Bump in the Road

Bump: A blow; light collision; jolt; a swelling or lump, especially one caused by a blow.

I'm not a big fan of the bumpy ride. I don't care much for bumps in the road. And when I say "bump," which is a pretty cute word, I really mean "pain," a far nastier concept that comes in the door with a lot of baggage. I don't care for pain. I spent my entire drinking career trying to dance out of the way of any unpleasantness. All is fair in love and war, and in the avoidance of pain for an active alcoholic. And when I say "active alcoholic," I mean an alcoholic who is alive. I've been sober for a while and I'm still prone to hiding in the bushes when I see any pain lurking on the horizon.

Our literature suggests that we like the idea of spiritual growth and a strong moral foundation but would prefer that this would happen magically. We want our Higher Power, and when I say "Higher Power," I mean the Wizard of Oz, to sprinkle some morality dust on us. We want to be good without any work. We don't want to get off the couch. We want to be struck good.

We're holding out as long as we can in case in turns out that we can get better, painlessly.