I am driving up to my old home group this morning to celebrate my 24th AA birthday with my old friends. I am looking forward to this. I took the above picture at my current home group. There is a white board in the room, all the birthdays for the month get posted. I love the way my name and the number of years I have been sober is listed. I am just right there amoungst 'em. Not ahead, not behind, just right there with you all. All the sober members of Alcoholics Anonymous. My sponsor talks about how lonely it is the longer you stay sober. I have had a taste of that and it is very sad, in a bitter sweet kind of way.
I am certainly grateful to be sober and alive. But I do miss my old friends. I miss the folks who have died and who are now drinking. I miss the ones who really messed up and are now in prison. I miss the ones who just aren't around anymore.
So, I will drive the 15 or 20 miles up north to my old home group and be with a bunch of survivors. And I will be so incredibly grateful for them. If my old friend Ron is there, we will embrace as if we have never had a harsh word. And then someone will remind us of the time I called him horrible names, threw coffee at him, and stormed out of a meeting. Someone else will remind us of the time he tried to have me permanently banned from our group (that was LONG before I threw coffee at him). I have history with these people, some of it good, some of it not so good. But we love each other deeply, no matter how we used to feel about each other.
I am so grateful for all of the sober members of Alcoholics Anonymous. I am so grateful that I get to be "One Sober Alcoholic." Thank you for sharing this wonderful life with me.
7 comments:
One amongst many is comfortable indeed. Well done, friend.
...and I am so grateful that I got to be "Another Sober Alcoholic". Ain't it grand. Your posting today brought back memories galore, MC. And--tomorrow--my blog will address (sort of) how the longer we're in AA, the lonelier it gets. But "it" doesn't get lonely...WE do, I guess.
GOOD LUCK TOMORROW! I'm sure you'll tell us all about your day, and may God ride, swim, and run with you. Hey, God will really be tired tomorrow night... grin-
WOW what a fabulous list. I'm with you...it feels great to be in the middle of it, not the most or least...just one of the guys.
Have a great Saturday night little fig newton.
lol, good thing we're not all sick on the same day, huh?
And another Happy Birthday to you..
Happy Birthday!
It really makes me happy to see people with more time than me celebrate.
To me birthdays are not for the celebrant but for the newcomer. It shows them that this program does work.
Keep up the good work.
Glad that you are with your old home group. I'm sure that they were delighted to see you.
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