Suppose two men with the same disease visit different doctors.

The first man's doctor tells him, "You're suffering from X. The reason for your suffering from X is that your body is generating insufficient Y, which almost always results in a deficiency of Z."

The second man's doctor doesn't tell him anything. She examines him, and says, "You'll get better if you exercise twenty minutes three times a week, cut down on the sugar and caffeine, and take these pills for a month."

Which man will get well?

Obviously, it's the second man, the man who is told what to do -- even though he doesn't know exactly what is wrong with him. The first man has some understanding of what his problem is, but that knowledge -- unless accompanied by action -- will avail him nothing.

We may know many people in Program who have been in recovery for many years, who still suffer from low-grade misery, and who suspect why that is happening. But very few of them begin to practice the last three Steps on a meaningful daily basis. Meanwhile we see newcomers to Program with only a hazy notion of the last three Steps who nevertheless start to meditate, to practice moment-by-moment inventory, and attempt to practice what they are learning in all their affairs.

Who starts to get well -- the old-timers who know why they're not feeling so good, or the newcomers who work the last three Steps?