February 27

Into the fabric of recovery from alcoholism are woven the Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions.

— Daily Reflections: A Book of Reflections by A.A. Members for A.A. Members (Kindle Location 447).

I really enjoy the phrase, “fabric of recovery.”  This morning, I spent most of my meeting thinking about this phrase and struggling to put together coherent thoughts about it.  There were many ideas that came to mind — connectedness, frayed ends, raw fibers, oneness — And I just couldn’t put it all together to share with the group.

So, I’m going to try here.

When I think about a “fabric of recovery,” I think of the people that I know in recovery, my sober twitter friends, my family, my “normie” friends, the tools that I get in AA, the literature that I read — literally all the things that go into this thing we call recovery.   Each and every one is like a fiber that is woven into the fabric.

A fabric is in interconnected weave of fibers.  The people who I meet in person or online who are in recovery are fibers in the fabric of my recovery.  We are all connected by a common problem.  We are all one.

(I actually believe this about humanity and am fascinated by connections and connectivity — that’s probably why I work in computer networking.)

Just like those of us in recovery,  fabrics are strewn with imperfections, particularly when they are first woven.  It’s only after many twists and turns in the manufacturing process that we get clothing with smooth finishes.

Interestingly, connections can be described as attachment, and yet attachment becomes problematic.  I referenced shenpa in a recent post.  When we become too attached to something and ruminate on it, it can become the source of our problems.

I’m not sure that I’ve completely ironed out my thoughts on this, but I do very much like the phrase “fabric of recovery”.

I’m thankful that I went to the meeting this morning and took time to reflect on this phrase, even if I haven’t completely worked out what it all means.