@terryberryster.bsky.social
THURSDAY, JANUARY 22: Fail-ure enables us to surprise ourselves by someday doing what we could not do because we refused to stop trying to do it. “My great concern,” Abraham Lincoln said, “is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.”
The Monastic Way
The Monastic Way
January 22, 2026 at 1:40 PM
THURSDAY, JANUARY 22: Fail-ure enables us to surprise ourselves by someday doing what we could not do because we refused to stop trying to do it. “My great concern,” Abraham Lincoln said, “is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.”
The Monastic Way
The Monastic Way
January 22, 2026
“We have all known and seen miracles – the healing of broken individuals, the rebuilding of broken homes. And always, it has been constructive, personal Twelfth Step work based on an ever-upward-looking faith which has done the job.”
AA Co-Founder, Dr. Bob
“We have all known and seen miracles – the healing of broken individuals, the rebuilding of broken homes. And always, it has been constructive, personal Twelfth Step work based on an ever-upward-looking faith which has done the job.”
AA Co-Founder, Dr. Bob
January 22, 2026 at 1:37 PM
January 22, 2026
“We have all known and seen miracles – the healing of broken individuals, the rebuilding of broken homes. And always, it has been constructive, personal Twelfth Step work based on an ever-upward-looking faith which has done the job.”
AA Co-Founder, Dr. Bob
“We have all known and seen miracles – the healing of broken individuals, the rebuilding of broken homes. And always, it has been constructive, personal Twelfth Step work based on an ever-upward-looking faith which has done the job.”
AA Co-Founder, Dr. Bob
133
"Privileged People"
How much better it would have been had I felt gratitude rather than self- satisfaction -- gratitude for the privilege of serving my fellow alcoholics, and gratitude for a comradeship such as few societies of men have ever known.
GRAPEVINE, JULY 1946
"Privileged People"
How much better it would have been had I felt gratitude rather than self- satisfaction -- gratitude for the privilege of serving my fellow alcoholics, and gratitude for a comradeship such as few societies of men have ever known.
GRAPEVINE, JULY 1946
January 22, 2026 at 1:34 PM
133
"Privileged People"
How much better it would have been had I felt gratitude rather than self- satisfaction -- gratitude for the privilege of serving my fellow alcoholics, and gratitude for a comradeship such as few societies of men have ever known.
GRAPEVINE, JULY 1946
"Privileged People"
How much better it would have been had I felt gratitude rather than self- satisfaction -- gratitude for the privilege of serving my fellow alcoholics, and gratitude for a comradeship such as few societies of men have ever known.
GRAPEVINE, JULY 1946
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 21: Failure is essential to being able to succeed. Learning to accept ourselves as we are is key to being able to be more than we are because then we are free to fail—which means, of course, that then we are free to try til we succeed.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 21, 2026 at 1:29 PM
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 21: Failure is essential to being able to succeed. Learning to accept ourselves as we are is key to being able to be more than we are because then we are free to fail—which means, of course, that then we are free to try til we succeed.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 21, 2026
“There is no you or me or them. Everything is connected and the salvation of each of us is linked to the salvation of all of us.”
“The Steps Are the Program,” Riverside, Illinois, July 1975, AA Grapevine
“There is no you or me or them. Everything is connected and the salvation of each of us is linked to the salvation of all of us.”
“The Steps Are the Program,” Riverside, Illinois, July 1975, AA Grapevine
January 21, 2026 at 1:27 PM
January 21, 2026
“There is no you or me or them. Everything is connected and the salvation of each of us is linked to the salvation of all of us.”
“The Steps Are the Program,” Riverside, Illinois, July 1975, AA Grapevine
“There is no you or me or them. Everything is connected and the salvation of each of us is linked to the salvation of all of us.”
“The Steps Are the Program,” Riverside, Illinois, July 1975, AA Grapevine
132
Spot-Checking
A spot-check inventory taken in the midst of disturbances can be of very great help in quieting stormy emotions. Today's spot check finds its chief application to situations which arise in each day's march.
TWELVE AND TWELVE PP. 90-91
Spot-Checking
A spot-check inventory taken in the midst of disturbances can be of very great help in quieting stormy emotions. Today's spot check finds its chief application to situations which arise in each day's march.
TWELVE AND TWELVE PP. 90-91
January 21, 2026 at 1:24 PM
132
Spot-Checking
A spot-check inventory taken in the midst of disturbances can be of very great help in quieting stormy emotions. Today's spot check finds its chief application to situations which arise in each day's march.
TWELVE AND TWELVE PP. 90-91
Spot-Checking
A spot-check inventory taken in the midst of disturbances can be of very great help in quieting stormy emotions. Today's spot check finds its chief application to situations which arise in each day's march.
