@terryberryster.bsky.social
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 14: The way we face the day is the kind of day it will be for other people around us. “Attitudes are contagious,” Dennis and Wendy Man-nering wrote. “Are yours worth catching?”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 14, 2025 at 2:22 PM
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 14: The way we face the day is the kind of day it will be for other people around us. “Attitudes are contagious,” Dennis and Wendy Man-nering wrote. “Are yours worth catching?”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 14, 2025
“The program is a road, not a resting place.”
Riverside, Illinois, January 1977, “Have We Forgotten Dr. Bob’s Request?”, AA Grapevine
“The program is a road, not a resting place.”
Riverside, Illinois, January 1977, “Have We Forgotten Dr. Bob’s Request?”, AA Grapevine
December 14, 2025 at 2:20 PM
December 14, 2025
“The program is a road, not a resting place.”
Riverside, Illinois, January 1977, “Have We Forgotten Dr. Bob’s Request?”, AA Grapevine
“The program is a road, not a resting place.”
Riverside, Illinois, January 1977, “Have We Forgotten Dr. Bob’s Request?”, AA Grapevine
93
Atmosphere of Grace
Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food, or sunshine. And for the same reason. When we refuse air, light, or food, the body suffers.
TWELVE AND TWELVE, PP. 97-98
Atmosphere of Grace
Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food, or sunshine. And for the same reason. When we refuse air, light, or food, the body suffers.
TWELVE AND TWELVE, PP. 97-98
December 14, 2025 at 2:18 PM
93
Atmosphere of Grace
Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food, or sunshine. And for the same reason. When we refuse air, light, or food, the body suffers.
TWELVE AND TWELVE, PP. 97-98
Atmosphere of Grace
Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food, or sunshine. And for the same reason. When we refuse air, light, or food, the body suffers.
TWELVE AND TWELVE, PP. 97-98
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 13: In fact, it’s finding something right about every day of our lives that makes each of them either a positive or a negative event. The choice is ours.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 13, 2025 at 3:55 PM
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 13: In fact, it’s finding something right about every day of our lives that makes each of them either a positive or a negative event. The choice is ours.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 13, 2025
“More than a million of us who suffer from the disease of alcoholism have found not just the ability to live with or survive this insidious disease, but a joyful way of life as new as this morning and as old as mankind.
AA Grapevine
“More than a million of us who suffer from the disease of alcoholism have found not just the ability to live with or survive this insidious disease, but a joyful way of life as new as this morning and as old as mankind.
AA Grapevine
December 13, 2025 at 3:52 PM
December 13, 2025
“More than a million of us who suffer from the disease of alcoholism have found not just the ability to live with or survive this insidious disease, but a joyful way of life as new as this morning and as old as mankind.
AA Grapevine
“More than a million of us who suffer from the disease of alcoholism have found not just the ability to live with or survive this insidious disease, but a joyful way of life as new as this morning and as old as mankind.
AA Grapevine
92
Walking Toward Serenity
"The walking and especially the breathing were powerful affirmations toward life and living and away from failure and death. The counting represented a minimum discipline in concentration, to get some rest from the wear and tear of fear and guilt."
LETTER, 1960
Walking Toward Serenity
"The walking and especially the breathing were powerful affirmations toward life and living and away from failure and death. The counting represented a minimum discipline in concentration, to get some rest from the wear and tear of fear and guilt."
LETTER, 1960
December 13, 2025 at 3:50 PM
92
Walking Toward Serenity
"The walking and especially the breathing were powerful affirmations toward life and living and away from failure and death. The counting represented a minimum discipline in concentration, to get some rest from the wear and tear of fear and guilt."
LETTER, 1960
Walking Toward Serenity
"The walking and especially the breathing were powerful affirmations toward life and living and away from failure and death. The counting represented a minimum discipline in concentration, to get some rest from the wear and tear of fear and guilt."
LETTER, 1960
NEED A MEETING?
Alex C and Robin O are the speakers at 8pm on December 13th at The Saturday Night Speakers Meeting East, Kelsey Creek Church, 1221 148TH Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007
Alex C and Robin O are the speakers at 8pm on December 13th at The Saturday Night Speakers Meeting East, Kelsey Creek Church, 1221 148TH Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007
December 12, 2025 at 9:25 PM
NEED A MEETING?
Alex C and Robin O are the speakers at 8pm on December 13th at The Saturday Night Speakers Meeting East, Kelsey Creek Church, 1221 148TH Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007
Alex C and Robin O are the speakers at 8pm on December 13th at The Saturday Night Speakers Meeting East, Kelsey Creek Church, 1221 148TH Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 12: It takes a bit of courage to face the sea-sons, to dress for them properly, to find something we like to do in each of them, to get up the energy to go out into them, head up, shoulders back, and smiling.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 12, 2025 at 1:26 PM
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 12: It takes a bit of courage to face the sea-sons, to dress for them properly, to find something we like to do in each of them, to get up the energy to go out into them, head up, shoulders back, and smiling.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 12, 2025
“Dr. Silkworth taught us how to till the soil of hopelessness, out of which every single spiritual awakening in our fellowship has since flowered. ‘No, Bill,’ he had said, ‘you are not hallucinating. Whatever you have got, you had better hang on to it."
