Just Breathe

INSIDE THE

NOVEMBER ISSUE

Step 11, Tradition 11 ...........2

Editorial: Just breathing ....3

Lightness of Being…………. 4

Alkathon Coming…………... 6

How 11 Works, JFT………… 7

TAS Service!....................... 8

CERAASA……………………… 9

7th Basket Case…………….. 10

Fall Conference Wrap……. 12

History Corner …………......14

New Group Insurance…… 15

ANNOUNCEMENTS.…15-16

November, 2014

1. We A.A. 's are active folk, enjoying the satisfactions of dealing with the realities of life, usually for the first time in our lives, and strenuously trying to help the next alcoholic who comes along.

2. We liked A.A. all right, and were quick to say that it had done miracles. … Of course we finally did experiment, and when unex-pected results followed, we felt different; in fact we knew different; and so we were sold on meditation and prayer. And that, we have found, can happen to anybody who tries.

3. Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food, or sunshine.

4. There is a direct linkage among self-examination, meditation, and prayer. Taken separately, these practices can bring much relief and benefit. But when they are logically related and interwoven, the result is an unshakable foundation for life. Now and then we may be granted a glimpse of that ultimate reality which is God's kingdom. And we will be comforted and assured that our own destiny in that realm will be secure for so long as we try, however falteringly, to find and do the will of our own Creator.

5. We will want the good that is in us all, even in the worst of us, to flower and to grow. Most certainly we shall need bracing air and an abundance of food. But first of all we shall want sunlight; nothing much can grow in the dark. Meditation is our step out into the sun.

6. As though lying upon a sunlit beach, let us relax and breathe deeply of the spiritual atmosphere with which the grace of this prayer surrounds us. Let us become willing to partake and be strengthened and lifted up by the sheer spiritual power, beauty, and love of which these magnifi-cent words are the carriers. Let us look now upon the sea and ponder what its mys-tery is; and let us lift our eyes to the far horizon, beyond which we shall seek all

those wonders still unseen.

7. In A.A. we have found that the actual good results of prayer are beyond ques-tion. They are matters of knowledge and ex-perience. All those who have persisted have found strength not ordinarily their own. They have found wisdom beyond their usual capability. And they have in-creasingly found a peace of mind which can stand firm in the face of difficult cir-cumstances.

8. Almost any experienced A.A. will tell how his affairs have taken remarkable and unexpected turns for the better as he tried to improve his conscious contact with God. He will also report that out of every season of grief or suffering, when the hand of God seemed heavy or even unjust, new lessons for living were learned, new resources of courage were uncovered, and that finally, inescapably, the conviction came that God does "move in a mysterious way His wonders to per-form."

9. Perhaps one of the greatest rewards of meditation and prayer is the sense of be-longing that comes to us.

10. We no longer live in a completely hostile world.

11. We are no longer lost and frightened and purposeless.

12. The moment we catch even a glimpse of God's will, the moment we begin to see truth, justice, and love as the real and eternal things in life, we are no longer deeply disturbed by all the seeming evi-dence to the contrary that surrounds us in purely human affairs.

13. We know that God lovingly watches over us.

14. We know that when we turn to Him, all will be well with us, here and hereafter.

THE PROMISES OF STEP 11

2

Step Eleven: "Sought through prayer and meditation to

improve our conscious contact with God as we under-

stood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us

and the power to carry that out."

Tradition Eleven: "Our public relations policy is based

on attraction rather than promotion; we need always

maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio,

and films."

3

Editorial: Just Breathing… Prayer and meditation were described for me re-cently as “Prayer is talking to God, and Medita-tion is listening”. My daily reprieve hap-pens because I have that conversation in my mind with my Higher Power, and I somehow just know that everything is going to be okay. And that’s a change for me. Conversations with God just didn’t happen for me in the past – I would have thought it totally insane. And some-how, I’ve come to believe that if I don’t have those conversations, that the insanity of my alcoholism will return. Okay, you have to admit that the first time you ever heard somebody say the 11th step out loud and used the words (by mistake, not purpose-fully) “Prayer and Medication” instead of Prayer and Meditation”, that it was pretty frakking funny. At least it was for me – I was practically rolling on the floor laughing out loud. As if no-body had ever uttered those words before…

My first realization that prayer could help was when I discovered anger after about 3 months of sobriety. And my friend advised me to say the Serenity Prayer 1,000 times if I had to, but to avoid murder at all costs! For me, the real Step 3 Prayer has always been the Serenity Prayer, not the one in the Big Book.

