“12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.” (Page 59, Big Book)
What’s a principle? A template attitude or a template action.
Sometimes the principles are reduced to one per step. This is cute, but it obscures the fact that there are sometimes dozens of principles in the step, and in Step Twelve there are hundreds of principles.
To practise these principles in all my affairs really means to practise all of the principles, not just twelve of them.
Furthermore, these principles are very concrete and operable by anyone, whatever their internal condition, e.g.:
From Step Ten: “Continue to watch for selfishness, dishonesty, resentment, and fear. When these crop up, we ask God at once to remove them. We discuss them with someone immediately and make amends quickly if we have harmed anyone. Then we resolutely turn our thoughts to someone we can help.”
From Step Eleven: “On awakening let us think about the twenty-four hours ahead. We consider our plans for the day.”
From Step Twelve: “See your man alone, if possible. At first engage in general conversation. After a while, turn the talk to some phase of drinking. Tell him enough about your drinking habits, symptoms, and experiences to encourage him to speak of himself.”
There is nothing elusive, dramatic, heroic, complicated, esoteric, sentimental, mystical, pathetic, or abstract about these, because there’s nothing elusive, dramatic, heroic, complicated, esoteric, sentimental, mystical, pathetic, or abstract about the programme: it’s a simple set of concrete observations, logically structured propositions, attitudes, and practices that result in God rather than self being at the centre of one’s life.
Once I’ve signed up to the programme on page 63, the book loses interest in my inner condition, thoughts, and feelings and switches to the facts, the work to clear up the mess, and the pragmatic business of explaining the contents of the book to others, whilst continuing to act constructively in other areas.
When I just do what the book says and get on with being useful in my everyday life in a perfectly ordinary way, all of the hot air, the drama, and the theatricality goes out of me and I become so dull I start to take an interest in the world. I disappear completely, and then I can see beyond the end of my nose. Because I’m boring, I’m never bored. Because I’m no longer a character, I can be trusted with the keys. Personality has been replaced with principles. Revenge is best served cold, and recovery, at room temperature.
The message of the book Alcoholics Anonymous boils down to this: accept these ideas and do these things, each day, and you’ll be fine. Don’t, and you won’t.