Aa Meeting Reflection

After attending the AA meeting at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, I found myself extremely satisfied with my experience. As I entered the meeting, I was able to encounter a variety of participants. Each participant brought a different dynamic to the group which challenged me to view each participant as an individual. The participants’ age range varied from mid-twenties to upper-sixties, along with an equal mix of men and women.
Honestly, I entered the meeting with preconceived expectations about this experience along with its participants. After seeing AA meetings on a variety of films, I had a preconceived idea that all of the participants were “strung out” individuals that were forced to be at these meetings due to a court order. These expectations were completely false which will be discussed later in this entry.
As I sat in the AA meeting and began to hear these participants’ stories, I began to feel a flood of
This participant was very similar to my father in not only age and appearance, but in his alcoholic journey as well. As this participant went into detail regarding his DUI and consequential car crash, I immediately began to think of my father. When I was in high-school, my father was in a car crash that nearly ended his life because he chose to drink and drive which was very similar to this participant’s story. As the participant continued to share his story, I found my eyes filling with tears as I reflected on my past experience with my father. After hearing this individual’s story regarding his struggle and mindset with alcoholism, I began to see my father’s past experience with alcoholism in a different perspective, ultimately leading to an emotion of “freedom”. I felt as if the weight of curiosity that I was carrying for years was finally lifted from my