For me, whenever we are angry, annoyed, alien-ated, or facing “… emotional disturbance or indecision, we can pause, ask for quiet, and in the stillness simply say: "God grant me the se-renity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference. Thy will, not mine, be done." 12&12, Pg. 41 And it helped. And my anger melted. I’ve been to AA meditation meetings before, cen-tred on the 11th step. And I am always reminded one more time of the power of silence. I should go back to one of these meetings, as meditation is good medication for someone like me whose natural state is anything but calm and relaxed. Maybe I need to learn to meditate on this. From Step 11: We will want the good that is in us all, even in the worst of us, to flower and to grow. Most certainly we shall need bracing air and an abundance of food. But first of all we shall want sunlight; nothing much can grow in the dark. Meditation is our step out into the sun. How, then, shall we medi-tate? 12&12 Pg. 98 Chapter 11 in the 12&12 contains a lot of great information about prayer and meditation, and it’s useful for religionists, agnostics, and atheists—it work for all of us! Specific, helpful directions are right there, but really all we need to do is just breathe! Next time someone is annoying me, I’m going to just close my eyes and try to go to my “happy place”. Well, either that, or I’ll just point to the new sign I plan on putting up at a few meet-ings… :)

May you find peace within. May you be the calm at the centre of the storm. May you just breathe. May you just be. Harry B., Editor

4

Step 11—Lightness of Being

Sought through prayer and

meditation to improve our con-

scious contact with God (as we

understand Him), praying only

for knowledge of His will for us

and the power to carry that out.

My name is Yvonne, and I am an alcoholic. And

Step 11 has truly been my Step into higher under-

standing of who I am today, and why I love, so

dearly, this new life of sobriety.

In AA’s Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, it

reads

“Those of us who have come to make regu-

lar use of prayer would no more do with-

out it than we would refuse air, food, or

sunshine… When we refuse air, light or

food, the body suffers. And when we turn

away from meditation and prayer, we

likewise deprive our minds, our emotions,

and our intuitions of vitally needed sup-

port”.

It was a tremendous relief for me to have finally

finished (for now) Steps 1 through 9. Since Steps

10, 11, and 12 are ongoing maintenance Steps, this

now seemed to be a good time to take a deep

breath and absorb the meaning of all the work

that I had completed with my sponsor. The aca-

demic part of learning about each step and what

it meant to my recovery was for the time being,

done; and it was now time for all that information

to channel its way from my head to my heart. It

was time to witness experientially, how the steps

actually played out in my real life.

Throughout the earlier Steps, my relationship

with my Higher Power (HP) had deepened

through the levels of introspection and self-

examination that the other Steps required. I had

begun to draw more and more courage from a

place deep inside, to look at my past, forgive my-

self and others, and slowly release those fears and

angers that blocked my connection to my deeper

self and to my HP. It had become so much easier

to let go of that hurt and that pain that no longer

served me, in exchange for the new freedom and

happiness that was promised to me in Step 9. And

now, through prayer and meditation in my daily

life, I can continue to feel a new buoyancy or

‘lightness of being’ that I had never felt before.

That ‘lightness of being’ is my daily reprieve from

alcoholism and all of those heavy burdens that

used to pull me down. Prayers to my HP in the

morning and, as well, throughout the entire day

are examples of how prayer has become a natural

part of my daily thinking. It not only strengthens

the relationship I have with my HP, it keeps me

feeling connected to everyone around me and

gives me a stronger sense of purpose within my-

self. My drinking had brought me to a place of

such despair, feeling totally isolated and alone

with my disease. All sense of self-worth had dis-

appeared.

