Newsletter

TRADITION TEN
Continue to take personal inventory. When you are Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside wrong, promptly admit it.……….(info taken from the issues; hence the AA name ought never be drawn into Big Book Bunch Group (CA)…established in 1985, (using the Big Book and the 12 and 12 of AA only) 1. Do I ever give the impression that there really is an "AA The reading in the 12&12 pointed out that there are four opinion" on Antabuse? Tranquilizers? Doctors? Psychiatrists? Churches? Hospitals? Jails? Alcohol? The federal or state government? Legalizing marijuana? Although all inventories are alike in principle, the time factor does distinguish one from another. There's the 2. Can I honestly share my own personal experience spot-check inventory, taken at any time of the day, concerning any of those without giving the impression I whenever we find ourselves getting tangled up. There's the one we take at day's end, when we review the 3. What in AA history gave rise to our Tenth Tradition? happenings of the hours just past. Here we cast up a 4. Have I had a similar experience in my own AA life? balance sheet, crediting ourselves with things well done, 5. What would AA be without this Tradition? Where would and chalking up amends where due. Then there are those occasions when alone or in the company of our 6. Do I breach this or any of its supporting Traditions in sponsor or spiritual advisor, we make a careful review of our progress since the last time. Many AAs go in for 7. How can I manifest the spirit of this Tradition in my annual or semi-annual house-cleanings. Many of us also like the experience of an occasional retreat from the outside world where we can quiet down for an undisturbed day or so of self-overhaul and meditation. These varieties of inventory differ primarily in their timing, 1. We ceased fighting anything or anyone---even alcohol. when they are taken, and the span of time that they cover: 2. For by this time sanity will have returned. 3. We will seldom be interested in liquor. The spot check…Steps one through nine have
sensitized us to see the truth about our own behavior and the
4. If tempted, we recoil from it as from a hot flame. manner in which the rest of the world, especially people, respond to our actions. Having developed this awareness, 6. We will find that this has happened automatically. we come to see, during each moment of each day, what is 7. We will see that our new attitude toward liquor has been really going on. In other words, we are living in the truth of given us without any thought or effort on our part. It just the moment. We have, in addition to a new awareness, also developed some measure of ability to actually control our actions. No longer are we simply sleep-walking under the direction of old habits----habits, the way we think and act 10. We feel as though we had been placed in a position of when we are not thinking about what we are doing and our elaborate delusions. The process of exchanging good habits 11. We have not even sworn off. Instead, the problem has for destructive old habits is, unfortunately, laborious, and we don't always respond in accordance with the principles of AA 12. We are neither cocky nor are we afraid. (in fact, we never do get perfect….at least not in this lifetime). 13. That is our experience. That is how we react so long as But here are some examples of how the spot-check inventory From Big Book (Pages 84-85)
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Just when we begin to render the "digit of disgrace", to a "lousy" driver while driving, we become aware of what we are OCTOBER 14, WALKERTOWN PARK….12:00pm-4:00pm
(EAT AT 1:00PM)
Hamburgers, Hotdogs, Drinks Provided
Bring covered dish, games, etc.---Swings for kids
like. These ideas will keep us fighting, or suffering all night. Drivers don't deserve our preoccupation, they will not When we wake up, we will be restless, irritable, hungry and be improved by deprecation and we have better ways to behave in the presence of the unwashed. We discover more and more that we do not render the sign at all, and when we do slip, we don't respond to his The periodic review….There will arise occasions when we
finger with a shaking fist and a red face. We either feel a stock-taking would be a good idea. Maybe we are break off the escalating exchange or we force out a thinking about becoming engaged, and we want to avoid smile….even if it is not a sincere smile. Responding some of the pitfalls we have had in prior relationships. Our with grace, incidentally, is one of the most perfect work partnership may be faltering or a new job could be coming up. Maybe we are stuck in the seeming malaise of When our boss tells us he didn't like what we did on a the curse of living and we just want a new start or at least recent assignment and we tell him to go to ?!??!?, we try to respond immediately with an apology for our The suggested format for a periodic review on one specific inappropriate reaction. Next, we don't enter into a long thing could well be working Step 4, followed by Steps 5, 6, string of excuses about why we did what we did, but we try to find out what the boss is really saying. If he * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
doesn't have all the facts, we give them to him. If he does not foresee that his approach might cause SEPTEMBER AA BIRTHDAYS
unfortunate consequences, we gently discuss what we think might happen. But, we don't try to protect him too much against his will. Besides, all the other The daily review…Most of us try to set aside a time every
day for meditation. One constructive activity just prior to 2000 Literature Sales and Distribution List (Wednesdays) -
6:00pm - 8:00pm- Central Office
We believe we can make some definite and valuable suggestions. When we retire at night, we constructively review our day. Were we resentful, selfish, dishonest or afraid? Do we owe an apology? Have we kept something to ourselves which should be discussed with another person at once? Were we kind and loving toward all? What could we have done better? Were we thinking of ourselves most of the time? Or were we thinking of what we could do for others, of what we could pack into the stream of life? 2000 Literature Sales and Distribution List (Saturdays) -
But we must be careful not to drift into worry, remorse 12:00 noon- 2:00pm - Central Office
or morbid reflections, for that would diminish our usefulness to others. After making our review, we ask God's forgiveness and inquire what corrective measures should be taken. (Big Book, page 86, line There is no need to embellish upon this direction. One point of interest, however, is that the topic in our mind when we drift off to sleep tends to remain in the ********************************************** unconscious mind during the night. Here are some things Meetings of Central Office Held Every Third Thursday of the Month
6:30pm - 7:30pm
to avoid thinking about prior to sleeping: having a big fight 1020 Brookstown, Room 10
with a co-worker, taking revenge upon the boss, dwelling (The door on the end closest to Wachovia Bank; upstairs, towards the
on a destructive relationship, being persecuted or victimized, performing destructive or unlawful acts, and the EVERYONE WELCOME!

Source: http://www.w-saa.org/newsletters/oct2000.pdf