JANUARY 1
“I AM A MIRACLE”
The central fact of our lives today is the absolute certainty that our Creator has entered into our hearts and lives in a way which is indeed miraculous. He has commenced to accomplish those things for us which we could never do by ourselves.ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 25
This truly is a fact in my life today, and a real miracle. I always believed in God, but could never put that belief meaningfully into my life. Today, because of Alcoholics Anonymous, I now trust and rely on God, as I understand Him; I am sober today because of that! Learning to trust and rely on God was something I could never have done alone. I now believe in miracles because I am one!10th Annual Grant Miller Award Goes to Jeremy R!
The Grant Miller award is presented annually in memory of Grant Miller, long time member of the Step 2 Men’s Group, to a member who has demonstrated over time, the same dedication to sobriety, humility, courage and grace and to the well being of the group, both individually and collectively as Grant did.
Grant developed lung cancer which was incurable. He fought it for as long as he could, never whining, complaining, or wallowing in self pity. He fought cancer with the same courage and grace with which he lived his life.
During our annual business meeting in November, Jeremy R became the 10th recipient of the Grant Miller Award. Jeremy not only reads How it Works; he lives it! On December 4, 2023 it was made official with Jeremy’s name engraved on the plaque. Congratulations, Jeremy!
That Time of Year
What are you doing?
Watching football ….waiting for my next orders from the War Department.
You have a column due in 7 hours.
Oh…. Damn… what should I write about?
Write about the First Step.
Writing about the First Step is not easy for me. I don’t think it would bring up too many happy memories. When I was finally able to admit I am an alcoholic and that my life was so, so unmanageable, it’s not a day where physically and especially fashionably I was ready for a White House dinner.
I remember looking in the mirror and saying to myself, “You are an alcoholic”. I remember my bloated face and blood shot eyes. I remember thinking “Okay, now what?”
I had to hear it over and over, from me, that I could not control my alcohol use.
I remember reading the Big Book and thinking, “All of this is great, but I need to stop my desire for alcohol, or I will never get close to this”.
People talk about spiritual interventions, and so do I. Often I think that I had a spiritual intervention from a power greater than I. It helped me get humble. It helped me open my mind to new ideas. It helped me understand how this had happened.
A lot was my fault. Admitting that was a start. There are too, proven physical characteristics in the body that make you dependent, and many are hereditary. That helped too, I could blame my family who I was not getting long with anyway. I needed to trim up and let go of my pride and my ego and seek help from others.
This is where my Group, the Step Two Men’s Group came in. God only knows what caused me to look in that orange pamphlet from the Home Office for a meeting. Then to SEE the 11:30 meeting at St. Francis, Monday through Friday, back in the day. Then go to it… and like it!! That was divine intervention.
What a quirky cast of characters there were too.
They helped me immensely.
I remember this one guy telling me, after listening to all my woes, that I didn’t have to take it anymore. Take what? What did he mean?
He said, keep coming back and you will find out. I did, and slowly did I come to understand in many ways but not completely. So, I have to keep coming back. Keep doing the work to keep me sober and to make me a better person.
I appreciate all the help I get from the Step Two Men’s Group for the quest. Happy New Year and I hope your 2024 is your best year ever.
Contributed by John M.
Help Wanted!
We’re looking for a Secretary for our Tuesday Zoom meeting.
Requirements:
6 months sobriety and the ability to connect to a Zoom meeting.
Rewards:
Too many to mention!
If interested, reply to this email or contact Mark C using this form.
January Birthdays… IF They Make It!
January 2nd… Ken B. celebrates 20 years
January 3rd… Anthony S. would have celebrated 40 years
January 18th… John O. celebrates 6 years
January 22nd… Sean F. celebrates 3 years
January 25th… Rory B. celebrates 7 years
January 25th… Fred C. celebrates 8 years
If your birthday has been missed…. fill out the birthday form.
We really want to celebrate your AA anniversary because your birthday made ours possible!
Thanks everybody and apologies to you if you were missed or incorrectly noted.
First Wednesday… January 3rd
Come join a review of Step 1 on January 3rd (First Wednesday). “We admitted we were powerless over alcohol – that our lives had become unmanageable.”
John reviews the step corresponding to the number of that month on each first Wednesday. It’s a rewarding meeting with John outlining the step of the month, how he was challenged by it and how we tackle it ourselves, with and without success! Look for his monthly contribution in this edition!
Tradition 1
Short Form
“Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon A.A. unity.”
Long Form
“Each member of Alcoholics Anonymous is but a small part of a great whole. A.A. must continue to live or most of us will surely die. Hence our common welfare comes first. But individual welfare follows close afterward.”
