Aa Meeting Reflection

VISIT TO ST LEONARDS HOUSE MEETING FOR AA GROUP
I attended the ST Leonard House Alcoholics Anonymous, 12 points meeting. It is situated at 1105 Queen Street East, Brampton. The open meeting started at 8p.m and ran for about one hour long. This write-up is my reflection and observation about the meeting. I arrived about five minutes late as it took me some time to locate the exact place where the meeting was taking place. My initial observation was that I felt welcome into their midst, as soon as I walked in two of the members got up and created a space for me in the circle of chairs that had been formed.
There were about twenty people in attendance varying in age and sex. A book about the rules of AA was passed around and people were asked
to share their opinion and understanding of the reading of the day from the book. Most of the attendants had something to say, a few including myself choose not to say anything. No one was coerced into saying anything. If you choose to be quiet, then the book was passed on but, you were still acknowledged and thanked for coming to the meeting.
This meeting was a great eye opener for me. I have often been condescending towards those that have substance abuse. I was usually like just stop taking the drugs or alcohol and your life will be better. But attending this meeting made me realize that anyone is susceptible to addictions and it take a power greater than us to be able to break free of such addictions.
Even though the bible or God was not mentioned specifically, everyone had an understanding that you cannot beat the addiction of any type on your own and you need a “higher power” to help you in overcoming your addictions. This in many ways buttresses the Biblical belief that we all need to depend on God for overcoming numerous challenges that we face everyday. We cannot do anything on our own except we hand them over to God who can help and direct us.
I was, for the most part, struck by the fact that everyone was open and shared their struggles, challenges and victory over alcohol. I was humbled when someone shared her experience and anger towards God. It reminded me of some of the time one wonders where is God in all the tribulations that we are passing through as a Christian. The most moving part was that not one person that sat there, it felt like they could all connect to her pain and anger towards God. This brings to mind what might happen in churches where we are prone to be judgmental of others when it seems like they have backslidden.
It was evident that the stories were shared to be an encouragement to all the other people that were just joining the group.
They use their past and present situation to help others that are still struggling with addiction to overcome. I want to believe that many would hear their “testimony” and be encouraged to make a change just a little at a time. This makes me think of how our heavenly father patiently waits for His children to come home and be adopted into His family.
Towards the end of the session, points were given to participants depending on how long you have been sober for. I was truly impressed when someone was given at a point for making an effort to stay sober for twenty four hours. It brought home the point to me that it can actually be a very difficult task to beat an addiction for just one day. Such that it is a time to celebrate your victory for been sober for a day. Tokens were given to those who had been sober and applauded for their victory.
I think that AA can be a wonderful tool in someones life. However, the person has to work the program and not just do the motions. Every AA meeting differs from location and time. There are some that seem very religious based and some that talk about the hardships, it is just a matter of finding what works for you. It can be extremely helpful if it's taken seriously and if you actually go by the rules of the "big book", which is what the meetings are supposed to be based
on.

AL - ANON MEETING AT ST AUGSBURG LUTHERAN CHURCH BRAMPTON
There was a gathering of about forty-five people. All of them were partners or family members of alcoholics. It was a large meeting and everyone seemed very nice. They encouraged the group to mention if it was your first time, so I did. Several of them have been attending the meetings for years. There was an atmosphere of peace. There were lots of laughter and camaraderie. I was not expecting it to be like that. I had a wrong impression going to this meeting, but my misgivings were laid to rest as the meeting continued.
I had always been of the opinion that anyone in an abusive relationship with a substance user should be able to walk away from such a relationship. My visit to these meetings gave me a total reorientation about the whole situation. From the discussions, I was able to realize that it goes beyond just walking away to the emotional attachment and stigmatization by people. It was apparent that all these people were suffering from the effects of alcoholism. I was touched to the point of being emotional.
There were four new people, including me.They did some reading and then the main speaker began to talk. You could tell she was a nice lady. They listened to each other and took turns speaking. Nobody was yelling or interrupting anyone else. People listened. When they shared, they spoke about hope. There was no reason to be afraid that you might be judged. It was a really comforting experience for me that there were such groups around to help people and just listen to you without any bias.
It is not common in my country to get access to such services. Helping alcoholics’ family members is unheard of in my country. So for me this was a very new experience. I could see in their eyes as each person spoke the concern and care for what the others were saying and that they could all relate without judgement. This showed me that even though they do not know you as a person yet, they were still there to support each other in their path to growth.
One of the older members shared that, “It was such a relief to know that there were some people who truly understood what I was saying, they understood why I thought I needed to be in control, and they told me I was not a failure because the people in my life were not living the way I thought they should. They encouraged me to keep coming back and to go to other meetings as well”. This just brought home to me the fact that One thing that was significant to me was that al-anon is not about how you change or even help the addict, it is about the partner or family members. About how you take care of you when they come home drunk--do you clean up their puke or let them lay in it--and being validated for self-care and encouraged that the addict has a mind of their own and they are their own responsibility and you are yours. I truly felt this was a great help to almost everyone that was there. As they shared their stories, it was obvious that they all thought their partner's drinking was their fault.
The evidence that God was not mentioned specifically was a point that I was not very comfortable with. The members kept referring to a higher power. I thought this to be awkward. What is wrong with saying the name of God and letting people know that it is God that can deliver us from any form of addiction. It kept me wondering if they were trying to accommodate those that were not of the Christian faith without upsetting anybody’s religious beliefs.
What kept me wondering how this works for people was the detail that nobody offered any advice to other members. Every one just listened. I questioned how this was any kind of help to anybody. I would have expected that the older members would be able and willing to share their “coping techniques “ with those that were just joining the group. More in a kind of Christian way of bible study with new believers.
At the end of Al-Anon meeting, we joined hands and said, "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." Good advice for any challenge in life, and a great way to end a meeting.