Principle Of Step 2 - HOPE

One Day At A Time

HOPE


“Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune without the words
And never stops at all.”

–Emily Dickinson

I wanted desperately to lose weight, be happy, be spiritually and emotionally fulfilled, and feel serenity in my soul. How long must one wait in a single lifetime to achieve these things? How long must one function day-to-day at a fairly high level, only to close the door at night to a world of emptiness? How long must one go without hope?

My compulsion for food had come close to destroying my life. I was in a constant state of denial that the simple act of eating food could account for a life run amok and totally unmanageable. But the truth of the matter is that it could … and it did.

I found Twelve Steps that empowered me to do things I’d never dreamed of doing. These Twelve Steps enabled me to see the simple reality that compulsive eating could destroy my life. They showed me that life was beautiful and that my disease could turn out to be my greatest blessing. The Twelve Steps gave me something so precious that I am in awe of their power …. something so empowering that I had to admit powerlessness in order to become powerful. The Twelve Steps gave me the most beautiful gift I have ever received … a gift that no one can ever take away from me … a gift that I treasure above all gifts: hope. They gave me the gift of hope.

One day at a time …

I will hold onto my hope.
One day at a time … I will treasure my hope.
One day at a time … hope perches in my soul.
One day at a time … hope sings its song.

Walk in Dry Places - May 9 2026

The Importance of Hope
Maintaining Optimism

.
As a great virtue, hope is ranked with faith and love. But those of us caught in the thicket of alcoholism and other addictions had much experience with hopes that turned out to be merely cruel illusions. In recovery, however, hope has a sound purpose. It is really a form of optimism, an underlying belief that things will work out in spite of the obstacles and problems we face. This helps provide the strength and energy we need to succeed in the face of opposition and setbacks.
We also own much of our recovery to the capacity for hope that was in our friends and family members. Henrietta D… wife of AA member Number three, told an interviewer that she had never lost hope that her husband would eventually recover. She saw it as the answer to her hope and prayers when Bill W. and Dr. Bob arrived at her husband’s bedside in Akron’s City Hospital… an when he left, he never drank again.
Hope is the optimism that keeps us moving toward our highest good. Let’s keep it alive.


I’ll face my day with the underlying belief that things will work out in the long run. I’ll refuse to be overwhelmed by temporary setbacks.

Twenty-Four Hours A Day - April 29 2026

A.A. Thought For The Day

The A.A. program is one of faith, hope, and charity. It’s a
program of hope because when new members come into A.A., the
first thing they get is hope. They hear older members tell how
they had been through the same kind of he!! that they have and
how they found the way out through A.A. And this gives them hope
that if others can do it, they can do it. Is hope still strong
in me?

Meditation For The Day

The rule of God’s kingdom is perfect order, perfect harmony,
perfect supply, perfect love, perfect honesty, perfect obedience.
There is no discord in God’s kingdom, only some things still
unconquered in God’s children. The difficulties of life are
caused by disharmony in the individual man or woman. People
lack power because they lack harmony with God and with each
other. They think that God fails because power is not manifested
in their lives. God does not fail. People fail because they are
out of harmony with Him.

Prayer For The Day

I pray that I may be in harmony with God and with other people.
I pray that this harmony will result in strength and success.

Daily Reflections - 2nd March 2026

HOPE


Do not be discouraged.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 60

Few experiences are of less value to me than fast sobriety. Too many times discouragement has been the bonus for unrealistic expectations, not to mention self-pity or fatigue from my wanting to change the world by the weekend. Discouragement is a warning signal that I may have wandered across the God line. The secret of fulfilling my potential is in acknowledging my limitations and believing that time is a gift, not a threat.

Hope is the key that unlocks the door of discouragement. The program promises me that if I do not pick up the first drink today, I will always have hope. Having come to believe that I keep what I share, every time I encourage, I receive courage. It is with others that, with the grace of God and the Fellowship of A.A., I trudge the road of happy destiny. May I always remember that the power within me is far greater than any fear before me. May I always have patience, for I am on the right road.

One Day At A Time - 26th Jan 2026

~ HOPE ~

In the hour of adversity be not without hope, For crystal rain falls from black clouds.

–Persian poem

When I was a child, I lived in a fantasy world and dreamed of all the wonderful things that would happen to me when I grew up. I would have a wonderful husband, beautiful children, a fulfilling job and, of course, I would be thin. Unfortunately the fantasy never materialized, and even when I did lose weight my life wasn’t the perfect life that I had envisioned. I would lose weight and then promptly regain it. Life in general seemed so empty and futile. No matter how hard I tried, nothing seemed to work. I hated myself and my life; it often seemed pointless to go on.

