The 4th Step

 

THAT'S WHEN THEY BECAME A SOURCE OF VALUABLE INFORMATION INSTEAD OF SHAME.

And the beauty of it was, the more I brought my greatest shortcomings into the light, the less power they had over me, until they eventually lost most of their emotional charge.

Me: "How will I know if I've done my 4th Step right?" Sponsor: "Be searching, fearless, and moral. If not, what hasn't been searched will find you, and you'll get to take another run at it." She couldn't have been more correct. I wasn't ready to look deeply into my past the first time through my 4th Step. Or the second time. The third time was a bit of a charm, because I was finally ready to rid myself of the guilt and remorse that was holding me back from realizing a better version of life.