5

My prayers are not requests for specific things;

that would be assuming I knew what was best and

what should happen and that just isn’t so. My

prayers are often requests for clarity and guid-

ance to do the next right thing, courage to be hon-

est with myself and others, and compassion for all

(even those I have difficulty with). On many

mornings I may extend gratitude for my good

health and my good life which, today, is full of

opportunity to enjoy in the best way I know how.

And last but not least, I give thanks for all of the

loving and inspirational people put in my path

each day, and pray for their good health and hap-

piness.

I’ve heard it said that Prayer is talking to God;

meditation is listening. One of my favorite say-

ings is ‘The soul always knows what to do to heal

itself. The challenge is to silence the mind’.

(Caroline Myss) What a tall order! I can’t say that

I actually SILENCE my mind, but rather, I try to

MANAGE my thoughts.

Meditation and mindfulness training have been

‘all the buzz’ over the past few years. More and

more people, inside AA and out, are looking to

meditation to experience even a small glimpse of

the tranquility and peace that meditation practice

can offer, if approached in a positive, patient and

disciplined manner over a long period of time.

Effective meditation takes some active learning,

preferably with a good teacher, as well as, dili-

gent, daily practice of the mindfulness lessons

learned from that teacher.

It is also said in the ‘rooms’, that what we have in

AA is a “daily reprieve contingent upon the

maintenance of our spiritual condition”. When I

give myself permission to sit quietly for even ten

or fifteen minutes each day, I am gracing myself

with some vital self-care for the soul. I am hon-

ouring myself and my spiritual needs; I am

grounding myself; I am taking in spiritual oxygen

to face the day. It is during this time when I really

connect with who I am. Each meditation will be

different, as each day is different. Different emo-

tions will come up, but when I learn to sit with

those emotions and just abide through them,

those emotions can slowly dissipate. After all,

they are only emotions, created by the thoughts in

my brain; and mindfulness training is all about

learning to manage those thoughts and feelings in

a peaceful setting.

Through the use of meditation and prayer to im-

prove my conscious contact with my HP, the most

powerful effect it has upon me as a recovering

alcoholic, is an overall sense of harmony through-

out all parts of me -- physical, psychological,

emotional and spiritual. It is that harmony that

was lost years ago as my alcoholism took over my

body, mind and spirit.

When I tried to get sober, and stay sober, I

thought that was it. But why? What next? I didn’t

see the bigger picture at first. Today, one day at a

time, I can stay sober because I have learned once

again, through practice of all the steps (especially

Step 11), how to love what life has to offer; and, I

am excited to be present for each moment of it.

THAT’s the BIGGER picture. My message to a

newcomer and anyone who is struggling is, “Have

faith; just keep coming back until the miracle

happens. And say a little prayer”.

Yvonne P.

What is the most difficult holiday to stay sober?

Christmas New Year ThanksgivingCanada Day Halloween Other

HOW CAN YOUR GROUP HELP? HOST A MEETING Meetings bind us together and share our message of hope. If your group would like to chair one, please contact us with (1) the name of your group, (2) the type of meeting (Speaker or Discussion) and (3) the holiday (Christmas or New Years) you would like to be considered for. A lottery will be held after our November 23rd meeting to finalize the schedule.

DONATE FOODS We appreciate food donations. If possible, please let us know in advance if you are bringing any big ticket items, such as hams, turkeys (no stuffing), mashed potatoes, cooked vegetables, salads and sandwiches.Desserts are always welcome. Food may be delivered from 9 AM onwards Christmas and New Years Eve.

DONATE FUNDS Your financial assistance ensures our expenses are covered. All excess funds are dispersed to Intergroup and Districts after the event. Group and individual donations are accepted. Cheques made out to Ottawa Area Alkathon may be mailed to or dropped off at the Intergroup office, or you may contact us to make alternate arrangements.

VOLUNTEER! VOLUNTEER! VOLUNTEER! What makes Alkathon amazing is not the venue, not the food, but the people. 12-Step volunteers, coffee-makers, clean up crew, kitchen and serving help, security, and greeters are part and parcel of what makes our annual event a spiritual experience for so many. So please round up some volunteers at your home group - gather names, email and phone numbers, and note desired volunteer positions. Fill out online form or email us your list.