TWELVE AND TWELVE PP. 90-91
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20: Inside ourselves is a star, different, exciting, free, and fearless. All we need to do is set her free.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 20, 2026 at 1:35 PM
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20: Inside ourselves is a star, different, exciting, free, and fearless. All we need to do is set her free.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 20, 2026
“Regardless of worldly success or failure, regardless of pain or joy, regardless of sickness or health or even of death itself, a new life of endless possibilities can be lived if we are willing to continue our awakening, through the practice of AA’s Twelve Steps.”
Bill W.
“Regardless of worldly success or failure, regardless of pain or joy, regardless of sickness or health or even of death itself, a new life of endless possibilities can be lived if we are willing to continue our awakening, through the practice of AA’s Twelve Steps.”
Bill W.
January 20, 2026 at 1:33 PM
January 20, 2026
“Regardless of worldly success or failure, regardless of pain or joy, regardless of sickness or health or even of death itself, a new life of endless possibilities can be lived if we are willing to continue our awakening, through the practice of AA’s Twelve Steps.”
Bill W.
“Regardless of worldly success or failure, regardless of pain or joy, regardless of sickness or health or even of death itself, a new life of endless possibilities can be lived if we are willing to continue our awakening, through the practice of AA’s Twelve Steps.”
Bill W.
131
Obstacles in Our Path
We live in a world riddled with envy. Everybody is infected with it. From this defect we must surely get a warped yet definite satisfaction. Else why would we consume so much time wishing for what we have not, rather than working for it.
TWELVE AND TWELVE
1. P. 67
Obstacles in Our Path
We live in a world riddled with envy. Everybody is infected with it. From this defect we must surely get a warped yet definite satisfaction. Else why would we consume so much time wishing for what we have not, rather than working for it.
TWELVE AND TWELVE
1. P. 67
January 20, 2026 at 1:29 PM
131
Obstacles in Our Path
We live in a world riddled with envy. Everybody is infected with it. From this defect we must surely get a warped yet definite satisfaction. Else why would we consume so much time wishing for what we have not, rather than working for it.
TWELVE AND TWELVE
1. P. 67
Obstacles in Our Path
We live in a world riddled with envy. Everybody is infected with it. From this defect we must surely get a warped yet definite satisfaction. Else why would we consume so much time wishing for what we have not, rather than working for it.
TWELVE AND TWELVE
1. P. 67
MONDAY, JANUARY 19: Even if we aspire to become what we are not equipped to be—we will be better for simply having tried. It is not our degree of competence that counts. It is our degree of effort that makes the difference.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 19, 2026 at 2:05 PM
MONDAY, JANUARY 19: Even if we aspire to become what we are not equipped to be—we will be better for simply having tried. It is not our degree of competence that counts. It is our degree of effort that makes the difference.
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 19, 2026
“Humility is a personal achievement, it cannot be given away. It comes in glimmers and grows like an ice crystal. It is fragile, too, thus requiring constant care and protection.”
“Enjoying Anonymity,” Seattle, Washington, January 1992, The Home Group: Heartbeat of AA
“Humility is a personal achievement, it cannot be given away. It comes in glimmers and grows like an ice crystal. It is fragile, too, thus requiring constant care and protection.”
“Enjoying Anonymity,” Seattle, Washington, January 1992, The Home Group: Heartbeat of AA
January 19, 2026 at 2:02 PM
January 19, 2026
“Humility is a personal achievement, it cannot be given away. It comes in glimmers and grows like an ice crystal. It is fragile, too, thus requiring constant care and protection.”
“Enjoying Anonymity,” Seattle, Washington, January 1992, The Home Group: Heartbeat of AA
“Humility is a personal achievement, it cannot be given away. It comes in glimmers and grows like an ice crystal. It is fragile, too, thus requiring constant care and protection.”
“Enjoying Anonymity,” Seattle, Washington, January 1992, The Home Group: Heartbeat of AA
130
Our Problem Centers in the Mind
These observations would be academic and pointless if our friend never took the first drink, thereby setting the terrible cycle in motion. Therefore, the main problem of the alcoholic centers in his mind, rather than in his body.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, PP. 22-23
Our Problem Centers in the Mind
These observations would be academic and pointless if our friend never took the first drink, thereby setting the terrible cycle in motion. Therefore, the main problem of the alcoholic centers in his mind, rather than in his body.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, PP. 22-23
January 19, 2026 at 1:59 PM
130
Our Problem Centers in the Mind
These observations would be academic and pointless if our friend never took the first drink, thereby setting the terrible cycle in motion. Therefore, the main problem of the alcoholic centers in his mind, rather than in his body.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, PP. 22-23
Our Problem Centers in the Mind
These observations would be academic and pointless if our friend never took the first drink, thereby setting the terrible cycle in motion. Therefore, the main problem of the alcoholic centers in his mind, rather than in his body.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, PP. 22-23
SUNDAY, JANUARY 18: The real problem in life is when we accept what other people say we are. We learn not to change, not to try, not to begin all over again. But the poet Rumi says, “You were born with wings. Why prefer to crawl through life?”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 18, 2026 at 1:55 PM
SUNDAY, JANUARY 18: The real problem in life is when we accept what other people say we are. We learn not to change, not to try, not to begin all over again. But the poet Rumi says, “You were born with wings. Why prefer to crawl through life?”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 18, 2026
“I had been living too much alone, too much aloof from my fellows, and too deaf to that voice within.”
