A Day At A Time May 25 2026

Reflection For The Day

When we’re new in The Program, we’re novices at reaching out for friendship — or even accepting it when it’s offered. Sometimes we’re not quite sure how to do it or, indeed, whether it will actually work. Gradually, however, we become restored; we become teachable. We learn, for example, as Moliere wrote, “The more we love our friends, the less we flatter them.” Just for today, will I not show anyone that my feelings are hurt?

Today I Pray

May God help me to discover what true friendship is. In my new relationships, I pray that I may not be so eager for approval that I will let myself be dishonest — through flattery, half-truths, false cheeriness, protective white lies.

Today I Will Remember

A friend is honest.

A Day At A Time May 21 2026

Reflection For The Day

“The language of friendship is not words, but meanings,” wrote Thoreau. Life indeed takes on new meanings, as well as new meaning in The Program. To watch people recover, to see them help others, to watch loneliness vanish, to see a fellowship grow up about you, to have a host of friends — this is an experience not to be missed. Can I recall my initial reactions when I came to The Program? Do I believe that I've finally come home?

Today I Pray

As The Program has given life new meanings for me, may I pass along to others that same chance to re-evaluate their lives in the light of sobriety, common purpose, friendships and spiritual expansion. Praise God for my new vision of human life. Praise Him for restoring for me the value and purpose of living.

Today I Will Remember

I value my Life.

Today’s Gift. - May 19 2016

As we learn we always change, and so our perception. This changed perception then becomes a new Teacher inside each of us. 

–Hyemeyohsts Storm

Hyemeyohsts Storm’s book, Seven Arrows, tells the stories of one of the Indian tribes in this country before most of its members were killed. They believed that change was important for growth. Change is sometimes frightening. We usually prefer the familiar, no matter how uncomfortable, over taking a chance on the unknown.
When fear gets in the way of making healthy changes, we talk to fear, inviting it along with us on our course of action. Getting to know fear allows us to ask it for a gift: the courage to walk with fear by our side and learn from it as we go. It allows us to learn which fear is blocking our progress and which fear is healthy–cautioning us against actions that might be harmful.


What fear might I make a friend of today?

ELDER'S MEDITATION - April 13 2026

“Once you make a friend, a friend never leaves you, even to death. So a friend is really hard to find.”

Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA

Once, an Elder told me he made a decision to be my friend. He said this friendship wasn’t based on my behavior or how I acted; he said the friendship was based on his decision. He decided to be my friend. This friendship has happened like he said. Even if I don’t see him for a long time, or if I get mad at him, he has never changed his decision. This is true friendship.

Great Spirit, I’m glad you are this kind of Friend.

EASY DOES IT #essentialsofrecovery

FRIENDSHIP

The only reward for virtue, the only way to have a friend is to be one.

~ Emerson ~

Friendship is not a one-word motto to be hung on a wall. Friends are not statues to decorate a mantle. Friendships are as real to us as love and gratitude, and friends are as much a part of all our lives as the air we breathe.

Without friends we could not enjoy the full benefits of recovery. All the truths we follow daily we receive from friends through hearing and reading their messages but mostly by watching them in action. Our primary goal is to add to our wisdom by giving. Without friendships, our caring and sharing would be empty gestures.

None of us needs ever to be alone again, because each of us in our own way works for the good in others. We are bound together with a common problem and work together on a solution.

If I permit myself to become incapable of friendship, I will find that I will be unable to reveal myself to others and to my inner self.

©1990 by Anonymous. All rights reserved. Published by Hazelden®. 

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KEEP IT SIMPLE #essentialsofrecovery

Friendships, like marriages, are dependent on avoiding the unforgivable.

~ John D. MacDonald ~

We need to remember that relationships are made up of people—people who are strong, but also fragile. We don’t break easily, but we do break. We need to be aware of how fragile relationships are. Don’t say something that will hurt others even if it’s honest. It’s mean to be honest with someone, without showing that you care for the person’s feelings.

We can learn to be honest without being cruel. The backbone of any relationship is this: we need to honor the rules and agree-ments we make. If we promise to be faithful to someone, we follow this rule. And we need to trust the other person to do the same. When we see that our agreements don’t work, we need to go to that person and talk about them.

