M(3), 8/29/16: Back to Business

Wow, does this feel weird.  It’s been weeks since I last logged on.  There’s been a hundred and one reasons for my absence, all of which I hope to be writing about as time goes on.  It’s been a turbulent summer, though I suppose turbulence is relative.  We’ve been dealing with stuff that is unusual for us, and I’m hoping to be able to hash it all out within the blog eventually.

In the meantime, I’m so sorry for my absence in reporting my Monday meeting updates!  We’ve been having a grand time, as usual.  In fact, last week was a record high in terms of attendance.

Today’s reading selection(s) dealt with the topic of resentment (for those who follow along with the actual literature, we read from the book As Bill Sees It).  If you are unfamiliar with 12-step philosophy, the language surrounding resentments is strong, and it is negative.  The main text, Alcoholics Anonymous (“The Big Book”) contains countless warnings regarding the dangers of cultivating and holding onto resentments.

On second thought, “countless” is inaccurate.  Of course I could go line by line and count the number of references, or I could Google it, but it’s the first day back to school, and I’d rather just enjoy the peace and quiet of this house.

In any event, we are warned from almost the first second we enter the doors of a 12-step meeting to let go of any and all resentments, or else (cue the ominous music).

Or else what?  In terms of recovery, or else you may drink again.

I remember thinking two things when I first heard this kind of dire prediction:

1. That’s stupid
2. It doesn’t matter, since I don’t have any resentments anyway

In the years since, I’ve learned that I did not have a broad enough understanding of what falls into the category of resentment.  I’ve also learned that I needed to learn a lot more about myself and my feelings.

As for my first judgment, that it sounds a bit melodramatic to say that by nursing a grudge I’ll soon be nursing a drink, I’ve learned enough to say that I have a lot more to learn.  But here’s what I do know about resentments:  they are a colossal waste of time, and they tend to pull me into a downward spiral.  The quicker and easier I can resolve my feelings of resentment, the more peaceful and joyful my life is.

As usual, many excellent shares in this morning’s meeting, all of which helped elevate me.  It is an amazing thing to sit and listen to someone’s story, and from it gain wisdom that I hadn’t realized I needed.

The main share from which most others followed came from a woman who struggles in setting boundaries with a family member.  Her story is an extreme one, but the question she must answer is familiar to many of us:  how do you distinguish between setting healthy boundaries and “being the bigger person?”

On the one hand, our 12-step program focuses on changing ourselves.  We look to see our part in any situation, and we seek to be of service, rather than asking people to serve us.  Very noble aspirations.

But in my friend’s case, she has a person in her life whom she defines as toxic.  Her question is:  how many times should she go back to the same well, knowing that the outcome will be a negative one?

Her share was met with a lot of empathy and support.  When I first heard her story, I listened with sympathy.  But when I listened to the wise responses and follow-up shares, I listened with empathy.  Because all of us, to a greater or lesser degree, have areas in our lives where we struggle with where to draw a line between what is good for us and what is good for the people we love.  I imagine in virtually every relationship such a question exists.

The best advice I heard given was this:  rather than focusing on “doing the next right thing,” a phrase which is tossed around a lot in the 12-step rooms, perhaps we should focus instead on doing the next healthy thing.  In defining “right,” we can get into some murky waters… who defines right?  But in deciding what is the healthiest thing to do, you are ultimately creating an environment to be your best possible self.

Of course, it is important to seek feedback.  In our program sponsors and trusted members of the fellowship are excellent sources of guidance, but at the end of the day we must make decisions for ourselves.  The back of sobriety coins handed out at anniversaries reads:

To thine own self be true

Apropos to this conversation, for sure.  And we did get to hand out one of those coins this morning for someone celebrating her nine month anniversary!

One last thought, and then I’ll stop rambling.  At the end of the meeting someone came up to me and shared a lesson she learned regarding resentments.  The first time you feel angry or resentful towards someone, the blame is on them for whatever they’ve done to cause your reaction.  But each and every time you revisit that feeling, or relive that experience, whether it’s in your own head or complaining about it to someone else… that’s on you.

