Am I One of Them?

 Dear Reader,

Today while reading AA’s Daily Reflection, I found myself remembering my early days of recovery. Back then, I often asked, “How do you know if you are an alcoholic or not?” It is my experience that many of us, in one way or another, have faced that same question: “Am I one of them?”

With the years, after countless meetings, sponsoring others, and serving where I could, I’ve come to accept that I do indeed fit the profile. The real challenge, however, is not just recognizing that truth but choosing to stay close to the fellowship. As we often hear, it is safest to remain “in the middle of the herd.” When someone begins to feel they are no longer “one of them,” troubles soon follow. Too many times, I have watched friends drift away, only to slip back into the grip of alcoholism — some never making it back. Just this week I heard of one such loss, a life cut short after a return to drinking and drugs.

In moments like these, I turn to scripture and to wisdom beyond myself. Ruth once said to Naomi, “Thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God” (Ruth 1:16). In her words, I hear the heartbeat of belonging — the courage to declare, “Yes, I am one of them.”

In the AA Big Book, I find a similar truth: “We are people who normally would not mix. But there exists among us a fellowship, a friendliness, and an understanding which is indescribably wonderful” (p. 17). What unites us is not sameness but shared purpose, and the grace of walking together.

Philosophy echoes this need as well. C.S. Lewis once wrote, “The next best thing to being wise oneself is to live in a circle of those who are.” To belong is to be shaped and strengthened by the community we choose to keep.

And in the Book of Mormon, Alma asked his people if they were “willing to stand as witnesses of God at all times, and in all things” (Mosiah 18:9). Belonging to Christ’s church has never been a passive identity; it is an active covenant to live, serve, and stand together in faith.

Whether in scripture, recovery, or daily life, the question “Am I one of them?” is answered not by perfection but by willingness — the willingness to show up, to carry burdens, to share joy, and to let ourselves be part of something larger than our own struggles.