Fantasy is a big part of the addictive mind. People sitting on a barstool have all kinds of plans for the future. They are going to land a wonderful job, travel to interesting places all over the world and find an extremely attractive, smart and successful partner to marry. Go back to that same bar 5 years later. You will probably find that same person bending the ear of their neighbor about the identical future plans. Chances are those plans will continue to just be words in the air unless that bar stool sitter makes a change and joins the fellowship.
Becoming a member of AA, NA or OA is a great first step. As our minds cleared we understood that we had been living in a fantasy. Some of us wanted to continue in the fantasy and just coast along in our program. It’s true that we were no longer using which was great. But to gain the benefits of the program and really change our lives, much more was necessary. We needed to commit to the program in a very deep way. The more we immersed ourselves in the program, the more we saw changes in our lives. If we continued to stay on the periphery, we were just one step removed from that bar stool.

Personal Reflection: How deeply committed am I to my program of recovery?