Prayer for the Day

Higher Power, help me become a person who honors rules and agreements in my relationships.

Action for the Day

I’ll make no promises today that I will not keep.

Copyright © 1988 by Hazelden Foundation 

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Fr. .LEO DAILY MEDITATION #essentialsofrecovery

FRIENDSHIP

“True friendship comes when silence between two people is comfortable.”

~ Dave Tyson Gentry ~

A spiritual practice that awakens serenity includes silence and stillness. “Be still and know that I am God.” True friendship is Divine. It is a special love that binds two hearts as one. It is the opposite of disease.

Friendship is necessary to recovery and involves sharing feelings. Often the feelings are silent: unspoken emotions, cherished moments that exist in wordlessness. As a recovering alcoholic, I have a thousand friends who attest to the silent witness of love by simply being there. They are my allies. They are my friends.

Sobriety allows me to communicate without speech when the situation calls for it. Seeing God in the eyes of others tells me more than words could ever say.

Thank You for the joy of friendship that grows in silence. 

© 2008 Leo Booth     

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Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

Just for today

Friendships

“Our friendships become deep, and we experience the warmth and caring which results from addicts sharing recovery and a new life.”

IP No. 19, Self-Acceptance

––––=––––

Most of us come to Narcotics Anonymous with few genuine friends. And most of us arrive without the slightest understanding of what it takes to build lasting friendships. Over time, though, we learn that friendships require work. At one time or another, all friendships are challenging. Like any relationship, friendship is a learning process.

Our friends love us enough to tell us the truth about ourselves. The old saying, “The truth will set you free, but first it will make you furious,” seems especially true in friendship. This can make friendships awkward. We may find ourselves avoiding certain meetings rather than facing our friends. We have found, though, that friends speak out of concern for us. They want the best for us. Our friends accept us despite our shortcomings. They understand that we are still a work in progress.

Friends are there for us when we’re not there for ourselves. Friends help us gain valuable perspective on the events in our lives and our recovery. It is important that we actively cultivate friendships, for we have learned that we cannot recover alone.

––––=––––

Just for today: I will be grateful for the friends I have. I will take an active part in my friendships.  

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Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

A WOMAN’S SPIRIT #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Women #Friends

Friends should be chosen carefully, because loving them will change our hearts and souls.

~ Jane Nakken ~

We may not have picked our friends carefully in our youth. Many of us felt pressured to hang out with a crowd that didn’t share our values. We frequently lived up to their expectations of us rather than our own. The internal conflict was painful, and we may still suffer from it. The blessing for us now is that we have the Twelve Steps to rely on for clarification and support of our values.

Having friends we can trust, friends who share our values, is one of the many gifts of this recovery program. We no longer have to feel different, isolated, or self-conscious because of our values or our secrets. We can dare to let others know who we really are, and we are learning they won’t go away. Discovering the joy of friendships that nurture us helps us continue our careful selection of friends. Our youthful experiences with friends need never be repeated.

#Frinds

© 1994 by Hazelden Foundation

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EASY DOES IT #essentialsofrec #friendship #Virtue

FRIENDSHIP

The only reward for virtue, the only way to have a friend is to be one.

~ Emerson ~

Friendship is not a one-word motto to be hung on a wall. Friends are not statues to decorate a mantle. Friendships are as real to us as love and gratitude, and friends are as much a part of all our lives as the air we breathe.

Without friends we could not enjoy the full benefits of recovery. All the truths we follow daily we receive from friends through hearing and reading their messages but mostly by watching them in action. Our primary goal is to add to our wisdom by giving. Without friendships, our caring and sharing would be empty gestures.

None of us needs ever to be alone again, because each of us in our own way works for the good in others. We are bound together with a common problem and work together on a solution.

If I permit myself to become incapable of friendship, I will find that I will be unable to reveal myself to others and to my inner self.

©1990 by Anonymous. All rights reserved. Published by Hazelden®.

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

KEEP IT SIMPLE #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Friendship

You can make more friends
in two months by becoming
interested in other people
than you can in two years
of trying to get other people
interested in you.

