February 10

At sometime in our life as an addict, life was simple and so was what we considered fun; we didn't have to create it; we just lived it, the Gray Book mentioned. As our disease progressed our fun digressed, we looked for new ways to feel happy. Drugs were the solution for a long time, until the drugs stopped working. Our Basic Text says that we began to acquire strange habits; we forgot how to play.

Our idea of fun was using drugs to the break of dawn. When our drugs ran out, we became depressed.

Mr. Hyde was showing up on most days; we forgot how to laugh, "we forgot how to feel. " Through N.A. and working Steps, we start to enjoy the simple things in Life, and they start to give us Pleasure.

Fellowshipping before and after the Meetings gives us a chance to enjoy the presence of others. We start to hear and feel ourselves laugh, we start to have fun. As we start to Recover, some of us recapture the fun things we experienced before our Spirits went to sleep.

We learn how to have Clean fun through events and gatherings with others who are not using. We begin to enjoy being around other humans. For us, fun started to consist of simple things, e.g.; a walk through nature, listening to music, or playing games with friends and families.

We enjoy Carrying The Message as we accompany others and newcomers to the diner after a Meeting. We joke and sometimes laugh at ourselves, we Share Joy and Unconditional Hope. We find that Joy doesn't originate from the outside, but from within.

We learn to Live with the Simple Spiritual Principles of Narcotics Anonymous. With each day we see that it's because of the simple things in Life that we experience real fun.