Dear Essay readers:

When we arrive at our first SA meeting, the motivation is almost always a mix of fear and of pain. That’s what it takes to get our attention, it seems. When we sit in an SA meeting and identify with the shares of one another, the realization dawns that we can find freedom from the pain and the fears. Eventually, if we keep coming back, that awareness of freedom and serenity become more important than getting away from the pain and fears. Thus, the challenges that bring us into SA become the gifts of a new life.

Our goal as your editors is for the Essay to be similar enough to a meeting that you can find stories with which to identify and to hear hope to keep you coming back. The Warm Weather articles, the Meditations and Basics and Practical Tools sections focus on those goals. Let us know how we are doing — and send along your writings and comments to help us do better. Progress, not perfection, is a shared experience.