there is life after alcoholic recovery. alcoholic recovery started in 96

In the early days of my alcoholic recovery, it was all about just staying sober. I would work every day and go to an alcoholic anonymous meeting at nightt. I had found in my early alcoholic recovery that I would hit a meeting every night and 2 on the weekends (9 or 10 alcoholic anonymous meetings a week). That is what it took for me, I was not the only one hitting that many meetings. There were a number of us new in the program and trying to stay sober. Some would make it a week , a month, 6 weeks and stop going to meetings and then get drunk. I watched them, I know. I finally made it to 90 days.

I told my sponsor,( the man who I called to help me) “if all I have to do is pray to a God I don’t know in the morning asking to keep me sober, work 8 hours and go to one of those meetings at night and say thank you to a God I Don’t know at night and feel this good , I think I will do it the rest of my life”

It was a blessing when I sobered up. I was in AA heaven, there was a meeting with in 20 miles every night of the week. There was a phone list I could call and they would answer the phone. I was welcomed with open arms. They told me things like, keep coming back and that they would love me until I would love my self. It was not even two weeks and they got me into service work. The Tri-lakes group gave me a key to the building and asked me to come early and make coffee , clean the ash trays, and welcome people. As I was new, I didn’t know who was a new comer or an old timer so I welcomed them all in the same way.

I was staying sober 1 day at a time. It was a new way of living for me. A month sober and 2 of the guys took a interest in me and took me on 12 step calls. Every time I turned around we were taking people to hospitals and treatment centers. It was a big help to me. I could see myself grow a little and see where I use to be in life.

I was reading the steps off the poster on the wall, not really doing much, when a man took me off to the side. He said me, “it’s time we meet Wednesday before the meeting for an hour to work on the steps. Never in my life did I have so many people try to help me do what was right. And all I had to do was sober up for 1 day and it started. That man worked with me forever it seamed, he never gave up on me.

Before I knew it, they had me doing something I had never done in all my life….read. I was reading 1 page a day out of the big book and reading how it works at the meeting in front of people. In early alcoholic recovery (about 6 months into the program, somehow I was made treasurer for the funds to keep the rent, lights, water and coffee bought and every thing paid. I could not take care of my check book much less theirs. But they had faith in me, they said. I learned to pray in those 6 months. I did not know God but I sure prayed. I just knew all these meetings wouldn’t help but it always did, and it was not my doing.

At 1 year I went to an area meeting and they kept talking about jails this and jails that and I did not understand. They asked me if I was in jail much and I said :every 10 months if I needed to or not”. Next thing I knew I was taking AA meetings into the jails and helping drug court kids. It has been 11 years and it all started 1 day at a time…. and still today it is 1 day at a time for me.

I have found peace and serenity in my new life, a new soundness of mind, and a new happiness. There is nothing and no one worth giving this up.