Daily Reflections - May 11 2026

A NEW SENSE OF BELONGING

Until we had talked with complete candor of our conflicts, and had
listened to someone else do the same thing, we still didn’t belong.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 57

After four years in A.A. I was able to discover the freedom from the
burden of buried emotions that had caused me so much pain. With the
help of A.A., and extra counseling, the pain was released and I felt a
complete sense of belonging and peace. I also felt a joy and a love of
God that I had never experienced before. I am in awe of the power of 

Step Five.

As Bill Sees It - - April 26 2026

The Sense of Belonging, p. 117

Perhaps one of the greatest rewards of meditation and prayer is the
sense of belonging that comes to us. We no longer live in a completely
hostile world. We are no longer lost and frightened and purposeless.

The moment we catch even a glimpse of God’s will, the moment we
begin to see truth, justice, and love as the real and eternal things in life,
we are no longer deeply disturbed by all the seeming evidence to the
contrary that surrounds us in purely human affairs. We know that God
lovingly watches over us. We know that when we turn to Him, all will
be well with us, here and hereafter.

12 & 12, p. 105

Just For Today - 18th October 2025

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.    

Fr. LEO'S DAILY MEDITATION #essentialsofrecovery

BELONGING

“But one day . . . it came to me that feeling of being part of everything, not separate at a. I knew that if I cut a tree, my arm would bleed”

~ Alice Walker ~

I am aware of the truth that I belong. I am an essential part of God’s world. I share Divinity because God made me. Today I seek the spiritual center in me that is forever positive and creative. I am the center of my universe.

Past hurts and wrongs cannot take away the unique-ness in my life. Past abuses and painful put-downs, my years of alternating between the lost child or the scapegoat in my family, need not make me a victim. I am free to choose recovery and acceptance of self. I associate with the winners of this world. I participate in Creation by being a creative person for me. Yesterday’s pain has no power in my life today.

When I kneel before the stream, mountains, and stars, I feel You, God.

© 2008 Leo Booth 

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Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.  

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

FR. LEO'S DAILY MEDITATION #essentialsofrec #FrLeo #Belonging

BELONGING

“But one day . . . it came to me that feeling of being part of everything, not separate at a. I knew that if I cut a tree, my arm would bleed”

~ Alice Walker 

I am aware of the truth that I belong. I am an essential part of God’s world. I share Divinity because God made me. Today I seek the spiritual center in me that is forever positive and creative. I am the center of my universe.

Past hurts and wrongs cannot take away the unique-ness in my life. Past abuses and painful put-downs, my years of alternating between the lost child or the scapegoat in my family, need not make me a victim. I am free to choose recovery and acceptance of self. I associate with the winners of this world. I participate in Creation by being a creative person for me. Yesterday’s pain has no power in my life today.

When I kneel before the stream, mountains, and stars, I feel You, God.

© 2008 Leo Booth

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.    

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.   

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Daily Reflections #essentialsofrecovery

A NEW SENSE OF BELONGING

Until we had talked with complete candor of our conflicts, and had
listened to someone else do the same thing, we still didn’t belong.

TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 57

After four years in A.A. I was able to discover the freedom from the
burden of buried emotions that had caused me so much pain. With the
help of A.A., and extra counseling, the pain was released and I felt a
complete sense of belonging and peace. I also felt a joy and a love of
God that I had never experienced before. I am in awe of the power of
Step Five. 

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrecovery

The Sense of Belonging, p. 117

Perhaps one of the greatest rewards of meditation and prayer is the
sense of belonging that comes to us. We no longer live in a completely
hostile world. We are no longer lost and frightened and purposeless.

The moment we catch even a glimpse of God’s will, the moment we
begin to see truth, justice, and love as the real and eternal things in life,
we are no longer deeply disturbed by all the seeming evidence to the
contrary that surrounds us in purely human affairs. We know that God
lovingly watches over us. We know that when we turn to Him, all will
be well with us, here and hereafter.

12 & 12, p. 105 

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.  

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong. 

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

DAILY REFLECTIONS #essentialsofrecovery

A SENSE OF BELONGING

Perhaps one of the greatest rewards of meditation and prayer is the sense of belonging that comes to us.

~ TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 105 ~

That’s what it is—belonging! After a session of meditation I knew that the feeling I was experiencing was a sense of belonging because I was so relaxed. I felt quieter inside, more willing to discard little irritations. I appreciated my sense of humor. What I also experience in my daily practice is the sheer pleasure of belonging to the creative flow of God’s world. How propitious for us that prayer and meditation are written right into our A.A. way of life.

Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services Inc

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

As Bill Sees It #essentialsofrecovery

The Beginning of True Kinship, p.228

When we reached A.A., and for the first time in our lives stood among people who seemed to understand, the sense of belonging was tremendously exciting. We thought the isolation problem had been solved.

But we soon discovered that, while we weren’t alone any more in a social sense, we still suffered many of the old pangs of anxious apartness. Until we had talked with complete candor of our conflicts, and had listened to someone else do the same thing, we still didn’t belong.

Step Five was the answer. It was the beginning of true kinship
with man and God.

12 & 12, p. 57 

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Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

DAILY REFLECTIONS #essentialsofrec #Belonging #Fellowship

 10
November

A SENSE OF BELONGING

Perhaps one of the greatest rewards of meditation and prayer is the sense of belonging that comes to us.

~ TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 105 ~

That’s what it is—belonging! After a session of meditation I knew that the feeling I was experiencing was a sense of belonging because I was so relaxed. I felt quieter inside, more willing to discard little irritations. I appreciated my sense of humor. What I also experience in my daily practice is the sheer pleasure of belonging to the creative flow of God’s world. How propitious for us that prayer and meditation are written right into our A.A. way of life.

Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services Inc

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

Just For Today #essentialsofrec #Belonging #Recovery #NA

18
October 

We All Belong


“Although ‘politics makes strange bedfellows,’ as the old saying goes, addiction makes us one of a kind.”

Basic Text, p.84

What a mixture of folks we have in Narcotics Anonymous! In any given meeting on any given night, we’ll find a variety of people that probably never would have sat down in a room together if it weren’t for the disease of addiction.

A member who is a physician described his unwillingness to identify at his first meeting by refusing to go into “that room full of junkies.” Another member with an extensive background in jails and institutions shared a similar story, except that her shock and surprise stemmed from the realization that “there were nice people there – wearing suits, yet!” These two friends recently celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary.

The most unlikely people form friendships, sponsor each other, and do service work together. We meet in the rooms of recovery together, sharing the bonds of past suffering and hope for the future. We meet on mutual ground with our focus on the two things we all have in common – addiction and recovery.

Just for today: No matter what my personal circumstances, I belong.

Why not sign up to get emails with all daily posts included?
Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec