The blessings of sticking around
Life the gift of recovery!
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Home is where the heart is
Posts: 7,061
The blessings of sticking around
I thought that I would share something positive that happened because of the program of AA.
On Thursday I reached 7 years of sobriety. My home group meets on Wednesday so I couldn't celebrate until next Wednesday as my sponsor would not allow me to celebrate early even if it was just by one day. I have another meeting I go to periodically (every week or two) that meets on Friday evenings. The meeting tends to have a lot of old timers in it, for example, 3 weeks ago there was a woman there with 50 years, a woman with 40years, a man with 25 years, and several more people with greater than 20 years sobriety. The meeting also attracts newcomers as there are usually several people there with less than 60 days.
So to get to the moral of the story. I showed up last night. Was actually running late for the meeting because the 3 other people I go with and I stopped for dinner so we arrived at 7:58 and the meeting was to start at 8 pm. A man that I have known through meetings since I was about 2 years sober came up to me, gave me a hug and said "I heard you were chairing for your birthday, congrats" I trying to be funny because I thought he was joking about the chairing thing said "but you didn't bring me a cake," (he normally provides the birthday cakes for that meetings). I felt a little embarassed when he said "I didn't because Kathy did." Kathy the most spiritual person I have ever met. I did my first 5th step with her. She has always had an intuition and a connection with me that I have never completely understood. I can be thinking of her after not having talked to her for months and the next thing I know I either recieve something in the mail from her or a phone call. There have been times when she was struggling that I although I didn't know she was struggling felt the pull to call her only to find out that the call was exactly what she needed at that time. This by the way is the lady with 40 years sobriety. So I looked over at her and see there is a cake in front of her. Come to find out that they not even knowing if I would be there that night as it is a meeting that I am sporadic in attendence of, waited till the meeting was ready to start hoping I would show up to chair and share my birthday with them.
It was a very humbling event for me. I have days when I wonder about the fellowship of AA. But here several people, some that barely knew me, that thought enough of someone celebrating a birthday to wait in hope I would be there to share with them. My faith has once again been renewed in the fellowship and the people of AA. I have had struggles with trusting people since long before I got sober. Today I am a little more trusting because of the fellowship of those people. This has been the most blessed birthday I have had in sobriety between the wonderful wishes I recieved here at SR and the reception I recieved last night. I once again am reassured that AA works, even people that normally would not mix wind up finding a common connection through AA.
Thank you SR!
On Thursday I reached 7 years of sobriety. My home group meets on Wednesday so I couldn't celebrate until next Wednesday as my sponsor would not allow me to celebrate early even if it was just by one day. I have another meeting I go to periodically (every week or two) that meets on Friday evenings. The meeting tends to have a lot of old timers in it, for example, 3 weeks ago there was a woman there with 50 years, a woman with 40years, a man with 25 years, and several more people with greater than 20 years sobriety. The meeting also attracts newcomers as there are usually several people there with less than 60 days.
So to get to the moral of the story. I showed up last night. Was actually running late for the meeting because the 3 other people I go with and I stopped for dinner so we arrived at 7:58 and the meeting was to start at 8 pm. A man that I have known through meetings since I was about 2 years sober came up to me, gave me a hug and said "I heard you were chairing for your birthday, congrats" I trying to be funny because I thought he was joking about the chairing thing said "but you didn't bring me a cake," (he normally provides the birthday cakes for that meetings). I felt a little embarassed when he said "I didn't because Kathy did." Kathy the most spiritual person I have ever met. I did my first 5th step with her. She has always had an intuition and a connection with me that I have never completely understood. I can be thinking of her after not having talked to her for months and the next thing I know I either recieve something in the mail from her or a phone call. There have been times when she was struggling that I although I didn't know she was struggling felt the pull to call her only to find out that the call was exactly what she needed at that time. This by the way is the lady with 40 years sobriety. So I looked over at her and see there is a cake in front of her. Come to find out that they not even knowing if I would be there that night as it is a meeting that I am sporadic in attendence of, waited till the meeting was ready to start hoping I would show up to chair and share my birthday with them.
It was a very humbling event for me. I have days when I wonder about the fellowship of AA. But here several people, some that barely knew me, that thought enough of someone celebrating a birthday to wait in hope I would be there to share with them. My faith has once again been renewed in the fellowship and the people of AA. I have had struggles with trusting people since long before I got sober. Today I am a little more trusting because of the fellowship of those people. This has been the most blessed birthday I have had in sobriety between the wonderful wishes I recieved here at SR and the reception I recieved last night. I once again am reassured that AA works, even people that normally would not mix wind up finding a common connection through AA.
Thank you SR!
Guest
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Southern New Hampshire
Posts: 746
Great Post,
One of the bittersweet blessings of being in program for any length of time is the experience. We see people we get close to fall, but we will also see people recover, broken lives rebuilt, families reunited, men and women made whole again, sound of mine and contributing to the world from a place of love. This is the good stuff, to be a part of it is indescribably wonderful. The authors of the Big Book were right on. "This is an experience you must not miss
One of the bittersweet blessings of being in program for any length of time is the experience. We see people we get close to fall, but we will also see people recover, broken lives rebuilt, families reunited, men and women made whole again, sound of mine and contributing to the world from a place of love. This is the good stuff, to be a part of it is indescribably wonderful. The authors of the Big Book were right on. "This is an experience you must not miss
Life the gift of recovery!
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Home is where the heart is
Posts: 7,061
Left out one of the best parts. The lady that took me to my first meeting, introduced me to AA, took me to 90 in 90, bought me my first Big Book & 12 x 12 was at the meeting. It was wonderful to see her and be able to say thank you.
It`s ok to stay sober
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Central NC
Posts: 20,902
nandm
happy anniversity!
May you grow in happiness, love,peace and service!
funny you mentioned trusting.I went to a concept <concept 3>meeting today and we talked some about trusting,very good meeting.
when the oldtimers told us to keep coming back,they was just trying to keep it simple.They knew if we did keep coming back,we might have days like you had,and as Rob said,we won`t wanna miss them!
thank you for being here and sharing your life with us.
happy anniversity!
May you grow in happiness, love,peace and service!
funny you mentioned trusting.I went to a concept <concept 3>meeting today and we talked some about trusting,very good meeting.
when the oldtimers told us to keep coming back,they was just trying to keep it simple.They knew if we did keep coming back,we might have days like you had,and as Rob said,we won`t wanna miss them!
thank you for being here and sharing your life with us.
Follow Directions!
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fredericksburg, Va.
Posts: 9,730
I love reading post like this, I love celebrations, they give me hope and strength, when I hear them speak of working the steps and how living them have allowed them to not only stay sober, but to be happy, joyous and free, it gives me hope in knowing that I am following that path that they followed to get to where they are at.
Congrats on 7 years Nandm, your ESH of having worked and live the steps give me what I need today to stay sober, thank you.
Congrats on 7 years Nandm, your ESH of having worked and live the steps give me what I need today to stay sober, thank you.
Currently Active Users Viewing this Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
