Alcoholism respects no ifs.
It does not go away, not for a week, for a day,
or even for an hour, leaving us nonalcoholic
and able to drink again on some special occasion
or for some extraordinary reason --
not even if it is a once-in-a-lifetime celebration,
or if a big sorrow hits us,
or if it rains in Spain or the stars fall on Alabama.
Alcoholism is for us unconditional,
with no dispensations available at any price.
I would rather go through life sober,
believing I am an alcoholic, than go through life drunk,
trying to convince myself that I am not.
A A = Absolute Abstinence.