Silly Joke Friday

Silly Joke #1

Dad: “I taught my kids a lot about democracy tonight by having them vote on which movie to watch and what pizza to order.”
Dad’s best friend: “That must have been a really great learning time for them I’m guessing?”
Dad: “Totally! Especially when I picked the movie and pizza and told them it was because I’m the one with the money.”

Silly Joke #2

A little old lady goes to the doctor and says, “Doctor, I have this problem with gas, but it doesn’t really bother me too much. They never smell and are always silent. As a matter of fact, I think I’ve farted at least a few times since I’ve been here in your office. You wouldn’t know I was farting because they really don’t smell and are totally silent.” The doctor says, “I see. Here’s a prescription. Make sure to take this 3 times a day for seven days and come back and see me next week.” The next week the lady goes back. “Doctor,” she says, “I don’t know what the hell you gave me, but now my farts … although still silent… stink terribly.” The doctor says, “Good! Now that we’ve cleared up your sinuses, let’s start working on your hearing.”

Silly Joke #3

An absent-minded husband thought he had conquered his problem of trying to remember his wife’s birthday and their anniversary. To try to fix that, he opened an account with a florist, provided that florist with both dates and instructions to send flowers to his wife on those precise dates along with an appropriate note signed, “Your loving husband.” His wife was thrilled by this new display of attention and all went well until one day, when he came home, kissed his wife and said offhandedly, “Nice flowers, honey. Where’d you get them?”

Bonus Silly Joke

Two parents took their 5-year-old son Little Johnny, who always says the most inappropriate of things, on a summer vacation and went to the beach nearby one day, only realizing once they got there it was actually a nude beach. They decided to stay as they felt it would be a great learning lesson for Little Johnny. The father went for a walk on the beach while Little Johnny dashed into the water and began playing in the waves. Not too long after he came running back to his mom and says…”Mommy, Mommy, I saw ladies with boobies a lot bigger than yours!!!” The mom replied, “Well son, the bigger they are, the dumber they are!” Little Johnny shrugged his shoulders and then ran back into the water to play in the waves again. Several minutes later he was back and says, “Mommy, Mommy, I just saw men with huge dingy’s so much bigger than daddy’s!” The mom replied, “The bigger they are, the dumber they are dear!” Little Johnny shrugged his shoulders again and quickly left to go play in the waves once more. A few minutes later he was back yet again and says, “Mommy, Mommy, I just saw daddy talking to the dumbest lady I’ve ever seen and the more and more he talked, the dumber and dumber he got too!!!”

Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson

Question For The Day

Today’s question is…

What is the most fulfilling volunteer position you’ve ever had in life thus far?

Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson


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How An Addict Goes From A Life Of Taking To A Life Of Giving…

Most addicts, no matter what their addiction, are inherently takers rather than givers. They tend to use people more than help people. And when push comes to shove, getting any help from them, be prepared for them to either hold it over your head at some point down the way, or ask for something in return immediately upon completion. On my journey through 12 Step recovery over the years, I’ve learned one of the main goals of the 12 Step process is all about moving a person away from living this life of selfish taking into living a life of selfless giving.

Fifteen years ago, when I first walked into the rooms of recovery with 12 years clean and sober from alcohol and drugs. I was essentially a dry drunk/addict who was still completely selfish and self-centered, always doing things for others for a price, a price that always benefitted me somehow. When my first sponsor took me under her wing though, I began to be guided away from this behavior, as she directed me to volunteer at the AA headquarters in downtown Boston answering calls on their hotline for a 4-hour shift. I did it initially begrudgingly because I just wanted to appease her. What I didn’t know though was how much that volunteer job would change my life forever, as it taught me the invaluableness of helping another without asking for anything in return. It became a regular occurrence on those calls to help so many in desperation, many just looking for a friend so they didn’t feel so alone in what they were going through, and some simply asking me to pray with them. I saw how much that service made a difference, both in their lives, and in mine with my heart feeling a lot fuller. Ever since then, I’ve consistently been more on the path of service, one that continues to help me move further and further away from a selfish taker to more of a selfless giver.

What giving translates to in the 12 Step recovery realm often begins with taking on a simple position in a home group like making coffee before the meeting starts or just setting up chairs. Eventually it can lead to other service work in the greater recovery community such as serving on a committee. It also can mean sponsoring others and going on commitments to places where people are still suffering from addiction. It can even mean starting your own 12 Step meeting. Beyond the 12 Step recovery realm, it can mean just being more of service to your partner or friends, saying yes, more than no, and having no hidden agenda or angle. Overall, this is the primary objective of 12 Step recovery beyond remaining clean and sober. That is to learn how to live a life of freely giving of oneself rather than living a life of constantly taking from others.

I sincerely believe I’m doing a pretty decent job at this now, but that certainly didn’t happen overnight. It took years of following the advice of others in 12 Step recovery who had been on the recovery journey far longer. It’s because of what they taught me why I do so much service work now. Many newcomers often ask me why I continue to do it as much as I do with 27 years now clean and sober and the answer is simple. I do it because there’s far greater satisfaction in life when giving of oneself without ever asking for anything in return, then in taking for oneself and always wanting something more.

Living as a taker is a dead-end existence, one that leaves the soul feeling so very empty in the long run. But living as a giver transforms the mind and the body into an existence where life can feel far lighter and far brighter, something I’ve come to see quite a bit more as I continue working on selfless giving more than selfish taking…

Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson