Column #2 of the classic four column process, the facts that caused you to think of the name in Column #1 of the grudge list. Just the facts.
In my experience it is important to stick to the facts of the situation or actions associated with the name in Column #1. Either something that they did, something you did, or something that happened. Facts that can be seen and heard. Why is that name on your grudge list? That is all.
grudge list
Writing the Name
The first part of the process is writing a grudge list, so-called by Bill Wilson in the Big Book.
As mentioned in the earlier notes, in working on the grudge list, I write the names, nothing more. I don’t ask why a name comes to mind; I just write it down. It is sufficient that the name comes to mind. As I sit with pen and paper, I let my mind flow in a stream of consciousness. I let the names tumble out, I know I will get to the ‘why’ of the name on my grudge list later; for now, I just let the names flow in a brain dump. Write a couple of names and get the juices started, then let it roll. I don’t spend hours and hours, just a few minutes a day. Once I start, it flows out. Find a system that works for you and start it.
Inventory of Principles
In our moral and personal inventories, we are instructed to create a Grudge List with people, institutions and principles that make us angry or make us sore. People were not a problem. I had many difficult people that I could add to an inventory ‘Grudge List.’ And similarly, institutions. They were a cinch – CRA, RCMP, churches. There were lots of institutions that I could name and blame.