Warriors in the early centuries fashioned suits of armor made from bronze, iron, or steel plates. This full-suit Gothic-style plate protected fighters from deadly arrows on the battlefield. The cost of customization and fitting of high-quality gear was enormous,
Training to fight was a years-long proposition (perhaps a decade for a knight), as skills in spear, sword, axe, archery, riding, and conditioning were required for efficiency.
As self-death was not the desired outcome, preparation was all a soldier did before the battle.
We would go so far as to say that being prepared for the fight is the number one priority for warriors at any level. We find similarities in that our priority is protection against relapse in preparedness for the battle we face with alcohol and drugs.
If love relations, work or income earning, social status, hobbies, or anything else begs for priority over our quest for sober living, we are in danger of taking on an arrow – which can lead to death.
Soldiers fight for their lives, as do we in recovery. We must be prepared, sparing no expense while investing our time and effort into sobriety. There cannot be two number ones; either soberness is our priority, or it isn’t.
We find inspiration and direction from the daily devotional “Twenty-Four Hours A Day (Hazelden).” Its’ January 6th reading states:
Keeping sober is the most important thing in my life. The most important decision I ever made was my decision to give up drinking. I am convinced that my whole life depends on not taking that first drink. Nothing in the world is as important to me as my own sobriety. Everything I have, my whole life depends on that one thing. Can I afford ever to forget this, even for one minute?
We recite or paraphrase these verses daily. When we work with others, this is the filter that we use to determine sober health. When our sponsors work with us, they use the same mesh.
The armor that protects us and prepares us for battle today consists of daily prayer and meditation, accountability, and doing the step work laid out in the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Sober maturity takes time and practice. It takes guidance and discipline. It takes successes and failures, steps in missteps.
The emotional development required to conquer self comes down to our survival instinct, which, along with preparedness, tells us that we have nothing if sobriety is not our priority.
On the flip side, almost anything is possible with a strong base of recovery awareness, reliable filters, and, of course, faith.
Distractions will come our way as we can’t control our thoughts but have been taught that we can control our actions. We can see the arrows coming because of our training. We have prepared for such a time as this.
We are war-ready.
Thoughts and ideas for this blog post were taken and built upon from sober.coffee podcast titled “Listener Questions: "Why Do I Need To Wait A Year...." The session dropped on 2/16/2022….Click here to hear the podcast.
Photo by Michael DeMarco on Unsplash
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Alcoholics Anonymous and AA are registered trademarks of Alcoholics World Service. Inc. References to AA, the 12 steps, and 12 traditions does not mean that AA has reviewed or approved the contents of this publication nor that AA agrees with the views expressed herein. This publication is intended to support personal growth and should not be considered a substitute for healthcare professionals' advice. The author’s advice and viewpoints are their own.