I wanted a vanity license plate for a long time. I knew it would cost more than a regular license plate and for many years I couldn’t justify the cost AND I couldn’t think of what I would put on the plate.  By the time I thought of what I wanted to put on the plate, I still had 7 years before I would HAVE to get a new plate, so I just didn’t do anything at all.

I have had friends in the program who have custom car plates. One said SOURCE – the word he used for his higher power. Another says OHW for Open, Honest, and Willing. And another said RULE 62 (Don’t take yourself so seriously).

I wanted my plate to help me remember the message whenever I saw it. Then I moved to Arizonia. I wanted to move, was excited to move and yet also second guessing myself about whether it was the right thing to do. I was anxious and worried a lot. I realized what I was missing was trusting my higher power. So here I was in the new state, needing to register my car, get a new license and a new license plate. I knew what to get: TRUSTHP.

Sometimes in a parking lot someone will ask me what it means – they get the TRUST part but not the HP – I just say what it means and if they look confused, I say “God”. Most times they say “Oh” – I wonder what idea they have about me but then I let it go. Some say – “great”. My AA friends get it right away.

A few weeks ago, I was talking to a new friend here. She isn’t in recovery but enjoys learning about the spiritual things I am about.  She called me one day and said, “I saw you on the freeway!” “How did you know it was me?” “I saw your license plate and it was just what I needed to see and know right then.”

She had been worrying about many things and saw my plate and smiled. She said she knew then that everything would be alright and that it was a God Shot for her (I had told her about my love of God Shots and how they come so often and when needed if we will be open to them.)  For me that day, having her call and tell me about seeing my license plate was also a God shot for me! I had thought that the message on my car license plate was just for me – now I knew that it could be a message of trust perhaps for everyone who sees it. Libbie S.