Let's begin with the basics. Reinhold Niebuhr wrote the prayer that, in a slightly modified form, is used the world over by 12-step programs. I first encountered it hanging in the kitchen of the house where I grew up because my father is a (recovering) alcoholic. But, before I go into the "Everything I Need to Know I Learned" part, let's read the original Serenity Prayer:

The Serenity Prayer
written by Reinhold Niebuhr (1892-1971)
Original, unabridged version

---

God, give us grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed,
courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.
Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
Amen.

• There are things I cannot change
• There are things I can change, indeed that I need to change that I may not want to because I am afraid that change will hurt
• There is a way to distinguish between what cannot be changed and what needs to be changed
• That life must be lived for today
• Hardships can teach me things, once I get past the hardship and can look back on the path I have trod and see that I have moved forward.
• I need to take the world as it exists rather than the dream world that I would rather live in and that the above points can help me move the real world toward what I wish it were.
• There is something more to this life than this life.

Peace, gentle readers

Let's begin with the basics. Reinhold Niebuhr wrote the prayer that, in a slightly modified form, is used the world over by 12-step programs. I first encountered it hanging in the kitchen of the house where I grew up because my father is a (recovering) alcoholic. But, before I go into the "Everything I Need to Know I Learned" part, let's read the original Serenity Prayer:

The Serenity Prayer
written by Reinhold Niebuhr (1892-1971)
Original, unabridged version

---

God, give us grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed,
courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.
Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
Amen.

• There are things I cannot change
• There are things I can change, indeed that I need to change that I may not want to because I am afraid that change will hurt
• There is a way to distinguish between what cannot be changed and what needs to be changed
• That life must be lived for today
• Hardships can teach me things, once I get past the hardship and can look back on the path I have trod and see that I have moved forward.
• I need to take the world as it exists rather than the dream world that I would rather live in and that the above points can help me move the real world toward what I wish it were.
• There is something more to this life than this life.

Peace, gentle readers