'To conclude that others were wrong was as far as most of us
ever got. The usual outcome was that people continued to wrong us and we stayed
sore.' (Pages 66)
If people do certain things and I become and remain sore, I
have a problem. Or if people repeatedly do certain things and I repeatedly
become sore, I really have a problem. That would mean I haven't recovered from
the condition described in the Big Book—I haven't recovered past the top of
page 66.
The Book will later talk about a new freedom (page 83).
Do I have this freedom?
'We began to see that the world and its people really
dominated us.' (Page 66)
If you upset me or cause me to be agitated, I have
relinquished the reins of my life and put them in your hands. If, furthermore,
I'm upset or agitated on account of the foolish or malevolent, these are
precisely the people I'm the emotional slave to. In this case, I'm the real fool.
If I want to be free, I need to rely on God, speaking
through my conscience; if I do wrong and feel bad, that is an appropriate
response requiring remedial action. Whether or not I get respect, validation,
admiration, agreement, or civility from others, whilst sometimes useful as a
sign, cannot be taken as a consistently reliable barometer of anything.
Next time someone upsets me, I hope I ask, 'what do I want—freedom
or slavery?'