Happy Holidays to all our Life Savers Members and your loved ones! During this joyous season of gift-giving and celebration, I pause to ponder the question, "What is a gift?"

My mind goes back to a recent morning in which I came to into my office to notice an unexpected surprise laying across my keyboard: my favorite cigar; a gift for me! It was unexpected and for no reason, coming from generosity of one of my coworkers. I had done nothing above the ordinary for this coworker, yet he wanted to kindly acknowledge our teamwork on a recent task with a present. I was blown away at the coworkers compassion towards me, especially since, in my own conscience, I knew in my innermost self that I hadn't exactly been practicing love and tolerance with this man to the utmost of my ability in the preceding days! Here I was, 'failing' as a team member, yet he cared anyhow!

As a direct result of my own "Watershed Moment" (a critical turning point), the 12 steps, and the agape love of my Higher Power, I have come to accept my clean and sober lifestyle today as a gift. The forgiveness and grace of my God despite my failures as a human being are truly the unexpected. How much more does my Higher Power give me gifts in this life that I do not deserve! How much greater is His love and adoration for me than that of a coworker or personal friend in my everyday life?

I have learned that I must give away this precious gift of a clean and sober life in order to keep it in my life as a daily blessing. The Holiday Season is upon us; it is a time for giving. What better gift to give to someone suffering in addiction, than to give them the tremendous gift of life and freedom? We hope that you will reach out today and make a Life Saver's Club referral to help someone else receive the gift so freely given to many of us! Call 877-97-LIVES to begin to share this freedom with another.

Sobriety is a gift. - a gift that is given from outside ourselves, and independent of our own power and control. Taking the first step makes us realize that our own ego, willpower, and control will not cure our problem. The solution is spiritual.

How then do we achieve sobriety? The best speakers only point to the steps we took to achieve sobriety. At our meetings our speakers report that, "I don't know how the craving was taken from me...but it was lifted." We took certain steps and discovered that it just seemed to be taken away.

Think of your best gifts in life. When I was a child, to receive a toy or board game was my favorite gift. Both of these depended on sharing it with another child. What fun is a board game or toy by yourself? Taking care of sobriety like a new toy or game follows the same principles. You have to take care of all the pieces and it has no value unless you share it with another.

This holiday season, share the gift of sobriety and have fun. Take care of your gifts, they are precious!

Kelly P.

Lakewood, Ohio

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Life Savers Club Coordinator

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