if the world needs to be cleaned
up so that I can view a spot of clarity and
then feel good. And we’re wanting to say
don’t change the world, just change your focus.
Don’t try to get rid of the contrast, just sharpen
your ability to derive from the contrast things
wanted, you see?
(…)
This is all about asking you to make more
of an effort to stop defining the contrast as
bad. When we talk about contrast we’re talking
about the range of probabilities. But when we
use the word, `contrast" most people hear
"things not wanted". "Contrast is things not wanted."
And we say of course there are things not wanted
in contrast, its contrast!! There are things not
wanted and there are things wanted and there
are things really not wanted and there are things
really, really wanted. There are things really,
really awful and things really, really wonderful.
Contrast as a whole is a good thing. And when
you learn to pay attention to who you are and
how you feel, then contrast is the environment
from which you derive your ideas. It is the basis
of expansion, which means it is the basis of eternity.
Caribbean Cruise 03/08
================
Vernon Howard’s SECRETS OF LIFE

"Q. Why do I feel so insecure?
A. Because you have so many securities, like friends and
activities, which you sense are impermanent. These are mere
beliefs about security, not security itself.
You are permanently secure when you have
no securities, simply because you have
nothing to be insecure about."
Live Above this Crazy World, p. 9
============
SEEDS FOR THE GARDEN OF YOUR MIND

The Corn Story
There was a farmer who grew superior
quality and award-winning CORN. Each
year he entered his CORN in the state
fair where it won honor and prizes.
Once a newspaper reporter interviewed
him and learnt something interesting
about how he grew it. The reporter
discovered that the farmer shared his
seed corn with his neighbor’s.
‘How can you afford to share your best
seed corn with your neighbors when
they are entering corn in competition
with yours each year?’ the reporter asked.
‘Why sir, ’said the farmer, ‘didn’t you know?
The wind picks up pollen from the ripening
corn and swirls it from field to field. If my
neighbors grow inferior, sub-standard
and poor quality corn, cross-pollination
will steadily degrade the quality of my
corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must
help my neighbors grow good corn.’
The farmer gave a superb insight into
the connectedness of life. His corn
cannot improve unless his neighbor’s
corn also improves. So it is in the other
dimensions! Those who choose to be at
harmony must help their neighbors
and colleagues to be at peace. Those
who choose to live well must help
others to live well.
Success does not happen in isolation.
It is very often a participative and
collective process.
" If you have an apple and I have an apple
and we exchange apples, then you and I
will still each have one apple. But if you
have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange
these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas"
- G.B Shaw
===========
A SCATTERING OF SEEDS

Anybody who thinks you walk on water, later won’t.

Two Birds in a Tree
A large bird alights
on a small branch
at the top of a poplar tree.
He bounces and wavers in the breeze,
keeping his balance.
Such is human life.
Another bird alights
on a small branch
very near the first one.
Both bounce and waver in the breeze,
but in different rhythms.
Such is married life.
Alan Harris
======
HUMOR
A middle-aged woman talked about the
difficulties encountered during early sobriety
at the age of 55. "It hasn’t been easy,"
she smiled, "going through puberty and menopause at the same time."
==========

" QUOTES"
"The best way to stop feeling
like a liar is to stop lying." Anon
===========
DAILY
THE HISTORY OF THE WILMINGTON PREAMBLE

     The Wilmington Preamble has long been
surrounded by controversy and discussion
of such has sparked many a debate almost

