i can tell that some of you come here and seem to be writing a journal in stead of talking and sharing Recovery. if that's what helps you i guess more power to you. i come here to see what people are doing in their personal programs of recovery to better their lives. with almost 5000 members a lot who don't post much at all i would truly like to see some of the oldtimers blog about their recovery experiences. it would really help the new comers and even some of us who have some substantial time behind our belts.
God has given us all a second chance at life and today i use mine to the best of my ability. i sponsor 6 guys. three are bikers. i attends meetings on a twice weekly basis. i wish i had the time to attend more but i attend the one i helped to start and another which is run by the local clean and sober biker club. this saturday i am DJ'ing their annual fall party. yes i will make a buck or two seeing's how i run a mobile DJ service as a sideline. but i am truly there because of the unity these men and women show in recovery. if there was more unity in our local NA meetings we would all probably understand what we are truly doing and showing the newcomer.
my first 7 years of recovery i opened and chaired 3 meetings a week. i even held them in my home for 3 1/2 years. i have one sponsee who is responsible for one meeting a week. he has not opened that meeting in 3 weeks. i had to sit him down and tell him why i never missed opening a meeting once in 7 years. what if a newcomer was trying to attend his or her first NA meeting because they did not want to use anymore? and nobody was there to open the door, pass out free literature, share experience, strength and hope? and that person said f#@k it and went out and used and died just because that meeting was not opened for them to attend. i truly believe that when you take a service commitment that you have to be true to what you believe in and do what you have been appointed to do. people depend on us to be there to help them. so please try to follow through on any committment you have to your home group or area and region.
please remember that recovery is a journey and not a destination and use the rest stops along the way. i am not blogging everyday just to stay at the top we need to become an NA family on the world wide web and love and support one another. it's a dream Jimmy K. started the year before i was born in 1953. i plan to be one of many who keeps that dream alive.
NA hugs and love,
JJ
Pegs, i like to say that i go to NA lengths to stay clean today. no matter how i feel, what mood i am in, i need to be there for the newcomer. they need to see that with hard work and dedication you can achieve some time in this program that has saved our ass time and time again. if it was not for the recovering addicts i first met 20 years ago in Alaska i would not be here today. i took what they said and realized that it was a life saving message. that life does go on with or without me. it’s up to the individuakl as to how they put the 12 steps to use in their daily lives.
we have such a short time on earth to truly be the person God intended us to be. i am still working on that person even after 20 years of being clean. it is a lifelong process and it’s up to the individual to decide who they truly want to be. i want to continue to go into the youth jail and the 3 prisons we have in our area and carry the message. it’s the only thing i can do for my fellow addict. but i cannot lose sight of my own recovery. yes i do speak from the heart. sometimes it’s straight forward and sometimes i try to put some humor into this disease we suffer from. so please always know that not only do i have my best interest at heart but yours too. stay clean and be good to yourself.
NA hugs and love,
JJ