“You cannot tell a book by its cover.”
Book covers are designed to urge us to purchase books, so we are often surprised when we read them.
In the rooms of AA, we are used to books not reading like their covers or people who are not as they appear.
It was a birthday celebration; our AA brother was taking his three-year chip. The celebrant and his sponsor took the podium.
The sponsor was a tough biker in full costume, leather and boots—a large man with long hair and a dark wind-blown complexion. If you looked at this book’s cover, you would not expect a spiritual read.
After introducing himself, he introduced his sponsee as a spiritual seeker, reaching out to serve whenever possible. He described seeing the young man demonstrate love and compassion. He ended his remarks by quoting from memory verses describing love from 1st Corinthians. His unsalty language and spiritual references were surprising.
Books are not the covers.
Then, the sponsee took the podium. He was dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. Unlike his burly and tanned sponsor, he was thin with an ashen complexion. Tattoos covered his bare arms and snaked up his neck and face. His ‘ink’ was supplemented by multiple piercings. It was easy to imagine him running a parlour. Like the sponsor, this book cover did not reflect the read.
With a quiet, clear, and calm voice, again with polite language, he thanked his sponsor and the Program for showing him a loving God and told how he prayed and meditated daily to seek God’s will. He described the peace and joy he found in spiritual growth and following a spiritual path.
With books, there can be a surprise within a surprise. A book differing from its cover can surprise, as can two books on the same bookshelf. Continuing the book-man analogy, looking at these men individually, one would not have expected either to hold high spiritual values; looking at them together, one would not have predicted a close sponsor-sponsee connection.
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LOVE THIS!!!❤️
Thanks Gisele, counting the days to Stateline.