The material presented
here is not Al-Anon Conference Approved Literature. It is a method
to exchange
information, ideas, feelings, problems and solutions on a personal
level.
In my previous post I mentioned I was invited to attend the local AA meetings and just speak up and participate as an Alanon. I went last night, and it was peopled by the husb/wife couple who "started" AA up in the little 400 population town close to my place and a guy with 3 months sobriety.
We spent most of our time listening to him, and it was touching and very good for me to listen to his struggles and new insights. Bless his heart. The topic was "choices". We all shared at length as there were only four of us, two Alanons and two alcoholics. Lots of laughter and fantastic program talk.
I spoke freely about my experience and once saw the newly sober guy kind of "cringe" a bit. He later said "We drunks sure do screw up EVERYONE else's life besides our own." I wanted to grab him after the meeting and "correct" him, No, WE screw our own lives up, but he had a curfew and had to run right after the meeting.
These meetings have gone on without me for years, an A with 36 yrs sobriety, his Alanon wife, and whoever else shows up. I've never been in such a small meeting of mixed AA/Alanon folks.
Has anyone else had a similar kind of meeting they went to? I am a flexible person, recovery is recovery and the 12 steps and traditions are exactly the same for all of us. I thought it went well and I'm definitely going back for more.
Thanks for listening, and curious about others experiences like this.
The A AND the majority of his family and friends are hurt by this awful disease.
We have a good mixture at my f2f meeting of "regular" members & "double" winners. Our group averages about 10-12 members at each meeting, but I have been to a few meetings where there were only 3 or 4 in attendance. Those have been some very powerful meetings. It's almost like those few hearts were speaking to each other. Awesome experience.
Thanks for sharing this Kim,
Rita
__________________
No matter what me and my God are going to be ok, even better than OK -
Thanks for sharing this. It is quite an eye-opening experience to attend AA meetings, huh? I myself am a double winner, first a recovering alcoholic/drug user through AA, then attending Alanon beginning last year to cope with my mother's alcohol/drug abuse and my husband's.
I was attending a meeting last year called "Mixed Nuts"(LOL!!) That was specifically a mixed meeting with Alanons and AAs. It was one of the best I had ever attended and I learned so much from all of the people there. I haven't been back in a while, but you are right, the principles are the same. This way of life is really for everyone!!
What a gift, and what a blessing that we have each other (all of us!) to share in the trials and pains and JOYS of life, and that we can learn from others in our struggles.
An Alanon deja vu! I travel 30 miles to my Alanon meeting. Sometimes there is one other person, if we are lucky two other people. Sometimes a newcomer but they just don't come back. Well, I went last night and there was no one so I went next door to the open AA meeting. I do that occasionally. It is always insightful. The meeting has a good attendance with many oldtimers. What I noticed last night was how many young/court ordered people were there. All stories are powerful and helpful to me. I live in a very small rural town. There is an open AA meeting here. There is usually 5 or 6 people mostly young and court ordered. I only go when I know I can't make my Alanon meeting (commitment or bad weather). I figure that any meeting is better than no meeting.
Ally, very good point. A child does not have the choices an adult has.
Wow, I went to one AA meeting and wanted to rescue someone already! Sheesh . . .
Rita, that's true, it's the disease that screws up multiple lives. And takes lives all the time. That's a distinction I still "forget" about sometimes. Thanks for that little clarification, for some reason that is what made me realize I was on my white horse again.
The alanon meeting in the next town over shares with the AA meeting once a month, for the birthday meetings (trust us alanoners not to pass up a chance of getting cake!) My husband and I often try to make these meetings - they are great. A little bigger than the one you described, maybe a dozen people or so, but usually very useful insight on both sides.
I went to an Alanon meeting one night and it was really an AA meeting. I was so confused about my A father's putdowns and spoke with a member who instructed me to put the focus back on my father. It was definitely an AHA moment.
yeah I have to agree with the guy on that - because regardless of the best boundaries set - they still end up hurting their friends, family, and sometimes others emotionally or otherwise in SOME way - even if it's only because you care abt them so much and it hurts to see them go down that road...
((((((((((((((((Kim))))))))))))))))))))