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., July 1946, “The Individual in Relation to AA As a Group”, The Language of the Heart
“I had been living too much alone, too much aloof from my fellows, and too deaf to that voice within.”
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., July 1946, “The Individual in Relation to AA As a Group”, The Language of the Heart
January 18, 2026 at 1:53 PM
January 18, 2026
“I had been living too much alone, too much aloof from my fellows, and too deaf to that voice within.”
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., July 1946, “The Individual in Relation to AA As a Group”, The Language of the Heart
“I had been living too much alone, too much aloof from my fellows, and too deaf to that voice within.”
AA Co-Founder, Bill W., July 1946, “The Individual in Relation to AA As a Group”, The Language of the Heart
129
The Way of Strength
We need not apologize to anyone for depending upon the Creator. We have good reason to disbelieve those who think spirituality is the way of weakness. For us, it is the way of strength.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 68
The Way of Strength
We need not apologize to anyone for depending upon the Creator. We have good reason to disbelieve those who think spirituality is the way of weakness. For us, it is the way of strength.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 68
January 18, 2026 at 1:48 PM
129
The Way of Strength
We need not apologize to anyone for depending upon the Creator. We have good reason to disbelieve those who think spirituality is the way of weakness. For us, it is the way of strength.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 68
The Way of Strength
We need not apologize to anyone for depending upon the Creator. We have good reason to disbelieve those who think spirituality is the way of weakness. For us, it is the way of strength.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, P. 68
SATURDAY, JANUARY 17: The truth is, however, that we have a choice: We either repeat or remake the labels we live under every sin-gle day. As Max De Pree puts it, “We cannot become what we want to be by remaining what we are.”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 17, 2026 at 2:46 PM
SATURDAY, JANUARY 17: The truth is, however, that we have a choice: We either repeat or remake the labels we live under every sin-gle day. As Max De Pree puts it, “We cannot become what we want to be by remaining what we are.”
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
The Monastic Way
By Joan Chittister
January 17, 2026
“Following a spiritual path has become increasingly essential to me. Contrary to my fear that taking Step Three would condemn me to a life of brave self-sacrifice, I find instead that it frees me to think and act as my truest self.”
Emotional Sobriety: The Next Frontier
“Following a spiritual path has become increasingly essential to me. Contrary to my fear that taking Step Three would condemn me to a life of brave self-sacrifice, I find instead that it frees me to think and act as my truest self.”
Emotional Sobriety: The Next Frontier
January 17, 2026 at 2:44 PM
January 17, 2026
“Following a spiritual path has become increasingly essential to me. Contrary to my fear that taking Step Three would condemn me to a life of brave self-sacrifice, I find instead that it frees me to think and act as my truest self.”
Emotional Sobriety: The Next Frontier
“Following a spiritual path has become increasingly essential to me. Contrary to my fear that taking Step Three would condemn me to a life of brave self-sacrifice, I find instead that it frees me to think and act as my truest self.”
Emotional Sobriety: The Next Frontier
128
Back to Work
A Wall Street business trip to Akron, Ohio, first brought me face to face with Dr. Bob. So the birth of A.A. hinged on my effort to meet my bread-and-butter responsibilities.
GRAPEVINE, AUGUST 1961
Back to Work
A Wall Street business trip to Akron, Ohio, first brought me face to face with Dr. Bob. So the birth of A.A. hinged on my effort to meet my bread-and-butter responsibilities.
GRAPEVINE, AUGUST 1961
January 17, 2026 at 2:42 PM
128
Back to Work
A Wall Street business trip to Akron, Ohio, first brought me face to face with Dr. Bob. So the birth of A.A. hinged on my effort to meet my bread-and-butter responsibilities.
GRAPEVINE, AUGUST 1961
Back to Work
A Wall Street business trip to Akron, Ohio, first brought me face to face with Dr. Bob. So the birth of A.A. hinged on my effort to meet my bread-and-butter responsibilities.
GRAPEVINE, AUGUST 1961
NEED A MEETING?
Kim S and Eric N are the speakers at 8pm on January 17th at The Saturday Night Speakers Meeting East, Kelsey Creek Church, 1221 148TH Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007
Kim S and Eric N are the speakers at 8pm on January 17th at The Saturday Night Speakers Meeting East, Kelsey Creek Church, 1221 148TH Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007
January 16, 2026 at 11:13 PM
NEED A MEETING?
Kim S and Eric N are the speakers at 8pm on January 17th at The Saturday Night Speakers Meeting East, Kelsey Creek Church, 1221 148TH Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007
Kim S and Eric N are the speakers at 8pm on January 17th at The Saturday Night Speakers Meeting East, Kelsey Creek Church, 1221 148TH Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007