The Basic Purpose of the Alkathon is to Provide a Safe and Sober Environment for the New and Still Suffering Alcoholic over Christmas and New Year

CONTACT US Visit http://alkathon.ottawaaa.org to use our online form to volunteer

or register your group for the meeting lottery. Alternately, or to donate, contact alkathon@ottawaaa.org or phone Jason M at 613.897.7503.

The Intergroup Office is located at Bronson Centre, 211 Bronson Avenue # 108, Ottawa, ON K1R 6H5

Committee meetings are Nov 9 and 23, Dec 7, 14, 21 and 28, 1 - 3 PM, at Bronson Centre

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT. SEE YOU AT THE ALKATHON!

This year, Alkathon will be held at the Bronson Centre, from noon till noon (24 hours), on December 24 to December 25, and December 31 to January 1

ALKATHON 2014alkathon.ottawaaa.org

7

How It Works ~ just for today

My sponsor asked me if I did Step 11 EVERY day.

I looked at him sheepishly and said, “If I need to”.

The truth was I had no idea how to meditate and I

wasn’t sure if prayer wasn’t another form of Self

Ego running riot. But I was sober, that day, so

what was his problem?

It was many years before I really needed to do

Step 11 not just with the “help me” and I’ll……”

drinking days prayer. I tried meditating on my

belly button but I couldn’t see it in those days. I

read all the great works on meditation but con-

cluded they didn’t really understand it either. Fi-

nally I threw my ego in the air and asked…my

spiritual sponsor, “What’s with Step 11?”

He shared the following: “We create a mirror

when we start the Steps. Sometimes we see our-

selves as we see us, Steps 1-3; sometimes as oth-

ers see us, Steps 4-9. But Step 10 is where it’s

really at. We begin to see ourselves as God/

Higher Power sees us. We Step through the look-

ing glass and see what they see.”

Step 11 is the true beginning of spiritual growth,

of God Consciousness.

“Step 11 suggests prayer and medi-

tation. We shouldn't be shy in this

matter of prayer. Better men than

we are using it constantly. It works,

if we have the proper attitude and

work at it.”

-A.A. Big Book p.85-86

“Those of us who have come to

make regular use of prayer would

no more do without it than we

would refuse air, food or sunshine.

And for the same reason. When we

refuse air, light or food the body

suffers. And when we turn away

from meditation and prayer, we

likewise deprive our minds, our

emotions and our intuitions of vi-

tally needed support. As the body

can fail its purpose for lack of nour-

ishment, so can the soul. We all

need the light of God's reality, the

nourishment of His strength, and

the atmosphere of His grace. To an

amazing extent the facts of A.A. life

confirm this ageless truth.”

- Twelve Steps and Twelve Tradi-

tions, pp. 97-98

I was given two great gifts in recent years to clean

my looking glass of Step 11/12: a simple prayer

by Father Mychal and, from Back to Basics, a

shared piece of Oxford Group literature on prayer

and meditation entitled “Listening to God.” The

little pamphlet had circulated in Akron, Ohio in

the mid 1930s and there was every reason to be-

lieve it had been used by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob

as they, themselves, tried their hands at the mys-

terious art of meditation and prayer.

Father Mychal’s prayer has come to mean a great

deal to me, for many reasons. Those of you who

know me may remember that my bride and I were

in the air on September 11, 2001, on our way

home from Ottawa, on a flight that left at 7:30

am. It would be many hours before our family

here and in the south were to find out that we had

been diverted to Atlanta, and were safe. In New

8

York City, at the scene of that day’s terrible

events, the following prayer was being prayed.

“Lord, take me where you want me to

go.

Let me meet who you want me to meet.

Tell me what you want me to say,

And keep me out of your way.”

As Rick Hamlin, the executive editor of Guide-

posts magazine and the author of 10 Prayers

You Can't Live Without, wrote on September 6,

2011:

“It’s not my prayer. It’s a prayer that came from

the Franciscan priest, Father Mychal Judge,

who was killed on 9/11 at the World Trade Cen-

ter when he was ministering to a fallen fire-

fighter.