~ Dale Carnegie ~

We wanted friends, but our addiction wanted all our attention. We had no time to be close to others.

Well, stand aside, addiction! The program has taught us that others are important. Our purpose is to help others. People have become what’s important to us.

Now we listen to others. We help them do what they want to do, not what we want them to do. We help people instead of use them. Friendship is now a way of life. And another promise of the program becomes a part of us.

Prayer for the Day

Higher Power, help me to know that I’m here to help others, not just myself. Through others, I find myself.

Today’s Action

Today I’ll help someone in the way he or she wants to be helped.

Copyright © 1988 by Hazelden Foundation

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Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrec

A DAY AT A TIME #essentialsofrec #Friends #Recovery

Reflection for the Day

I am grateful for my #friends in the #Program. Right now I am aware of the blessings of friendship—the blessings of meeting, of sharing, of smiling, of listening, and of being available when needed. Right now I know that if I want a friend, I must be a friend. Will I vow, this day, to be a better friend to more people? Will I strive, this day—in my thoughts, words, and actions—to disclose the kind of friend I am?

Today I Pray

May I restore in kind to the fellowship of the Program the friendship I have so hungrily taken from it. After years of glossing my lonely existence with superficial acquaintanceships, may I learn again the reciprocal joys of caring and sharing.

Today I Will Remember

Be a friend.

© 1989 by Hazelden Foundation

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

Just For Today

Friendships

“Our friendships become deep, and we experience the warmth and caring which results from addicts sharing recovery and a new life.”

IP No. 19, Self-Acceptance

––––=––––

Most of us come to Narcotics Anonymous with few genuine friends. And most of us arrive without the slightest understanding of what it takes to build lasting friendships. Over time, though, we learn that friendships require work. At one time or another, all friendships are challenging. Like any relationship, friendship is a learning process.

Our friends love us enough to tell us the truth about ourselves. The old saying, “The truth will set you free, but first it will make you furious,” seems especially true in friendship. This can make friendships awkward. We may find ourselves avoiding certain meetings rather than facing our friends. We have found, though, that friends speak out of concern for us. They want the best for us. Our friends accept us despite our shortcomings. They understand that we are still a work in progress.

Friends are there for us when we’re not there for ourselves. Friends help us gain valuable perspective on the events in our lives and our recovery. It is important that we actively cultivate friendships, for we have learned that we cannot recover alone.

––––=––––

Just for today: I will be grateful for the friends I have. I will take an active part in my friendships.  

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

Fr. .LEO DAILY MEDITATION #essentialsofrecovery

FRIENDSHIP

“True friendship comes when silence between two people is comfortable.”

~ Dave Tyson Gentry ~

A spiritual practice that awakens serenity includes silence and stillness. “Be still and know that I am God.” True friendship is Divine. It is a special love that binds two hearts as one. It is the opposite of disease.

Friendship is necessary to recovery and involves sharing feelings. Often the feelings are silent: unspoken emotions, cherished moments that exist in wordlessness. As a recovering alcoholic, I have a thousand friends who attest to the silent witness of love by simply being there. They are my allies. They are my friends.

Sobriety allows me to communicate without speech when the situation calls for it. Seeing God in the eyes of others tells me more than words could ever say.

Thank You for the joy of friendship that grows in silence. 
© 2008 Leo Booth     

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

Just For Today

Friendships

“Our friendships become deep, and we experience the warmth and caring which results from addicts sharing recovery and a new life.”

IP No. 19, Self-Acceptance

––––=––––

Most of us come to Narcotics Anonymous with few genuine friends. And most of us arrive without the slightest understanding of what it takes to build lasting friendships. Over time, though, we learn that friendships require work. At one time or another, all friendships are challenging. Like any relationship, friendship is a learning process.

Our friends love us enough to tell us the truth about ourselves. The old saying, “The truth will set you free, but first it will make you furious,” seems especially true in friendship. This can make friendships awkward. We may find ourselves avoiding certain meetings rather than facing our friends. We have found, though, that friends speak out of concern for us. They want the best for us. Our friends accept us despite our shortcomings. They understand that we are still a work in progress.