When I walked into the doors of the first meeting I ever attended, there was something on the faces of the people I met there. I didn’t know what it was at the time, but I saw something that I wanted. It wasn’t that they were all thin, because many of them were not. So what was it that these people had that I didn’t? What they had was the hope of recovery. If they were willing to reach out to a Higher Power of their understanding, and if they would work the program one day at a time, then this would guarantee them recovery.

I didn’t know what recovery meant then. Because all I wanted was to lose weight, and because I wanted what they had, I was prepared to do what they were doing. I realized then that it wasn’t only about the weight, although that does play a part. These people were learning how to live their life sanely, and even when they struggled with life, as we do from time to time, there was always the hope that they could get through those difficult times by using the tools and reaching out to others in the fellowship.

One Day at a Time . . .
Even when I am going through difficult times and the future looks gloomy, I have hope that it will get better if I’m willing to work a simple program.

~ Sharon S. ~   

ONE DAY AT A TIME - 9th November 2025

HOPE

Hope is the feeling you have that the feeling you have isn’t permanent.

~ Jean Kerr 

I pray for hope today, and I am receiving hope today. Hope is something that comes more and more readily to me as I stay abstinent and continue working my program of recovery.

In the past, many of my feelings of hope were centered around the next diet or the next fix for my bingeing. However, now that I am abstaining and practicing the Twelve Steps, I have been freed to hope for bigger things. There is now space in my head where the food and diet obsession used to be!

One Day at a Time . . .

I will abstain. One day at a time I will direct my attention to the Steps when I am in need of a solution.

~ Christine      

FR.LEO'S DAILY MEDITATION #essentialsofrecovery

HOPE

“The hopeful person sees success where others see failure, sunshine where others see shadows and storm.”

~ O. S. Warden ~

Spirituality involves my attitudes and perceptions, as well as my prayers. It requires awareness of what I need and what I have been given. Spirituality sees beyond any problem into the solution.

Hope is a feeling based on a spiritual perception of life that shuns apathy and negativity. Everything can be used for good if it is perceived realistically. I can use destructive experiences, painful moments, and failed relationships to create a new tomorrow. The hope that stems from my ability to change requires understanding what has happened. Because it points to my glorious tomorrows, no aspect of my life should be wasted.

Teach me the secret of success in the problems of life. 

© 2008 Leo Booth 

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One Day At A Time #essentailsofrecovery

~ HOPE ~

In the hour of adversity be not without hope, For crystal rain falls from black clouds.

–Persian poem

When I was a child, I lived in a fantasy world and dreamed of all the wonderful things that would happen to me when I grew up. I would have a wonderful husband, beautiful children, a fulfilling job and, of course, I would be thin. Unfortunately the fantasy never materialized, and even when I did lose weight my life wasn’t the perfect life that I had envisioned. I would lose weight and then promptly regain it. Life in general seemed so empty and futile. No matter how hard I tried, nothing seemed to work. I hated myself and my life; it often seemed pointless to go on.

When I walked into the doors of the first meeting I ever attended, there was something on the faces of the people I met there. I didn’t know what it was at the time, but I saw something that I wanted. It wasn’t that they were all thin, because many of them were not. So what was it that these people had that I didn’t? What they had was the hope of recovery. If they were willing to reach out to a Higher Power of their understanding, and if they would work the program one day at a time, then this would guarantee them recovery.

I didn’t know what recovery meant then. Because all I wanted was to lose weight, and because I wanted what they had, I was prepared to do what they were doing. I realized then that it wasn’t only about the weight, although that does play a part. These people were learning how to live their life sanely, and even when they struggled with life, as we do from time to time, there was always the hope that they could get through those difficult times by using the tools and reaching out to others in the fellowship.

One Day at a Time . . .
Even when I am going through difficult times and the future looks gloomy, I have hope that it will get better if I’m willing to work a simple program.

~ Sharon S. ~   

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ONE DAY AT A TIME #essentialsofrecovery

HOPE

Hope is the feeling you have that the feeling you have isn’t permanent.

~ Jean Kerr 

I pray for hope today, and I am receiving hope today. Hope is something that comes more and more readily to me as I stay abstinent and continue working my program of recovery.

In the past, many of my feelings of hope were centered around the next diet or the next fix for my bingeing. However, now that I am abstaining and practicing the Twelve Steps, I have been freed to hope for bigger things. There is now space in my head where the food and diet obsession used to be!

One Day at a Time . . .

I will abstain. One day at a time I will direct my attention to the Steps when I am in need of a solution.