Mychal Judge was a chaplain for the New York

City Fire Department. His church, St. Francis of

Assisi, was right across the street from the fire

station, Engine 1, Ladder 24, on West 31st

Street, not far from our Guideposts editorial

offices. He had printed the words of the prayer

on a card to hand out to anyone who needed

them.

On September 10, 2001, he called his fellow

NYFD chaplain, Everett Wabst, of Staten Island

for some more prayer cards. Father Mychal had

run out of them. Wabst was driving into New

York with the cards when he heard of the attack.

Soon he learned about Father Mychal’s tragic

death.

For the next 48 hours, Wabst counseled fire-

fighters, survivors and first responders. And he

used the prayer that came from one of the disas-

ter’s first victims. They’re words that work any

day of the year, but they seem particularly

poignant for this day.”

I find those words work for me every day.

Fred D.

November 2014

TAS Service Commitments

This re-warding, sometimes quiet, arm of ser-

vice will be going through some exciting

changes in the next few months. You Home

Group’s Intergroup rep can fill you in.

But of grave IMPORTANCE is the fact

that we are to never give out the AA

member’s contact information!

There are instructions at the desk in the Bron-

son Centre that I encourage (insist) all mem-

bers read before manning the phones:

We always take the callers information,

telling them that an AA member will con-

tact them

We use the 12th step list to find an AA

member of the same sex that lives near

them

We call the AA members until we find one

that can help

We encourage the AA to take another

member with them

Either to pick up the caller

Or meet them at a meeting

If we cannot find a member we call the

caller back encouraging them to go to a

meeting and meet members

But we NEVER give out personal

information

Thank you for your service!

Janet C

9

Canadian Eastern Regional Alcoholics Anony-

mous Service Assembly 2015

(CERAASA)

You’re invited to help build a tradition this Feb-

ruary. Alcoholics Anonymous is holding a service

assembly for members from the Ontario-

Manitoba border to the coasts of Newfoundland

and Labrador.

My name is Mel C. and I’m an Alcoholic. I’m dele-

gate for Area 83 Eastern Ontario International

and I’m chair of the 2015 Canadian Eastern Re-

gion Alcoholics Anonymous Service Assembly.

CERAASA is a chance to be a part of history when

we celebrate 80 years of recovery, unity and ser-

vice in Alcoholics Anonymous.

CERAASA is being held at Novotel in Mississauga,

Ontario from February 20th to 22nd. It’s only the

second time this bi-yearly event has been held.

CERAASA comes at an opportune time –just two

months before Alcoholics Anonymous’ General

Service Conference. It’s a chance for members to

learn about issues that will affect the future of

our fellowship before delegates gather in New

York. It’s an opportunity to attend discussions

and workshops that reflect the concerns before

our membership.

CERAASA is sponsored by the 10 areas within

Canada’s Eastern Region. It’s a rare opportunity

to bring members together from diverse areas –

both geographically and historically.

Area 81 includes the Maritime Provinces of New

Brunswick and Prince Edward Island while Area

86 spans across Northwestern Ontario to include

some of Canada’s most remote communities.

Area 82 represents Nova Scotia and spans east to

Newfoundland and Labrador in Atlantic Canada.

Area 83 covers Eastern Ontario International –

overlooking some of our country’s more densely

populated areas including the Greater Toronto

Area, Ottawa and cities and towns in between.

Area 84 spans across Northeastern Ontario in-

cluding Sudbury and North Bay while Area 86

covers Western Ontario. Area 87 spans South-

western Quebec including Montreal while Area

88 spans Southeast Quebec. Area 89 includes

Northeast Quebec from Alma to Trois Riviere

while Area 90 includes Northwest Quebec includ-

ing Laval, Saint Laurent and Nunavik-Nunavit.

CERAASA is a tri-lingual event – French, English

and Spanish. It’s a chance to speak and to be lis-

tened to – in your voice of origin. In a country as

vast as ours, CERAASA offers members a rare

chance to get a first-hand look at what service

work is happening elsewhere. Historic ideas are

born at conferences like this one – it’s what Bill

and Bob would have done had they still been

here.

Please register early and book yourself a spot.

Check out our website for details at

www.ceraasa. org for reservation and registra-

tion details.