from its inception in the early years of
Alcoholics Anonymous.  The history of our
fellowship has mostly been passed from
member to member over the expanse of
many years; member whose very disease
has a tendency to distort one’s memory. 
Inaccuracies may prevail.  The following
is in no way an attempt to dispel those
controversies, but an effort to establish
an accurate history of the birth of the
Wilmington Preamble and to keep it’s
true history alive for the enlightenment
of future generations.  Documentable
corrections are welcomed.
     The Wilmington Preamble’s birth
ties in with one of Wilmington’s earliest
members, Shoes L. Shoes joined the
Wilmington Group and got sober in
May of 1944.The following month in
June, Shoes was Chairman of the group
and in charge of getting speakers for their
meetings.  There was at this time a
sportswriter in town covering the races
at Delaware Park.  His name was Mickey M.
and Shoes asked him to speak at the
group’s meeting.  Mickey replied that
he wasn’t much of a speaker but that he
would write something appropriate. 
He reportedly went back to his room at the
Hotel Dupont and wrote the Wilmington
Preamble as we know it and it was read
the following Friday night.
     Being a sportswriter, Mickey M. covered
events in other towns, and while in
Baltimore covering the races at Pimlico
gave the same preamble to the Baltimore
Group which they also adopted as their own. 
Where it was actually read first is the subject
of many debates but one fact remains
clear, that this "Preamble" was widely
accepted in Maryland and Delaware long
before World Service sanctioned the shorter
A.A. Preamble that is more universally accepted today.
THE WILMINGTON AA PREAMBLE

1. Your energy never stands still
Your energy never stands still.
So in every moment you’re always
moving more into alignment or
more out of alignment.
Abraham-Hicks, Los Angeles 3/29/09
Vernon Howard’s   SECRETS OF LIFE
"The enemy is always within, never out there."
A Treasury of Trueness, # 575
===========
Vernon Howard’s SECRETS OF LIFE

"Self-Observation is not thinking about yourself. There is a world
of difference. Self-preoccupation is like grabbing and wrestling
with a tiger. Self-Observation is like quietly watching the tiger
walk by.
Why are we emphasizing this? it is the very key to liberating
self-knowledge. It enables us to see ourselves as we really are,
not as we imagine ourselves to be. Upon that realistic foundation,
we build a new self; and, great news, when we are different, things
are different."
                    The Mystic Path To Cosmic Power, p. 33
=======================

SEEDS FOR THE GARDEN OF YOUR MIND

TWO FRIENDS WERE WALKING
THROUGH THE DESERT.
DURING SOME POINT OF THE  JOURNEY, THEY  HAD AN ARGUMENT;
AND ONE FRIEND
SLAPPED THE OTHER ONE
IN THE FACE. 
THE ONE WHO GOT SLAPPED
WAS HURT, BUT WITHOUT
SAYING ANYTHING,
WROTE IN THE SAND:
TODAY MY BEST FRIEND
SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE.
THEY  KEPT ON WALKING,
UNTIL  THEY FOUND AN OASIS,
WHERE  THEY DECIDED
TO TAKE  A  BATH
THE  ONE WHO HAD BEEN
SLAPPED GOT STUCK IN THE
MIRE ! AND STARTED DROWNING,
BUT THE FRIEND SAVED HIM.
AFTER HE  RECOVERED  FROM
THE  NEAR  DROWNING,
HE  WROTE  ON  A  STONE:
‘TODAY MY BEST FRIEND
SAVED MY LIFE  ‘.
THE  FRIEND  WHO HAD  SLAPPED
AND  SAVED  HIS  BEST  FRIEND
ASKED HIM, ‘AFTER I HURT YOU,
YOU WROTE  IN THE SAND AND NOW,
YOU WRITE ON A STONE, WHY?’
THE FRIEND REPLIED
‘WHEN SOMEONE  HURTS US
WE SHOULD WRITE IT DOWN
IN SAND, WHERE WINDS OF
FORGIVENESS CAN ERASE IT AWAY.
BUT, WHEN  SOMEONE  DOES
SOMETHING GOOD FOR US,
WE  MUST ENGRAVE    IT   IN   STONE
WHERE NO  WIND
CAN  EVER  ERASE  IT.’
LEARN TO WRITE
YOUR HURTS IN
THE SAND AND TO
CARVE OUR
BENEFITS IN STONE.
THEY SAY IT TAKES A
MINUTE TO FIND A SPECIAL
PERSON,  AN HOUR TO APPRECIATE
   THEM, A DAY
TO   LOVE    THEM, BUT THEN
AN ENTIRE LIFE
TO FORGET THEM.
=======
A SCATTERING OF SEEDS
 Opinion is wisdom in diapers.

Alan Harris
=====
HUMOR
The inebriated gentleman was weaving gently
as he progressed along the street. Under his arm
he carried a box perforated on top and along the sides.
An acquaintance wanted to know what was in it.
"Shhhh!" shushed the drunk. "It’s a mongoose!"
"A mongoose? What on earth for?"
"Well," answered the drunk. "I’m not very drunk yet,
But I’m gonna be! And after that I always see snakes.
And snakes scare the hell out of me. So I keep the
mongoose to protect me. Mongooses–
or is it mongeese–kill snakes, BOOM–just like that!"
"Yes, I know. But those snakes are only imaginary!"
"That’s all right." replied the drunk reassuringly.
"This is an imaginary mongoose too!"
============

DAILY
WHAT DOES A SPONSOR DO
A sponsor does everything possible,
within the limits of personal experience
and knowledge, to help the newcomer
get sober and stay sober through the A.A. program:
Shows by present example and drinking
history what A.A. has meant in the sponsor’s life.
Encourages and helps the newcomer to
attend a variety of A.A. meetings–
to get a number of viewpoints
and interpretations of the A.A. program.
Suggests keeping an open mind about
A.A. if the newcomer isn’t sure at first
whether he or she is an alcoholic.
Never takes the newcomer’s inventory
except when asked.
Introduces the newcomer to other members,
particularly to those who may share the new
person’s occupational or social interests.
Sees that the. newcomer is aware of A.A.
literature, in particular the Big Book,
"Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions’,
the Grapevine, "As Bill Sees It"
"Living Sober;’ and suitable pamphlets.
Is available to the newcomer when
the latter has special problems.
Goes over the meaning of the Twelve Steps,
and emphasizes their importance.
Never tries to impose personal views on the newcomer.
A good sponsor who is an atheist does
not try to persuade a religious newcomer
to abandon faith, nor does a religious
sponsor argue theological matters with an agnostic newcomer.
Urges the newcomer to join in group
activities as soon as possible.
Impresses upon the newcomer the
importance of all our Traditions.
Does not pretend to know all the answers,
and does not keep up a pretense of being right all the time.
Tries to give the newcomer some picture
of the scope of A.A., beyond the group,
and directs attention to A.A. literature about
the history of the Fellowship, the Three Legacies,
the service structure, and the worldwide availability
of A.A.–wherever the newcomer may go.
Explains the program to relatives of the alcoholic,
if this appears to be useful, and tells them about
Al-Anon Family Groups and Ala-teen.
Does not hesitate to help the newcomer obtain
professional help (such as medical, legal, vocational"
if assistance outside the scope of A.A. is needed:
Quickly admits, "I don’t know" when that is the case,
and helps the newcomer find a good source of information.
Finally, the sponsor encourages the newcomer to
work with other alcoholics as soon as possible,
and sometimes begins by taking the newcomer
along on Twelfth Step calls.
In all work with a newcomer, the sponsor underscores
the fact that it is the A.A. recovery program–
not the sponsor’s personality or position–
that is important. Thus, the newcomer learns to
lean on the program, not on the sponsor.
A sponsor who has been truly putting the program
first will not take it as a personal insult if the newcomer
decides to change sponsors or to go to other
A.A’s for additional guidance.
===
AL-ANON (related)

