Am I capable of such generous tribute and gratitude to my wife, parents and friends, without whose support I might never have survived to reach A.A.’s doors? I will work on this and try to see the plan my Higher Power is showing me which links our lives together.

By the time I had reached Step Three I had been freed of my dependence on alcohol, but bitter experience has shown me that continuous sobriety requires continuous effort. Every now and then I pause to take a good look at my progress. More and more of my garden is weeded each time I look, but each time I also find new weeds sprouting where I thought I had made my final pass with the blade. As I head back to get the newly sprouted weed (it’s easier when they are young), I take a moment to admire how lush the growing vegetables and flowers are, and my labors are rewarded. My sobriety grows and bears fruit.

I try to hold fast to the truth that a full and thankful heart cannot entertain great conceits. When brimming with gratitude, one’s heartbeat must surely result in outgoing love, the finest emotion that we can ever know. AS BILL SEES IT, p. 37

My sponsor told me that I should be a grateful alcoholic and always have “an attitude of gratitude”–that gratitude was the basic ingredient of humility, that humility was the basic ingredient of anonymity, and that “anonymity was the spiritual foundation of all our Traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.” As a result of his guidance, I start every morning on my knees, thanking God for three things: I’m alive, I’m sober, and I’m a member of Alcoholics Anonymous. Then I try to live an “attitude of gratitude” and thoroughly enjoy another twenty-four hours of the A.A. way of life. A.A. is not something I joined; it’s something I live.

To understand the differences between alcohol abuse and alcoholism, we will provide a definition of alcoholism. According to alcoholism facts, alcoholism, also known as alcohol addiction or alcohol dependence, is a form of drug addiction and is a disease that includes the following symptoms:

•  Loss of control: The inability to limit one’s drinking over time or on any given occasion.
• Craving: A strong and continuing compulsion or need to drink.
• Tolerance: The need to drink increasing amounts of alcohol in order to “feel the buzz” or to “get high.”
• Physical dependence: alcohol withdrawal symptoms when a person stops drinking after a period of excessive drinking. Such symptoms include: “the shakes,” nausea, anxiety, and sweating.

When looking at alcohol abuse and alcoholism one key factor is worth mentioning. The longer a person engages in alcohol abuse, the higher the probability that he or she will eventually become alcohol dependent. Stated differently, those who engage in long-term alcohol abuse are increasing their risk of becoming an alcoholic down the road.