"Why try?" we sometimes ask ourselves when faced with the uncertainties and hard work of recovery. But the answers are all around us, in the rich and spirited lives of those who have made the journey before us, each one a member of the joyful possibilities that await. These possibilities come alive in Gifts of Sobriety, a book that gives immediate meaning to the Big Book's promise: "We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness." In this book Gifts of Sobriety, those who have freed themselves of alcohol or drug addiction share the gifts that sobriety has given them. Their stories are, in turn, a gift—for those who have made the journey and for those who, just embarking, seek gladdening news of the good life to come.

Barbara S. Cole, for many years a drug and alcohol professional with the Betty Ford Center, now works as a psychotherapist in private practice. She lives in Studio City, California.