Friends are there for us when we’re not there for ourselves. Friends help us gain valuable perspective on the events in our lives and our recovery. It is important that we actively cultivate friendships, for we have learned that we cannot recover alone.

––––=––––

Just for today: I will be grateful for the friends I have. I will take an active part in my friendships. 

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

A Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

Reflection For The Day

When we’re new in The Program, we’re novices at reaching out for friendship — or even accepting it when it’s offered.  Sometimes we’re not quite sure how to do it or, indeed, whether it will actually work.  Gradually, however, we become restored;  we become teachable.  We learn, for example, as Moliere wrote, “The more we love our friends, the less we flatter them.”  Just for today, will I not show anyone that my feelings are hurt?

Today I Pray

May God help me to discover what true friendship is.  In my new relationships, I pray that I may not be so eager for approval that I will let myself be dishonest — through flattery, half-truths, false cheeriness, protective white lies.

Today I Will Remember

A friend is honest. 

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

A Day At A Time #essentialsofrecovery

Reflection For The Day

“The language of friendship is not words, but meanings,” wrote Thoreau. Life indeed takes on new meanings, as well as new meaning in The Program. To watch people recover, to see them help others, to watch loneliness vanish, to see a fellowship grow up about you, to have a host of friends — this is an experience not to be missed. Can I recall my initial reactions when I came to The Program? Do I believe that I’ve finally come home?

Today I Pray

As The Program has given life new meanings for me, may I pass along to others that same chance to re-evaluate their lives in the light of sobriety, commonj purpose, friendhips and spiritual expansion. Prasie God for my new vision of human life. Praise Him for restoring for me the value and purpose of living.

Today I Will Remember

I value my Life. 

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

ELDER'S MEDITATION OF THE DAY #essentialsofrecovery

“Once you make a friend, a friend never leaves you, even to death. So a friend is really hard to find.”

Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA

Once, an Elder told me he made a decision to be my friend. He said this friendship wasn’t based on my behavior or how I acted; he said the friendship was based on his decision. He decided to be my friend. This friendship has happened like he said. Even if I don’t see him for a long time, or if I get mad at him, he has never changed his decision. This is true friendship.

Great Spirit, I’m glad you are this kind of Friend. 

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

Just For Today

Friendships

“Our friendships become deep, and we experience the warmth and caring which results from addicts sharing recovery and a new life.”

IP No. 19, Self-Acceptance

––––=––––

Most of us come to Narcotics Anonymous with few genuine friends. And most of us arrive without the slightest understanding of what it takes to build lasting friendships. Over time, though, we learn that friendships require work. At one time or another, all friendships are challenging. Like any relationship, friendship is a learning process.

Our friends love us enough to tell us the truth about ourselves. The old saying, “The truth will set you free, but first it will make you furious,” seems especially true in friendship. This can make friendships awkward. We may find ourselves avoiding certain meetings rather than facing our friends. We have found, though, that friends speak out of concern for us. They want the best for us. Our friends accept us despite our shortcomings. They understand that we are still a work in progress.

Friends are there for us when we’re not there for ourselves. Friends help us gain valuable perspective on the events in our lives and our recovery. It is important that we actively cultivate friendships, for we have learned that we cannot recover alone.

––––=––––

Just for today: I will be grateful for the friends I have. I will take an active part in my friendships.

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

Fr. .LEO DAILY MEDITATION #essentialsofrecovery

FRIENDSHIP

“True friendship comes when silence between two people is comfortable.”

~ Dave Tyson Gentry ~

A spiritual practice that awakens serenity includes silence and stillness. “Be still and know that I am God.” True friendship is Divine. It is a special love that binds two hearts as one. It is the opposite of disease.

Friendship is necessary to recovery and involves sharing feelings. Often the feelings are silent: unspoken emotions, cherished moments that exist in wordlessness. As a recovering alcoholic, I have a thousand friends who attest to the silent witness of love by simply being there. They are my allies. They are my friends.

Sobriety allows me to communicate without speech when the situation calls for it. Seeing God in the eyes of others tells me more than words could ever say.

Thank You for the joy of friendship that grows in silence. 
© 2008 Leo Booth   

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