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The Metaphors of Recovery
True healing comes not from burying our mistakes but from accepting them and learning to see their value
We all know nobody’s perfect. And alcoholics tend to be more imperfect than the rest. However, if they are honest in their journey, recovering alcoholics gain a unique perspective on their lives.
As the Big Book promises, “We will not regret the past, nor wish to shut the door on it.”
Granted, it’s very hard and painful to get to that point when you recognize your poor choices and their consequences.
But you can get there from here.
I have come to view my past as a tapestry, with dark threads woven among the bright ones. For years, I tried to pull these dark threads loose, to unravel the parts of myself I deemed unworthy, flawed, or shameful. If I could only extract these imperfections, what remained would be pure and beautiful. What I failed to understand was that removing these threads wouldn’t perfect my tapestry — it diminishes the beauty. Moreover, it would leave me without the experience needed to help others understand their mistakes.
We are not separate from our character defects; they are integral to who we are and who we have become. Just as a tapestry needs contrast to reveal its pattern…
