I remember when I came in how hard it was for me to pronounce the word anonymous. My tongue would get all wrapped around the “n’s” and it would take me 5 mins. to get to the “mous”. I can remember people giggling every time I would have to say that word. Now it flows.
Last night at our Big Book meeting we were on a tradition. The eighth about corporate poverty. There were only five of us in attendance and that tells me somethng about the disinterest in the traditions and its immense value to us. In fact, I had invited a friend to attend our BB studies and when I told them that we were presently doing the traditions they begged off and said they’d attend when we started on the BB again. It’s discouraging sometimes.
I think the reason people don’t attend these studies is that they fail to see that each of these traditons affects each one of us personally. A man spoke at the noon meeting yesterday and said that when we go to contribute at a meeting, we often express our opinions and not our experiences. Next time someone goes to comment on a step or tradition, listen and you will probably hear them say what they think or believe.
If we study these traditions we can each of us find out how they have played a role in our sobriety. We often here the comment at the introduction of a traditon that the traditions are the glue which hold the groups and AA together. But no one goes on to describe what that means.
For instance, it was the eight traditon which taught me to be generous when contributing to the basket of the groups I attend. It’s the traditon which helped me learn how to pry my wallet open, not just to give to the groups, but to teach me how to be generous with my family and others. Without the lessons learned from these I would be nowhere and still leading a selfish life and a stunted life in sobriety.
I remember one old timer, years ago, coming to College Park and telling his story only in terms of the traditons. It was an amazing experience.
Want to live a larger life in sobriety? Try attending a tradtion study group. It’s one thing to read them and another to listen to the experience of others. I’ve been doing this for a lot of years. They are not a dry and dust laden meeting…although they could be, when others don’t contiribute. Study them. Read how they came about. When we read the history of AA and why they came into being.
Last ngiht as we read this tradtion eight, I recalled the role Ebby played in it. Want to know what that’s all about? There’s a biography of Ebby available.
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