Remember RIF?
fundamental, adj. Pertaining to a foundation or basis; essential; primary: n. a primary or essential principle; basis.
Does anyone remember RIF? You know, reading is fundamental. Well, I do. It started in 1966 with a retired teacher in Washington, DC. Now it’s in all 50 states, a few of our territories and several other locations and it helps poor/disadvantaged children to have access to books because reading is a fundamental part of the learning process. My point is that someone realized that the ability to read is a valuable asset/resource and that the availability of books to help nurture this ability is essential.
For me NA (and AA, CA and all of the other anonymous and 12 step related programs out there) is like RIF for recovering addicts in that they recognize the importance of literature on the topic of 12 step related programs to help nurture recovery. Therefore, anyone seeking recovery who attends any of these types of meetings is never turned down for [available] literature they wish to have, but may not have the ability to pay for at the time. The anonymous programs I am familiar with realize that there is nothing more effective than the power of one addict helping another and this is one of the many ways in which they do this.
Yes going to meetings, attaining and utilizing a sponsor and a support network and working on your steps [with a sponsor] are also essential, but to me reading is like nothing else. When we [that are active in our recovery and our home groups and service work] provide reading material it may be what gets through to someone when nothing else can. Or, it may be all that is available to a person seeking recovery.
For instance, when I was in the general population of prison we didn’t have access to recovery related meetings (you had to be in the rehabilitation program to access that sort of thing), but every now and then we would get our hands on some recovery related reading material. Whether the supervisor of the rehab program provided it to our unit (cell block) or some compassionate guard (perhaps themselves an addict) slipped it to us it was widely coveted.
Everyone in the unit wanted to have it in their cell to read and re-read at their leisure, but we knew we had to share otherwise someone would end up complaining to a guard, or there might even be a fight over it and then it would simply get taken away and none of us would have it. No one wanted that.
I think what made the books and literature so attractive to us was that there was something that each of us could identify with somewhere within the text. No matter how different we purported to be we could all find common ground with something or someone in that literature and for some of us it was the first step on the road to recovery.
The other great thing about the literature is that it’s not just for addicts. Even if the reader is not an addict they may identify with the situation/predicament that the writer is/was in. I feel that the stories and messages delivered in the literature can be applied to many lives and used to help improve many situations, and (if nothing else) that someone may at least find a glimmer of hope that helps them carry on for one more day, and one more day, and one more day until they find their break through.
Christine C. (me)
Anonymous Cafe 
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