Afternoon
Something is wrong, terribly wrong. I feel like
I’m bashing my head against a wall, only I can’t
see the wall. I just know that it’s there, blocking
my way. It won’t move, and I certainly can’t move it.
But maybe the doctor could give me something
to make this cold of mine feel better. It would be
nice just to have someone focus their attention
on me for a change. I feel invisible.
So much effort to find the phone number, and
make the call. I’m so tired. Can I really do this?
Maybe I should just try to rest.
Dial. Put on hold. I disappear again. Somebody
finds me.
“The doctor can see you tomorrow.”
Evening Exhaustion. Find something easy to make for supper.
Will he come home? Do I want him to come home?
If he comes home, I know there will be some kind
of fight. I don’t have the energy. I don’t want to
do this anymore.
There’s the car. I’ll just talk about the weather.
Nothing to provoke him. I won’t even think about
whether he’s drunk or not. Eat. Watch TV.
Stumble off to bed.
Silence. Dark. Quiet. This is the only part of the day I like.
Morning Try not to be anxious about wanting him to
leave for work. Eat slowly. Soon he’ll be gone.
Relief. Alone. Soothing quiet.
Silently I weep. Today I am going to the doctor’s.
Someone will pay attention to me. That’ll be different.
Afternoon.
The waiting room. Don’t have the energy to leaf through a magazine. Rest. Just rest.
“What seems to be the problem today?”
“I have this heaviness in my chest…
This cold won’t go away.”
“Well, tell me why you are really here.
What’s going on at home?”
Know! You know? How could you know?
“Your husband was in here two weeks ago.
He’s an alcoholic.”
He didn’t tell me.
“This visit really has nothing to do
with your chest. You have choices.
Here’s a meeting list. Do you know
about Al-Anon?”
“That’s for my husband. He’s gone
a few times. He plays around with it.”
“No, this is for you. Al-Anon is for
people affected by other people’s drinking.”
I take the list. I’m numb. I can’t absorb any of this.
I have choices. Sure, I can stay here and
put up with this, or I can leave.
I confront my husband.
“Why didn’t you tell me you’re an alcoholic?”
“I’m not an…”
“The doctor showed me your chart.
Why didn’t you tell me?”
“He showed you my records?
I’m going to sue him. He can’t do that!”
“I have a right to know this!”
Slam. Out of here. I’ll just drive around for
awhile and relax. Tired. Just too tired to drive.
That church. That’s where that meeting is.
I’ll just pull in there and rest for awhile.
Get away for an hour…Maybe he’ll pass
out by the time I get back.
I’m in no mood to talk. Hide in the back.
Be ready to run.
“Alcoholism is a disease.”
Right. A disease, just like cancer or diabetes
I suppose. If he just quit bending his elbow,
he would be fine. We would be fine.
Respectful silence. I am not used to this.
No one is fighting back with me. New territory
for me. That book over there. What is that book?
Courage to Change (B-16).
That sounds good. I’ll take one.
“Would you like a Newcomer Packet?
You can have a copy of our magazine,
The Forum, if you would like one…”
“Sure, sure. I’ll take anything you’ve got.”
I guess I have to go home. Is there anywhere
else I could go? No…All the lights are
on in the house. What now?
There he is. Passed out on the couch.
Good. I need rest. Turn off the lights.
He can stay there. I don’t need a fight now.
Get in bed and look at some of this stuff.
What’s it about?
Where is my childhood Bible? I want to read it.
I’m going to find a church Sunday whether
he wants to or not.
I’m going back to that meeting next week.
At least I’ll have an hour to rest, an hour of
quiet, a safe hour. They’ll listen to me.
They may not know what they are talking
about, but knowing I don’t have to fight with
them makes it worth it.
An hour of quiet a week. That’s something
to look forward to. I don’t know where
any of this is going, but there is a bit of
relief. I don’t feel so alone.
Reflections on the past: today I’m happy
That’s how it began ten years ago. I still go
to that meeting once a week. I read Al-Anon
literature most days. I talk things over with
my Al-Anon friends. They understand me.
My husband and I are still married. I thought
the marriage was over ten years ago—
but surprise!—here we are enjoying
retirement together. My husband has been
sober for nine years. We go to church together.
I enjoy hearing the car come now.
I no longer fear riding in the car with him.
We plan on spending a month together in
our small motor home. We’ll explore
Alaska with friends.
Will these miracles happen for you if you
come to Al-Anon? I wish I could answer
“Yes,” but I don’t know what will happen.
One thing I’ve learned, though, is that I have
choices when I follow our program—choices
that are uniquely mine, choices that will enable
me to ease the pain of someone else’s drinking.
But I have to be willing to work the Al-Anon
program to discover those choices.
There is no quick fix. There is no guarantee
that the alcoholic in my life will remain sober
because I go to Al-Anon. But the way out of
jail is already inside of me.
I just have to look for it. anon
=================
ABRAHAM 
1. You are walking into your future ….

