Recently I took a step out of my comfort zone and visited a local Alcoholics Anonymous meeting ( to be referred to as AA going forward). Before walking through the door I decided I at least wanted to have some actual knowledge of what I was getting myself into. “Alcoholics Anonymous is an international fellowship of men and women who have had a drinking problem. It is nonprofessional, self-supporting, multiracial, apolitical, and available almost everywhere. There are no age or education requirements. Membership is open to anyone who wants to do something about his or her drinking problem.” With my preliminary research complete, I tried to go in with an open mind, but I’ll be the first to admit I had many preconceived notions of what I was
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I was also asked to read a statement, basically requesting that I maintain the anonymity of the groups patrons, which I agreed to do of course. They began the meeting with the leader asking, “Is there anyone coming back today?” I did not understand this question until someone explained it to me at the end of the meeting. It is asking “Did anyone go out drinking last night and come back to the meeting today?” If anyone raises their hand they stick to steps 1 - 3 for that meeting. Why? Because bringing that person back is a major goal of each and every meeting. They recited the “Serenity Prayer”, read the 12 steps. 1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable. 2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. 3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him. 4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. 5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. 6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character. 7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings. 8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all. 9. Made direct amends to such people wherever …show more content…
It’s not an instant cure or bandaid fix to cover the pain. It helps people deal with the heart of the problem. It helps people to see who they are and what they have done and how to overcome that. Everyone leaves with a new sense of hope and renewed faith that they can get through the next 24 hours without taking a drink or doing their out of choice. They know and understand that everyone in the room faces the same demons that they do every single day. I heard several people say “I come here and know that I’m not alone.” There was a sense of family exuded by everyone at the meeting I really did feel as though everyone there genuinely wanted to see each other succeed. I witnessed members both new and old sharing their bond with one another, warm embraces, exchanging of phone numbers to offer further support before they parted ways. Clearly these people live the mantra of “no man is a mountain” they build each other up and offer support like I have never witnessed
I was also asked to read a statement, basically requesting that I maintain the anonymity of the groups patrons, which I agreed to do of course. They began the meeting with the leader asking, “Is there anyone coming back today?” I did not understand this question until someone explained it to me at the end of the meeting. It is asking “Did anyone go out drinking last night and come back to the meeting today?” If anyone raises their hand they stick to steps 1 - 3 for that meeting. Why? Because bringing that person back is a major goal of each and every meeting. They recited the “Serenity Prayer”, read the 12 steps. 1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable. 2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. 3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him. 4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. 5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. 6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character. 7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings. 8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all. 9. Made direct amends to such people wherever …show more content…
It’s not an instant cure or bandaid fix to cover the pain. It helps people deal with the heart of the problem. It helps people to see who they are and what they have done and how to overcome that. Everyone leaves with a new sense of hope and renewed faith that they can get through the next 24 hours without taking a drink or doing their out of choice. They know and understand that everyone in the room faces the same demons that they do every single day. I heard several people say “I come here and know that I’m not alone.” There was a sense of family exuded by everyone at the meeting I really did feel as though everyone there genuinely wanted to see each other succeed. I witnessed members both new and old sharing their bond with one another, warm embraces, exchanging of phone numbers to offer further support before they parted ways. Clearly these people live the mantra of “no man is a mountain” they build each other up and offer support like I have never witnessed