~ Christine     

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Just For Today #essentialsofrecovery

 Hope

“Gradually as we become more God-centered than self-centered, our despair turns to hope.” 

Basic Text, p.92

As using addicts, despair was our relentless companion. It colored our every waking moment. Despair was born of our experience in active addiction: No matter what measures we tried to make our lives better, we slid ever deeper into misery. Attempts we made to control our lives frequently met with failure. In a sense, our First Step admission of powerlessness was an acknowledgment of despair.

Steps Two and Three lead us gradually out of that despair and into new hope, the companion of the recovering addict. Having accepted that so many of our efforts to change have failed, we come to believe that there is a Power greater than ourselves. We believe this Power can – and will – help us. We practice the Second and Third Steps as an affirmation of our hope for a better life, turning to this Power for guidance. As we come to rely more and more on a Higher Power for the management of our day – to – day life, the despair arising from our long experiment with self-sufficiency disappears.

Just for today: I will reaffirm my Third Step decision. I know that, with a Higher Power in my life, there is hope.  

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FR. LEO'S DAILY MEDITATION #essentialsofrec #FrLeo #Hope #Music

MUSIC

“Sorrow, sadness, yearning, hope, and love belong to all of us, in all times and in all places. Music is the only means whereby we feel these emotions in their universality.”

~ H.A. Overstreet ~

Music is a language for the world. It unites people, cultures, and religions. Music points people beyond themselves, while at the same time breathing God’s glory through them. Music makes us wonder, enables us to dream, and allows us to rest in the miracle of creativity.

Drugs stopped me from appreciating the music. They corrupted sounds and made them destructive. Drugs left me with a feeling of utter emptiness.

In recovery, I can hear again. My spiritual program incorporates music—different types of music and the inexhaustible joys of melody. I feel in it, through it, with it—another miracle.

Thank You for the gift of music that enables me to grow in understanding. 

© 2008 Leo Booth

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KEEP IT SIMPLE #essentialsofrec #Hope #Demands

If anything, we have tended to be people who
wanted it all now. To hope is not to demand.

~ On Hope ~

Maybe we were a bit demanding. Maybe we were a bit impatient. Maybe that’s why we had such little hope.

Hope is believing good will come, even in bad times. Hope is knowing that “this, too, shall pass.” Hope is knowing that no matter how afraid we are, God will be with us. Hope is knowing we never have to be alone again. It is knowing that time is on our side. Hope is giving up control. Hope is knowing we never had control in the first place. Hope is believing in ourselves. Hope is what our pro-gram is all about.

Prayer for the Day

Higher Power, in our program we share our experiences, our strengths, and our hopes. Thank you for giving all three of these to me to share.

Action for the Day

I will share my hope for the future with myself, my Higher Power, and my friends. I also will share this with someone who has lost hope.

Copyright © 1988 by Hazelden Foundation

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A DAY AT A TIME #essentialsofrec #Experience #Strength #Hope

Reflection for the Day

The Program teaches us, through the experience, strength, and hope of its fellowship, that the worst situation imaginable does not warrant a return to our addiction. No matter how bad a particular situation or set of circumstances, the return to our old ways for even a minute will assuredly make it worse. Am I grateful for the sharing and caring of the Program?

Today I Pray

May I insist that no stone can be heavy enough to drag me back down into the pool of my addiction. No burden, no disappointment, no blow to pride or loss of human love is worth the price of returning to my old way of life. When I harbor thoughts that life is “too much” for me, that no one should be expected to “take so much and still remain sane” or that I am “the Tail guy,” let me listen for the tone of my complaints and remember that I have heard that whine before—before I concluded that I was powerless over the chemical and gave my will over to the Will of God. Such wailing sets me up for getting high again. May God keep my cars alert to the tone of my own complaining.

Today I Will Remember

Hear my own complaints.

© 1989 by Hazelden Foundation

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A DAY AT A TIME #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Hope

Reflection for the Day

There have been days during my recovery when just about everything seemed bleak and even hopeless. I allowed myself to become depressed and angry. I see now that it doesn't matter what I think, and it doesn't matter how I feel. It’s what I do that counts. So when I become anxious or upset, I try to get into action by going to meetings, participating, and working with others in the Program. If God seems far away, who moved?

Today I Pray

May I not be immobilized by sadness or anger to the point of despair. May I look for the roots of despair in my tangle of emotions, sort out the tangle, pull out the culprit feelings, acknowledge that they belong to me. Only then can I get into gear, take action, begin to accomplish. May I learn to make use of the energy generated by anger to strengthen my will and achieve my goals.

Today I Will Remember

To sort out my feelings.