Make CERAASA a tradition. Come out on Febru-

ary 20th to 22nd, bring a sponsee and be a part of

history. Carry the message forward. I look for-

ward to see you there.

10

BASKET CASE

Before recovery, many of us were “basket cases.” Now that we have some sobriety under our belts, hopefully the only basket we need to take care of is the one being passed around at our AA meet-ings! The purpose of this article is to educate ourselves on what it costs to operate an AA group in Ottawa and to reflect upon what it means to put a dollar in the basket. Tradition Seven states that “Every AA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contri-butions.” The book Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions (p. 165) mentions that AA’s financial policy declares that we need only have enough money for bare running expenses plus a prudent reserve. Our purpose has nothing to do with “making money.” It is one thing to tell you that the money collected at meetings will pay for rent, liability insurance, cof-fee, tea, sugar, milk, cups, plates, forks, napkins, milestone chips, medallions, cakes, books & Grapevine magazines (which are then sold at cost), pamphlets, Meeting Lists, and travel expenses for the GSR to attend the two annual Area Assemblies in Kingston. Then, if there is any surplus, do-nations to other levels of AA may be made. It is another thing to give you actual numbers and to paint a picture for you. I am the treasurer for my group so I will use our group’s numbers to illustrate this issue for you. Keep in mind that our group operates Monday - Friday each week. I have calculated that our group’s expenses in 2013 were as follows (note that I inserted the esti-mated cost for the Kingston Area Assembly which we were unable to afford in 2013):

* Some of this expense is recovered over time (i.e. Grapevine magazines & books which are sold at cost). However, the rest of this expense (pamphlets & Meetings Lists which are given out for free) constitutes an actual expense that is paid for by the group.

Expenses Cost per month

Cost per day

Cost per person (Assume Daily Attendance of 25)

Rent $500 $25

Liability Insurance $41 $2

Kitchen + medallions & “1-9 month chips”

$130 $6.50

Literature * $70 * $3.50

Kingston Area Assembly $70 $3.50

Donations to other levels of AA 0 0

TOTAL $811 $41 $1.64

11

As you can see, this means that, for basic operations plus a little extra for donations to other levels of AA, our group needs individuals to contribute $2.00 each whenever they attend a meeting. Of course, we do not always get 25 people attending our meetings. This also assumes that we already have a prudent reserve in the bank. I am sure that my math is not perfect but this has been a useful exercise in showing ourselves what it means to put a dollar in the basket. Somewhere in the AA literature, I have discovered that the sug-gested donation for AA in 1970 was $1.00. If you consider inflation, to suggest a donation of $2.00 today is not unreasonable at all. In fact, it’s quite low compared to the actual inflation rate since 1970. Here is a chart showing how inflation has affected some prices (I’m sorry, I do not have a reference for this chart - it comes from somewhere on the AA website):

Notice that I inserted an extra row in the table above. I found the actual rate of inflation on the Bank of Canada website. It shows that the value of a $1.00 in 1970 is equivalent to $5.98 in 2012. The website also showed that $1.00 in 1970 is equivalent to $6.17 today. So, technically, it would be fair of me to contribute $6.00 every time I go to a meeting! This really helps us understand what it means to put a dollar in the basket. It really drives home the notion of: “Just think of what you used to spend per week on alcohol.” So, yeah: isn’t it possible to donate the cost of ONE drink (in a bar) per week for a good cause? And we’d still be saving so much money compared to when we were drinking! What a simple & sobering thought. If you have the means, you could use this as a refer-ence for what you might contribute to the cause of keeping a meeting alive in order to help the suffering alcoholic. It is also an expression of gratitude, isn’t it? Jocelyne H.

Item Cost of item in 1970

Cost of item in 2012

Bread $0.21 $2.19

Pound of coffee $0.91 $12.19

Postage stamp $0.06 $0.44

Gallon of gas $0.50 $3.59

Carton of cigarettes $1.99 $42.00

AA meeting contribution $1.00 $1.00 ( no change!! )

Actual cost of inflation per Bank of Canada:

$1.00 $5.98

12

Came … Came to … Came to Believe – Fall

Conference 2014 Q&A’s

Why did I chair the Fall Conference 2014?

