aa Spoken Here Community Group
Fellowship Where you can share your thoughts, feelings, stories and get support to gain and continue sobriety.
I posted this in response to a thread on the main discussion board but thought it might also generate suggestions here for keeping AA fresh and exciting.
"It is really important for me to always be looking for new ways to carry the message and be involved in new things in AA. I dont want to be one of those people that gets bored of just turning up to the same old meetings and stops going in the end.
In the time I have been in recovery my sponsor and I have started two new meetings, a newcomers meeting at our local treatment center which has now been going for about 5 years and a primary purpose womens meeting which sadly had to close. We then got involved in helping someone else start a mixed primary purpose newcomers meeting which celebrated its year anniversary on friday.
We have also run several big book step studies at my home with about 6 -8 women coming every week for about 14 weeks. We then did a big book sponsorship study to help people make the transition between doing the steps themselves and taking other people through them. We are just about to do another one of these at my house as a few people have expressed some interest in doing it.
I dont say all this to brag about what I have done but to show that it is possible to keep our AA experience growing and changing and really exciting. I have got such a buzz from everything I have done. A much better buzz than I got from drinking. And AA is never boring for me because I am always looking for new ways to get involved and keep it fresh.
I would say if there is something you want to do then start it up. All you need is a place to do it and 2 or more people who want to do it and you are good to go. You will be amazed at how great it feels. "
"It is really important for me to always be looking for new ways to carry the message and be involved in new things in AA. I dont want to be one of those people that gets bored of just turning up to the same old meetings and stops going in the end.
In the time I have been in recovery my sponsor and I have started two new meetings, a newcomers meeting at our local treatment center which has now been going for about 5 years and a primary purpose womens meeting which sadly had to close. We then got involved in helping someone else start a mixed primary purpose newcomers meeting which celebrated its year anniversary on friday.
We have also run several big book step studies at my home with about 6 -8 women coming every week for about 14 weeks. We then did a big book sponsorship study to help people make the transition between doing the steps themselves and taking other people through them. We are just about to do another one of these at my house as a few people have expressed some interest in doing it.
I dont say all this to brag about what I have done but to show that it is possible to keep our AA experience growing and changing and really exciting. I have got such a buzz from everything I have done. A much better buzz than I got from drinking. And AA is never boring for me because I am always looking for new ways to get involved and keep it fresh.
I would say if there is something you want to do then start it up. All you need is a place to do it and 2 or more people who want to do it and you are good to go. You will be amazed at how great it feels. "
I guess that's why i am astounded when I read posts from people saying that they are bored. All it takes is the willingness to look at ways in which the message can be carried not only to newcomers but those whose AA experience is one of clinging to sobriety for dear life, terrified of drinking - that's not how it is for me, I know that's not how it is for you so we go on trying to make it all as accessible as possible!