July 5 - Step One

Milkman’s Reflections in Recovery – July 5th  Step One
Step One: Admitting that I was an alcoholic/addict was very simple to do. The tough part was truly believing I was.

I was one of “those” that was court ordered to attend 12 step meetings as conditions of probation/parole for alcohol/drug related offenses. Manipulation was a trait that a lot of addictive people have and use in their daily lives to insure the next drink or drug. It was a trait I used often and “fitting in” to mandatory 12 step meetings I followed suit introducing myself as “Mike Alcoholic/Addict”. For many years I was in denial, not thinking that it was really true.

It wasn’t until I had “a rude awakening” while walking the “yard” in San Quentin State Prison that I realized that those words were really true. I was an alcoholic addict and my life had become unmanageable. I had finally become HONEST with myself.