Our Friend

We lost another dear friend today, in her forties.  She was sober for the last year of her life.  But we do so much damage sometimes, that this disease gets us anyway.  I know what thing about our friend, once she got this deal there was no middle of the road solution for her anymore, she took the actions required to recover.

How many people must come into our meetings and not get to hear the solution as outlined in the first 164 pages of the big book.  How many do we send away to suffer and die while we tell our war stories and try to make ourselves out to be the meanest, toughest, drunks on the planet.  How many leave because they think they must not be alcoholic because they didn't drink around the clock 24/7.  How many leave disgusted because they didn't get violent, or drive drunk, or do any of that crap.  Thousands, that's how many.

Absolute arrogance, absolute selfishness, we could share hope, we could show them the solution, we could get them connected to God, but we must tell our story it is so friggin important.

Or just as bad.  "Well today was a pretty crappy day, I kicked my cat, my fan belt broke, some jerk pulled in front of me.  Hey I cheated my taxes, my wife, and my employer, but I didn't drink.  I may tomorrow but not today..."

Or "I came to three meetings today, I have to stay in these meetings, I'm safe here... I am powerless over people, places and things. Those normal people out there will make me drink.  But when it gets to crazy I just come to a meeting and spew all my crap out on the table and it makes me feel better."  Sometimes I can't even stay sober one hour at a time sometimes it is one second at a time"  But I haven't drank for 37 years...

The book says selfishness and self-centeredness is the root of my problem.  It says it's main purpose is to show other alcoholics precisely how we have recovered.  If you "share" in meetings in the above ways then please don't introduce yourself as recovered cause you're not.

And if you have stayed sober for multiple years without working the steps and having a spiritual awakening then please rethink introducing yourself as an alcoholic, cause your not...  Perhaps you can join selfish self-centered asses anonymous (SSCAA), cause you are...

You want to gripe at me and tell me I am not being loving and tolerant, go ahead... I love the new comers enough to tolerate them while they learn the Truth.

AA is deadly serious, please don't take up any more valuable meeting time with your opinions.  If it doesn't match up with the first 164 pages of the big book perhaps you should consider sharing that at a SSCAA meeting...

And to our dear friend your story will live on and the peace and dignity with which you passed will be remembered by us...

Love and Peace...

Jerry