© 1989 by Hazelden Foundation

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

All sorrows can be borne if you put them into a story or tell a story about them.

~ Isak Dinesen 

Sharing our experience, strength, and hope with others in this program helps to clarify for all of us the miracle of recovery. Telling another woman how we survived the most awful of experiences lets her know that her life is survivable too. It’s not by accident that the founders of AA stressed the value of telling our stories.

Each time we share an aspect of our own traumatic past, its sting is diminished. The more we repeat these awful truths, the less their hold on us. Our storytelling lets our listeners know that their own experiences are not so different after all.

What lucky women we are. No longer do we hide ourselves from others. Each conversation with a sponsor, sponsee, or friend is an opportunity to lighten our load.

I will tell a part of my story to someone today. She may be helped by it, and I will be freed from it!

© 1994 by Hazelden Foundation

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DAILY REFLECTIONS #essentialsofrec #Recovery #Hope

HOPE

Do not be discouraged.
~ ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 60 ~
Few experiences are of less value to me than fast sobriety. Too many times discouragement has been the bonus for unrealistic expectations, not to mention self-pity or fatigue from my wanting to change the world by the weekend. Discouragement is a warning signal that I may have wandered across the God line. The secret of fulfilling my potential is in acknowledging my limitations and believing that time is a gift, not a threat.

Hope is the key that unlocks the door of discouragement. The program promises me that if I do not pick up the first drink today, I will always have hope. Having come to believe that I keep what I share, every time I encourage, I receive courage. It is with others that, with the grace of God and the Fellowship of A.A., I trudge the road of happy destiny. May I always remember that the power within me is far greater than any fear before me. May I always have patience, for I am on the right road.

Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services Inc

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

HOPE

“The hopeful person sees success where others see failure, sunshine where others see shadows and storm.”

~ O. S. Warden 

Spirituality involves my attitudes and perceptions, as well as my prayers. It requires awareness of what I need and what I have been given. Spirituality sees beyond any problem into the solution.

Hope is a feeling based on a spiritual perception of life that shuns apathy and negativity. Everything can be used for good if it is perceived realistically. I can use destructive experiences, painful moments, and failed relationships to create a new tomorrow. The hope that stems from my ability to change requires understanding what has happened. Because it points to my glorious tomorrows, no aspect of my life should be wasted.

Teach me the secret of success in the problems of life. 

© 2008 Leo Booth

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

One Day At A Time #essentailsofrecovery

~ HOPE ~

In the hour of adversity be not without hope, For crystal rain falls from black clouds.

–Persian poem

When I was a child, I lived in a fantasy world and dreamed of all the wonderful things that would happen to me when I grew up. I would have a wonderful husband, beautiful children, a fulfilling job and, of course, I would be thin. Unfortunately the fantasy never materialized, and even when I did lose weight my life wasn’t the perfect life that I had envisioned. I would lose weight and then promptly regain it. Life in general seemed so empty and futile. No matter how hard I tried, nothing seemed to work. I hated myself and my life; it often seemed pointless to go on.

When I walked into the doors of the first meeting I ever attended, there was something on the faces of the people I met there. I didn’t know what it was at the time, but I saw something that I wanted. It wasn’t that they were all thin, because many of them were not. So what was it that these people had that I didn’t? What they had was the hope of recovery. If they were willing to reach out to a Higher Power of their understanding, and if they would work the program one day at a time, then this would guarantee them recovery.

I didn’t know what recovery meant then. Because all I wanted was to lose weight, and because I wanted what they had, I was prepared to do what they were doing. I realized then that it wasn’t only about the weight, although that does play a part. These people were learning how to live their life sanely, and even when they struggled with life, as we do from time to time, there was always the hope that they could get through those difficult times by using the tools and reaching out to others in the fellowship.

One Day at a Time . . .
Even when I am going through difficult times and the future looks gloomy, I have hope that it will get better if I’m willing to work a simple program.

~ Sharon S. ~  

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Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery

ONE DAY AT A TIME #essentialsofrecovery

HOPE

Hope is the feeling you have that the feeling you have isn’t permanent.

~ Jean Kerr 

I pray for hope today, and I am receiving hope today. Hope is something that comes more and more readily to me as I stay abstinent and continue working my program of recovery.

In the past, many of my feelings of hope were centered around the next diet or the next fix for my bingeing. However, now that I am abstaining and practicing the Twelve Steps, I have been freed to hope for bigger things. There is now space in my head where the food and diet obsession used to be!

One Day at a Time . . .

I will abstain. One day at a time I will direct my attention to the Steps when I am in need of a solution.

~ Christine    

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Or Follow Us On Twitter #essentialsofrecovery