You are walking into the future of
whatever you do with your
mind. Orlando, FL, 12/15/01
===============
Vernon Howard’s  SECRETS OF LIFE

"DO NOT BE AFRAID - a series - # 8
A teacher entered the classroom to declare, ‘Whatever is unnatural
is unnecessary. Fear is unnatural and therefore unnecessary.’
Do not be afraid: Of your negative characteristics."
           Esoteric Encyclopedia of Eternal Knowledge, p. 52
===============
SEEDS FOR THE GARDEN OF YOUR SOUL

Buddha/Zen Thoughts

When you try to stop activity to achieve quietude,
your very effort fills you with activity.
As long as you remain attached to one extreme or another
you will never know Oneness.
Those who do not live in the Single Way
cannot be free in either activity or quietude,
in assertion or denial.
Native American

"You have to have a lot of patience to hear
those old people talk, because when they talk,
they talk about motivation, the feeling, the
unsound that is around the universe. They
explain everything to one understanding.
They bring it all together, and when they finish,
just one word comes out. Just one word.

They might talk all day, and just one word comes out." 
–Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA 
We need to be careful about judging the old
ones when we talk. At first they may not make
sense to us. Maybe we’ll say they’re old fashioned
and don’t understand. But the old ones do understand!
When they speak, listen very carefully.
Often it will take weeks or maybe even years before we understand what they are really saying.
This is the way of Wisdom. We need to listen, listen, listen. 
Great Spirit, today, open my ears so I can hear the Elders.
========
A SCATTERING OF SEEDS

Love is the key that unlocks the door
of the visible to reveal a magnificent invisible.
Lullaby
(For a new grandchild)

When Mom sings me a melody
And with a kiss turns down the light,
I drift off free and lazily
To join the mysteries of the night.
Across the sky soft clouds go by,
In each a face I’ve known by day.
They sing and sigh a lullaby
Which soothes, delights, and fades away.
In waves unknown I rock alone
As if my bed were a little boat
That sails a zone of undertone
And keeps me safe as I dream and float.
Now the clouds begin to wane and thin,
The last one showing my mother’s face.
She strokes my chin and brings me in
From far adrift to her warm embrace.
Free piano sheet music for this lullaby:
www.alharris.com/poems/pdf/woy/lullaby-sheet-music.pdf
Alan Harris
=========
HUMOR

Subject:  Hypnotist at the Senior Center
It was entertainment night at the Senior Center . Claude the hypnotist exclaimed:
"I’m here to put you into a trance; I intend to hypnotize each and every   member of the audience."
The excitement was almost electric as Claude withdrew a beautiful
antique pocket watch from his coat.
"I want you each to keep your eye on this antique watch. It’s a very
special watch. It’s been in my family for six generations."
He began to swing the watch gently back and forth while quietly chanting:
"Watch the watch, watch the watch, and watch the watch…"
The crowd became mesmerized as the watch swayed back and forth, light gleaming off its polished surface.
A hundred pairs of eyes followed the swaying watch, until, suddenly, it slipped from the hypnotist’s finger and fell to the floor, shattering into a hundred pieces.
"SHIT" said the Hypnotist.
It took three days to clean up the Senior Center