Tradition Summary
WE BEFORE ME
Unity begins with an individual. Having unity within oneself and with one’s Higher Power is vital to expressing unity in any other relationship. When one is following the guidance and will of a Higher Power, inner balance is achieved and then the ability to participate in a healthy relationship is greatly improved. Thus the relationship’s unity is best serviced by each individual’s unity with a Higher Power.
The Twelve Steps produce recovery and enable us to match calamity with serenity without taking the first drink. Recovery is the restoration of our relationship with God through sobriety. Our happiness, though, is incomplete unless we expand our loving relationship with God to our relationships with each other.
The Traditions show us how to love each other. The principles of the group apply to the individual. Through working the principles of the traditions we carry out the steps in the world. We live in the solution, not the problem. We are united with each other in love. When we love, we want to serve. The concepts of service then show us how to love each other through being of service to the world. Hence, A.A. has the three-word motto, “Recovery-Unity-Service”, based on the Twelve Steps, Twelve Traditions, and Twelve Concepts of Service.
Since the bottom has risen in A.A. there has been a need to go beyond recovery into learning how to get and maintain relationships. We must apply the First Tradition in all areas our life (A.A., Work, Home, etc.) so our sobriety isn’t threatened. If we do not place our common welfare first, we could easily stay a loner and eventually drink out of loneliness.
Step-Tradition Parallel
Each tradition answers the question raised by the parallel step. The connection between the First Step and the First Tradition is that I am powerless over alcohol and have an unmanageable life, so I am dependent upon uniting myself with A.A. for my personal recovery. The Step states the problem and the Tradition states the solution. What do I do about my powerlessness and unmanageability? I join A.A. and place our common welfare first, since my personal recovery depends upon doing this.
From an idea by George T.
The GSR Says!
Central California Fellowship of AA Delegate’s Meeting
December 16, 2023
● 55 Delegates attended this meeting
● Sobriety birthdays for November totaled 117 years!
● During the November Delegate’s Meeting the 2024 Board of Directors were elected. Of
the 12 positions 9 were filled. The remaining three vacancies were filled at the December
Meeting.
● The results of the Alcoholics Anonymous 2022 Membership Survey are available on line
for everyone to review. I encourage everyone to read through it and learn about who
makes up AA today. https://www.aa.org/membership-survey-20223
That’s all for this meeting. Please let me know if you have any questions. Happy Holidays!
Thank you for allowing me to be of service.
Mark Q.
“Mouse’s Corner”
A.A. member Dave Mc. curates a few selected readings from a variety of A.A. related publications each month.
“Helping others is the foundation stone of your recovery”
Alcoholics Anonymous pg. 97
Working With Others
Contributed by Dave Mc.
Funny Pages
Our Trusted Servants Continue to Be:
The current Step 2 Men’s Group meeting schedule is Monday, Wednesday & Friday at Tim’s (3809 J St), Tuesday & Thursday online, Saturday in the park is “Daily Reflections” and Sunday is our Rogue meeting in the park. Each gathering is one hour. Great job men!
- Monday: Tim C.
- Tuesday: Mark C.
- Wednesday: John M.
- Thursday: Sean F.
- Friday: Jon B.
- Saturday: Dave M.
- Sunday: Mark C.
Want to add your name to the “Back-up-Help-Substitute Secretary List”? Just contact Group GS, John M., Treasurer Mark W. or any of our other Secretaries and let them know!
My First Meeting
Please be “of service.” If you’ve never contributed a “My First Meeting”, please help to keep this column going…we need you! What do you remember most of your first meeting? It can be one sentence; it can be up to two paragraphs. Could be funny, poignant or strictly “clinical”. Write what you want…you might have enjoy writing it!
Step 2 Men’s Group Believes…
“Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.”
We’d never presume that the 12 Steps are not clear. Nor would we imply that they need ‘improvement’. However…for purposes of assisting to keep the meeting pointed in an important direction each day, the “Step 2 Men’s Group Statement” is read as follows:
Step 2 Men’s Group is founded on the belief that spirituality is essential to our sobriety.
Our group is non-religious, but we do not oppose anyone’s religious beliefs. We believe that respect for others and their beliefs is essential to our spiritual development.
Accordingly we ask that avoid criticism of others or of their religion or lack of religion, their race, ethnicity, national origin, age, sexual orientation, physical appearance, trade or profession, length of sobriety, or personal beliefs.
Our goal is to further our spirituality, our sobriety and our personal development, not to confront or belittle others. Always remember to be kind to others.
Extra Special Thanks Dept:
Thanks to our General Secretary John M. for “That Time of Year”, our GSR Mark Q for sitting through those meetings so we don’t have to, Dave Mc. for “Mouse’s Corner” and our Treasurer Mark W. for all your contributions. We’re still waiting for YOU gentle reader…Why don’t YOU contribute a short “something?” Any length, most any AA related topic. Reply now and it will get included next month!
Men’s Gazette – December 2023
Men’s Gazette – February 2024