That alone tells me I’ve got some work to do on handling resentments!

Today’s Miracle(s):

1. I’m back writing
2. Kids are back at school (see video below)

 

M(3), 8/1/16: Prologue to Al-Anon?

If I get to the end of this post, and I hit publish, AND it’s coherent… that is today’s miracle.  I will simply put “enough said.”

Without getting into unnecessary complaining, we are getting to that point in the summer.  That and a ridiculously unnecessary, incredibly long and painful dentist appointment makes me less than the happy camper I want to be.

Hopefully blogging will work its usual magic.

Today being the first of the month, we read from the book Alcoholics Anonymous (“The Big Book”), and we are up to Chapter 8:  To the Wives.

Come to think of it, this chapter might have sent the ball rolling down the hill of unhappiness, since the meeting was right before the dentist appointment.  I shared with the group that this chapter is, hands down, my least favorite in the book.

For those not familiar, “To the Wives” addresses the loved ones of alcoholics, and how best to help them.  In answer to your unspoken question, the chauvinistic title is due to the culture in the time it was published (1939).

My share was an honest one:  I did not have a whole lot to share, due to my being unable to relate to its contents.  I think the closest part of the chapter that spoke to me was the notion that the rebuilding a relationship in recovery is a journey for both parties.  Mistakes will be made, patience needs to be plentiful.  But the outcome can be a stronger relationship than ever before.

Amen to that part of the chapter!

The rest… not so much.  And I was not alone.  Others took umbrage with the advice to take the alcoholic behavior with a smile, for attempting to nag or browbeat an alcoholic into recovery is a futile endeavor at best, a nudge towards more drinking at worst.

One regular attendee who has been around the meetings for decades longer than I explained it this way:  this chapter is 13 years ahead of the creation of Al-Anon, the 12-step fellowship for families of alcoholics.  It is the first stumbling steps in terms of direction; therefore, it needs to be fleshed out a great deal more.  For him, his greatest take-away from the chapter is to understand an alcoholic cannot be forced into recovery, at least not into long-term recovery.  Willingness must come from within, and no brute force will create it.

One member of the group was a lone wolf.  He said the spirit of this chapter was the turning point for his sobriety.  For months and months, his wife and he argued bitterly over his drinking, to no avail.  It got so bad that he finally decided he needed to end the marriage.  He could not stop drinking, despite his best efforts, and he was tired of the endless fighting within his marriage.  He made up his mind that as soon as he was done work he was going to tell her the marriage was over.

As fate would have it, his wife went to her first Al-Anon meeting that very same day, and she was taught many of the same lessons discussed in this chapter.  When he arrived home that evening, he was met with compassion and understanding, rather than contempt and disgust.  They talked reasonably in a way they hadn’t before, and he sat down and read The Big Book for the first time that evening.

And the rest is history.

I believe I said this last week as well:  no matter how unusual the message, there is always someone to receive it.

One friend was in the meeting, and I was counting on her to bring enlightenment to me regarding this chapter.  She did not disappoint.  She thinks the message in the chapter is a sound one with universal application:  meet a problem in your life with love, rather than with resentment.  If you have an active alcoholic in your life, you are better served treating them with love.  She said earlier in her sobriety, both she and her husband attended Al-Anon as well as Alcoholics Anonymous, since they were both in recovery, and those were the best years of their married life.  The message is to take care of your side of the street rather than trying to fix someone else’s.

These words spoke to me more than any words in the chapter, and with problems more diverse than addiction.  We are currently struggling with an extended family problem, and how best to define our role in trying to resolve it.  Bringing love to the problem rather than hate is illuminating, and advice I will immediately be putting into effect!

Today’s Miracle:

Enough said!  And the blogging has helped me to detach with love from my dentist 😉