Sunday August 30th, 2015 Chip=Patient/Impatient

[bunnypie]

In approx. 10 hours I give my speech at the open AA meeting at the AA club. I typed up my speech and got a nice outfit laid out to wear. I am impatient to get it over with!!! I am nervous but I know I have done everything I can to prepare for it. I have to try to get some sleep. Mom always said "Hope for the best and cope with the rest"

[johnt3166]

Good Luck!!!

[bunnypie]

Thanks John! I just got home a while ago and am so glad it is over! There were approx. 30 people there so it wasn't a huge crowd. My sponsor showed up for moral support and I just focused talking to her. It helped a lot with my nervousness. thanks for the good luck wishes! What a guy! what a guy!----Delighted Bunnypie

[majestyjo]

Glad it went well. I always say the Serenity Prayer, the Third Step prayer to ask for help, and the Seventh Step prayer to get out of the way, so my God can work through me. My will, His be done. I think I have mentioned it before, but a sponsor told me, if you have to hum and haw, searching for words, and think of what to say, you are no longer spiritually connected. God meets our needs. I will never forget the day that I walked to a nearby treatment center to speak after having a migraine all day. As I walked along, I said, "OK, Big Guy, this one is yours, because I am not capable of doing this." They had no format, said the Serenity Prayer, they said, "Our speaker tonight is JoAnne and this meeting last for an hour. It ended up an hour and a half with a question period at the end. An awesome spiritual experience, especially when you are talking to 8 newcomers.

I shared in front of 100 a couple of times, at a 40 year group anniversary and a birthday celebration at a group called Harmony. Two ladies said, "I was so shocked to see you up there, we thought you would ever get to a stage in recovery that you would be able to get up in front of people and share, especially one this big." Through my God, all things are possible. I did it about 10 years prior to recovery, and the gift was given back to me, and I am so grateful. You get me talking recovery and you can't shut me up.

[bunnypie]

I am glad it is over. I was very nervous and trying to keep the speech to a half hour or less. I was so glad my sponsor was able to make it. It was approx. a 50 mile drive for her to come to see me talk. I looked right at her most of the time and that helped me not be so nervous. She raised her Pepsi can up a few times as if to say "cheers" I feel like I made a huge down payment on my sobriety!

[majestyjo]

Patience is something that I think takes lots of practice. Some days are just better than others. I have been long-suffering about some people's actions, and telling myself, "That is where they are at in today." Sometimes, enough is enough, and while I may be patient, I often have a part to play, like setting OR reinforcing a boundary, detachment, and just shutting the door on the person if they jeoprodize my sobriety. Sobriety is soundness of mind. They can't make me pick up a drink or a drug, and I have a choice as to whether I allow them to rent space in my head or allow their actions, disrupt my day.