what made your blood boil in meetings??

[Jools]

I was at a meeting last night and three people were talking and giggling thru the whole meeting. I turned to them and said something about half way thru and they just laffed at me.

The longer I sat there the angrier I became and finally shared. The meeting was about being restored to sanity. I said, the three people sitting behind me have talked thru the whole meeting. I may be "insane" but I thought the chairman said, at the beginning of the meeting, to take your private conversations outside! I said, I come here to learn about how others stay sober and if someone is carrying on a conversation I may miss something I truly need to hear.

Well, the "big book thumper" came up to me after the meeting and angrily said he was sorry, but someone chatting during the meeting shouldn't get me drunk. I told him I wasn't going to drink over it, I just didn't want to miss what people were sharing. I said, two new people picked up white chips tonight and perhaps "they" needed to really hear what was said.

I had about ten people come up to me after the meeting and thank me for saying something that they irritated them too. One lady said she even got up and moved because they wouldn't stop whispering and it was very distracting to her. As far as I'm concerned she shouldn't HAVE to move.

I DID turn all that anger into constructive action tho....I swept after the meeting and cleaned tables.

Thanx for letting me get that off my chest.

Julie

[sunlight]

Julie's post made me think of a man I knew when I lived in another part of town.

He'd say in meetings sometimes, that he hadn't gotten angry in 6 years. People would just roll their eyes. They didn't believe him. I did.

Someone even called his bluff & punched his front teeth out. He didn't get angry. (this is true stuff!)

I moved, but, when it was my turn as a board member of the Fellowship club to bring in speakers, I called him & asked him to speak.

He did, & people were drawn to him like a magnet. He'd been a hardened criminal & now worked with the lowest bottom drunks, most of whom died. He had quite a story.

After the meeting, everyone flocked to him to get the answers to all their questions & to find out his secret. I think they were disappointed to hear that it was the black ink on the white pages of the big book. (He liked to say that the big book was the Bible written in drunk.) So they kind of dismissed him as "out there" & not something they could attain for themselves.

But, I don't believe that's true. It's my opinion that there are things that are possible in sobriety that I've never dreamed of.

Dallas said in the "Adventures Before & After" topic that we only live 10% of our life. Could it be that I'm only living 10% of the AA principles? Hmmmm.... Where's that pen & paper?

(When I'm tempted to get angry, I remember that I still have my front teeth, & it doesn't seem so important anymore)

Let's get living!

[Victor]

those individuals who constantly triple-quadruple dip when others havent had a chance to share

those individuals who feel they have graduated and only need to come back to the rooms to enlighten dropouts,flunkies as myself

sitting next to the people commenting about the people sitting next to the people sitting near the heater

and of course when i go to a meeting have the opportunity to share and just stuck in my own stinkin drinkin thinkin pitty pot (next to the heater) and neglect to share something that may help another in the rooms.

thanx all great stuff love ya all!


vic

[sunlight]

Victor! So happy to hear from you!

You made me laugh so hard that I'm going to get my heater out right now! (especially since it's supposed to be 20 degrees tomorrow)

Love ya, Sunlight

[Victor]

glad to give them free facelifts my friend and sunlight thank you for you radiance in my hour of darkness....thank you....

[sunlight]

You are welcome. But, you KNOW that it's the Sunlight of the Spirit that does the shining!
I am happy I was able to be a reflection for you.

You made me think of something, though.

Rather than holding up a mirror for someone to see himself, I can be the light that gives sight.

What an order! That's why one of my favorite parts in the big book is, " I must turn in all things to the Father of light Who presides over us all." (pg14)

Thank YOU!

(There is not a heater to be bought in Denver! It was minus double digits this morning)