The Language of the Heart
“Dr. Silkworth taught us how to till the soil of hopelessness, out of which every single spiritual awakening in our fellowship has since flowered. ‘No, Bill,’ he had said, ‘you are not hallucinating. Whatever you have got, you had better hang on to it."
The Language of the Heart
December 12, 2025 at 1:24 PM
December 12, 2025
“Dr. Silkworth taught us how to till the soil of hopelessness, out of which every single spiritual awakening in our fellowship has since flowered. ‘No, Bill,’ he had said, ‘you are not hallucinating. Whatever you have got, you had better hang on to it."
The Language of the Heart
“Dr. Silkworth taught us how to till the soil of hopelessness, out of which every single spiritual awakening in our fellowship has since flowered. ‘No, Bill,’ he had said, ‘you are not hallucinating. Whatever you have got, you had better hang on to it."
The Language of the Heart
91
Courage and Prudence
We began to see each adversity as a God-given opportunity to develop the kind of courage which is born of humility, rather than of bravado.
<< << << >> >> >>
"Prudence is rational
concern without worry."
1. GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1962
2. TALK, 1966
Courage and Prudence
We began to see each adversity as a God-given opportunity to develop the kind of courage which is born of humility, rather than of bravado.
<< << << >> >> >>
"Prudence is rational
concern without worry."
1. GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1962
2. TALK, 1966
December 12, 2025 at 1:20 PM
91
Courage and Prudence
We began to see each adversity as a God-given opportunity to develop the kind of courage which is born of humility, rather than of bravado.
<< << << >> >> >>
"Prudence is rational
concern without worry."
1. GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1962
2. TALK, 1966
Courage and Prudence
We began to see each adversity as a God-given opportunity to develop the kind of courage which is born of humility, rather than of bravado.
<< << << >> >> >>
"Prudence is rational
concern without worry."
1. GRAPEVINE, JANUARY 1962
2. TALK, 1966
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11: The personality we bring to life each day determines the climate of it for everyone else. “An optimist,” Susan Bissionette wrote, “is the human personification of spring.”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 11, 2025 at 1:29 PM
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11: The personality we bring to life each day determines the climate of it for everyone else. “An optimist,” Susan Bissionette wrote, “is the human personification of spring.”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 11, 2025
“Our AA Traditions are, we trust, securely anchored in those wise precepts: charity, gratitude, and humility. Nor have we forgotten prudence. May these virtues ever stand clear before us in our meditations.”
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., August 1957, “The Physicians,”
“Our AA Traditions are, we trust, securely anchored in those wise precepts: charity, gratitude, and humility. Nor have we forgotten prudence. May these virtues ever stand clear before us in our meditations.”
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., August 1957, “The Physicians,”
December 11, 2025 at 1:27 PM
December 11, 2025
“Our AA Traditions are, we trust, securely anchored in those wise precepts: charity, gratitude, and humility. Nor have we forgotten prudence. May these virtues ever stand clear before us in our meditations.”
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., August 1957, “The Physicians,”
“Our AA Traditions are, we trust, securely anchored in those wise precepts: charity, gratitude, and humility. Nor have we forgotten prudence. May these virtues ever stand clear before us in our meditations.”
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., August 1957, “The Physicians,”
90
To Watch Loneliness Vanish
Life takes on new meaning in A.A. 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.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 89
To Watch Loneliness Vanish
Life takes on new meaning in A.A. 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.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 89
December 11, 2025 at 1:25 PM
90
To Watch Loneliness Vanish
Life takes on new meaning in A.A. 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.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 89
To Watch Loneliness Vanish
Life takes on new meaning in A.A. 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.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 89
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10: There was a time when we thought that what happened to us determined the quality of our life. William James wrote, “The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter their life by altering their attitudes.”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 10, 2025 at 1:37 PM
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10: There was a time when we thought that what happened to us determined the quality of our life. William James wrote, “The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter their life by altering their attitudes.”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 10, 2025
“Admitting I lack faith does me no harm ... being different, dissenting from views by a majority of my peers, is not a source of guilt.”
West Lebanon, New York, April 1985, “Spiritual Honesty,” Spiritual Awakenings II
“Admitting I lack faith does me no harm ... being different, dissenting from views by a majority of my peers, is not a source of guilt.”
West Lebanon, New York, April 1985, “Spiritual Honesty,” Spiritual Awakenings II
December 10, 2025 at 1:33 PM
December 10, 2025
“Admitting I lack faith does me no harm ... being different, dissenting from views by a majority of my peers, is not a source of guilt.”
West Lebanon, New York, April 1985, “Spiritual Honesty,” Spiritual Awakenings II
“Admitting I lack faith does me no harm ... being different, dissenting from views by a majority of my peers, is not a source of guilt.”
West Lebanon, New York, April 1985, “Spiritual Honesty,” Spiritual Awakenings II
89
Review the Day
When we retire at night, we constructively review our day.
Were we resentful, selfish, dishonest or afraid? Have we kept something to ourselves which should be discussed with another person at once? Were we kind and loving toward all?
