“Love and tolerance of others is our code.” (Page 84, Big Book)
“The rule is we must be hard on ourself, but always considerate of others.” (Page 74, Big Book)
Acceptance is not the answer to all of my problems.
The answer to some of my problems is actually non-acceptance.
Love and tolerance of others is the code, but what is the code with myself?
I must be intolerant of myself, of the manifestations of self: resentment, fear, unhappiness, and mediocrity.
The self, the imposter–dragon, must be slain.
The paradox is that I must accept the unacceptable thing as being there within me before I make the decision not to accept it and to get rid of it.
If I deny it is there, I am in no position to get rid of it.
What I can’t see I can’t fight.
This plays on the two meanings of accepting a state of affairs:
1. Not denying it is there.
2. Permitting it to persist.
I must accept it in the first sense but then not in the second.
Accept, then reject.