Recovery Stew

I heard a member share today on how he viewed the Steps
A take I’d never heard before concerning their concept
He told us how, when first he tried, to comprehend their meaning
He could not wait to do them all, impatience intervening

He thought a month should do the trick, was anxious to begin
His sponsor listened patiently and then began to grin
The Steps take time, don’t try to rush, they’re numbered for a reason
The Second Step will do no good without the First’s completion

You mean, he said, I have to do this one Step at a time
Why can’t I just combine a few, would that be such a crime
The sponsor said, there’ll come a day, when all twelve will be used
For now, just take one at a time and you won’t get confused

He did what he was asked to do, each Step he had completed
It took almost a year and knew not one had been deleted
So, after doing number Twelve, he thought his work was done
Again, his sponsor grinned at him and said, “you’ve just begun

I made you look at every Step as though it stood alone
But truth be told, they’re intertwined, and now that you have grown
You’ll see they’re all a part of where our Program wants to leads
You may not use each every day, but use the one you need

The member pondered what he’d heard, and if those words were true
The Steps are like a melting pot, a warm vegetable stew
The stew is filled with things we want, like carrots, spuds and peas
Each one holds its own nourishment, our hungriness to cease

Some days the stew may have more peas, on other more potatoes
Or onions, celery, garlic cloves or even green tomatoes
Alone each one does not do much to curb or appetite
But place them all in a big pot, you get a true delight

The Steps are very similar, they complement each other
Each one is an ingredient, that helps us to recover
The first three make the water boil and start us on our way
Then enter in the other six, our defects to display

With ten through twelve our stew’s been cooked and we sit down to eat
We do but know we’ll need some more, this process to repeat
The stew we enjoyed yesterday has long since gone away
We need to make another batch, our hunger to defray

Both recipes are good for us, they keep us in control
The one helps keep our bodies fit, the other ones our soul
And as I pondered what he said my understanding grew
I’d glad I have those twelve great Steps to put into my stew

Larry R.