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 86
Review the Day
When we retire at night, we constructively review our day.
Were we resentful, selfish, dishonest or afraid? Have we kept something to ourselves which should be discussed with another person at once? Were we kind and loving toward all?
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 86
December 10, 2025 at 1:31 PM
89
Review the Day
When we retire at night, we constructively review our day.
Were we resentful, selfish, dishonest or afraid? Have we kept something to ourselves which should be discussed with another person at once? Were we kind and loving toward all?
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 86
Review the Day
When we retire at night, we constructively review our day.
Were we resentful, selfish, dishonest or afraid? Have we kept something to ourselves which should be discussed with another person at once? Were we kind and loving toward all?
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 86
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9: The thing about our winter is that it snows. The thing about spring is that it rains. The thing about summer is that it’s sweltering hot. The thing about autumn is that it’s dark and cold. Isn’t it wonderful? All of it.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 9, 2025 at 1:20 PM
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9: The thing about our winter is that it snows. The thing about spring is that it rains. The thing about summer is that it’s sweltering hot. The thing about autumn is that it’s dark and cold. Isn’t it wonderful? All of it.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 9, 2025
“After endless voting on a title for the new work we had decided to call it The Way Out. But inquiry by Fritz M., our Maryland alcoholic, at The Library of Congress disclosed the fact that 12 books already bore that title. So we named it Alcoholics Anonymous instead!
Bill W.
“After endless voting on a title for the new work we had decided to call it The Way Out. But inquiry by Fritz M., our Maryland alcoholic, at The Library of Congress disclosed the fact that 12 books already bore that title. So we named it Alcoholics Anonymous instead!
Bill W.
December 9, 2025 at 1:17 PM
December 9, 2025
“After endless voting on a title for the new work we had decided to call it The Way Out. But inquiry by Fritz M., our Maryland alcoholic, at The Library of Congress disclosed the fact that 12 books already bore that title. So we named it Alcoholics Anonymous instead!
Bill W.
“After endless voting on a title for the new work we had decided to call it The Way Out. But inquiry by Fritz M., our Maryland alcoholic, at The Library of Congress disclosed the fact that 12 books already bore that title. So we named it Alcoholics Anonymous instead!
Bill W.
88
Will Power and Choice
"We A.A.'s know the futility of trying to break the drinking obsession by will power alone. However, we do know that it takes great willingness to adopt A.A.'s Twelve Steps as a way of life that can restore us to sanity.
LETTER, 1966
Will Power and Choice
"We A.A.'s know the futility of trying to break the drinking obsession by will power alone. However, we do know that it takes great willingness to adopt A.A.'s Twelve Steps as a way of life that can restore us to sanity.
LETTER, 1966
December 9, 2025 at 1:13 PM
88
Will Power and Choice
"We A.A.'s know the futility of trying to break the drinking obsession by will power alone. However, we do know that it takes great willingness to adopt A.A.'s Twelve Steps as a way of life that can restore us to sanity.
LETTER, 1966
Will Power and Choice
"We A.A.'s know the futility of trying to break the drinking obsession by will power alone. However, we do know that it takes great willingness to adopt A.A.'s Twelve Steps as a way of life that can restore us to sanity.
LETTER, 1966
MONDAY, DECEMBER 8: “Two men looked out from prison bars,” the poem reads. “One saw mud and the other saw stars.” Which says to us: How do you see your life? The answer to that simple question determines whether you are a happy person or a dour one.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 8, 2025 at 3:06 PM
MONDAY, DECEMBER 8: “Two men looked out from prison bars,” the poem reads. “One saw mud and the other saw stars.” Which says to us: How do you see your life? The answer to that simple question determines whether you are a happy person or a dour one.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
December 8, 2025
“Nothing improves if you drink.”
El Granada, California, March 2003, “How an Atheist Works the Steps,” Spiritual Awakenings
“Nothing improves if you drink.”
El Granada, California, March 2003, “How an Atheist Works the Steps,” Spiritual Awakenings
December 8, 2025 at 3:04 PM
December 8, 2025
“Nothing improves if you drink.”
El Granada, California, March 2003, “How an Atheist Works the Steps,” Spiritual Awakenings
“Nothing improves if you drink.”
El Granada, California, March 2003, “How an Atheist Works the Steps,” Spiritual Awakenings
87
Keystone of the Arch
Faced with alcoholic destruction, we soon became as openminded on spiritual matters. In this respect alcohol was a great persuader. It finally beat us into a state of reasonableness.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
1. P. 48
Keystone of the Arch
Faced with alcoholic destruction, we soon became as openminded on spiritual matters. In this respect alcohol was a great persuader. It finally beat us into a state of reasonableness.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
1. P. 48
December 8, 2025 at 3:03 PM
87
Keystone of the Arch
Faced with alcoholic destruction, we soon became as openminded on spiritual matters. In this respect alcohol was a great persuader. It finally beat us into a state of reasonableness.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
1. P. 48
Keystone of the Arch
Faced with alcoholic destruction, we soon became as openminded on spiritual matters. In this respect alcohol was a great persuader. It finally beat us into a state of reasonableness.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
1. P. 48