Got to thinking this morning about what other things, events, books, people and sources have had great influences on the path of my sobriety beyond the steps, fellowship and sponsorship. I've kissed a lot of frogs in the recovery, self help and spiritual arenas over 27 years of 'seeking' but here are some of the gems:

• Emmet Fox - Sermon on the Mount was huge for me. Early groups in AA leaned heavily on this book before the Big Book was written. In many ways it takes the principles I first learned in AA and double dog dared me to live them much deeper.

• The poem Desiderata has been a favorite guide for me throughout my sobriety. Its written in a way that always calms me and points me in the right direction, no matter my life's circumstance.

• Eckhart Tolle's - The Power of Now was a fabulous validation of many of the conclusions I'd come to at about 22 years of sober work. What I got out of it was 'Yes! You're on the right path. Now lets move forward!'

• A staple around the rooms from where I hail has been Gibran's - The Prophet. Very similar to Desiderata in his outlook and style but much more fleshed out and broken into digestible bites.

• A decade back I hit a wall with several areas of my life that I'd beaten to death with a sponsor and steps and simply couldnt make any further progress with. Psychiatrist Carolyn Brothers worked with me for 18 months on death, molestation, adoption/abandonment and diabetes in a great, non-passive way that made me look at my loyalty to these things as my identity, ultimately freeing me in ways that have really rocketed my life and recovery.

So what 'non-AA approved' resources have you discovered along your path that really made a difference in your recovery?