Another offering from the AA conference (2016)
Some
quotes from the pamphlet:
“In
Alcoholics Anonymous, there is no "right" or "wrong"
way to get sober.” - tell that to the Big Book nutters, sponsorship
'addicts', Step Nazis and all the other self-appointed 'experts' on
recovery!
“And,
as we stayed sober ourselves, we started to see how our experience
could help others, passing it on freely, as it had been passed on to
us.” - note the word “freely” - no contracts to sign or deals
to be made, or conditions set! “Freely” means …. freely!
“many
of us feel they [the Steps] are a necessary pathway to contented
sobriety.” - and many of us don't!
“Acceptance
of the Twelve Steps is not mandatory in any sense” ie. it's all
VOLUNTARY!
“An
alcoholic who has made some progress in the recovery program
shares that experience with [does not dictate] another alcoholic
who is trying to stay sober through AA It’s usually someone we
can feel comfortable with, someone with whom we can talk
freely and confidentially, and we ask [they don't offer]
that person to be our sponsor, to help us learn how to live sober.”
(our emphases) - This section will necessarily exclude all cult
style sponsorship (ie. do what you're told blah di blah di blah)
“there
are no bosses” - see above
“But,
the decision was up to us” - see above
And
finally:
“As
you stay sober, you will find what works best for you. But one
of the things we realized is that nobody could do the AA program
for us. We had to do it ourselves” (our
emphases) – the buck stops where? YOU.... not your sponsor, not the
local 'big cheese' … YOU!
Cheers
The
Fellas (Friends of Alcoholics Anonymous)
Perry Street AA group in NYC has an old sign on the wall: There is no wrong way to get sober. Although the cult members visit Perry Streetops I think the meeting holds out against them.
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