My good friend Michel D. from Uptown chaired the

previous conference and I felt he would manage

this event well and thus provide me with a great

framework. It had been several years since I had

taken on a service position and I wanted to take my

turn at something I had not done before.

Why was the meal late?

Somehow the person on duty was told that we

ended our last talk at 5 pm rather than 4 pm. The

staff usually needs at least two hours to set up –

when she learned we were supposed to start supper

at 6 pm, she rushed the staff and we were able to

start at 6:30 pm. One member said she liked the

opportunity for the fellowship outside the room,

but it is difficult to wait when you don’t know how

long the delay will be. I was also told that the qual-

ity of the meal made up for it.

Will the 2015 Fall Conference be at the NAC

next year?

While it is up to the Intergroup Chair and the 2015

Fall Conference Chair, it is very unlikely. We got a

great deal this year on the room rentals - $1,500,

thanks to the 2013 Fall Conference Chair, Michel

D. However, the current rent for the rooms that we

used would be over $10,000.

Why did we not have coffee on Friday eve-

ning or Sunday afternoon

Coffee prices went from $500 ($2.25 per cup) in

2013 per serving time to $800 ($4.00 per cup) in

2014 per serving time, plus service charges and

plus HST. That is a 60% increase. Two serving

times were cancelled in order to try to break even.

What was it like to chair?

I really pushed my spiritual envelope. I had to keep

asking for help, I prayed and meditated daily, I

looked after myself, I was mindful of my fears and

resentments and took time to reflect and to talk to

people about them. I was wrong regularly and saw

how mistakes actually helped me to learn to be

more present and aware. I learned to trust people

and not let my fear take over and tell them how to

do things. I was the chair, but I was not the boss.

Everyone on the committee was fantastic, very sup-

portive, and a pleasure to work with.

Go ahead – take YOUR turn!!

Jean F.,

2014 Fall Conference Chair

13

INTRODUCTIONS &

SLOGANS

Hi, My name is Mike AND "I

AM AN ALCOHOLIC".

How did that come about? Not

the part of me being an alco-

holic, that was obvious to many

folks for years. Most people

knew but me. I'm talking about

what is the origin of introduc-

ing oneself with the statement

“I am an alcoholic” at A.A.

meetings? We hear members

daily doing it at our meetings

but how did this ritual begin?

Our co-founder Bill W. ob-

served, “Nobody invented

A.A., it just grew.” And so

probably did its classic intro-

duction at meetings.

However, According to an early

friend of A.A., Henrietta

Seiberling (she introduced

A.A.’s two founders to each

other at her home on Mother’s

Day in 1939) she said that the

expression dates back to meet-

ings of A.A.’s forerunner, the

Oxford Group Movement. At

small meetings, the members

knew one another and didn't

need to identify themselves.

But in the large, public meet-

ings, where there was

‘witnessing’ along the lines of

an A.A. talk today, personal

identification became neces-

sary. Chances are that someone

at some time said, ‘I am an al-

coholic but she wasn't 100%

sure. Nor did she remember

that the phrase was used at

early A.A. meetings in Akron

before publication of the Big

Book. In fact, she said, the

word ‘alcoholic’ was rarely

uttered, at least in Akron. Peo-

ple referred to themselves as

‘drunks’ or ‘rum hounds’ or

‘boozers’ or other choice epi-

thets reminiscent of the Tem-

perance Movement that gained

adherents during Prohibition.

An early New York A.A. first

heard the expression as ‘I am

an alcoholic and my name

is…’ According to his recollec-

tion, that was after World War

II, in 1945 or 1946. And it is a

matter of record that, in 1947, a

documentary film entitled, “I

Am an Alcoholic,” was pro-

duced by RKO Pathé.

From then on, as Bill would

say, "the custom just grew."

One final tidbit of history for

this month: Where did the

slogans “First Things First”

and “One Day at a Time”

originate?

There is not a great deal of in-

formation about the origins of

AA’s slogans and acronyms,

but the GSO has provided

some sharing and preliminary

information. Many of these

slogans, as with other practices

in AA, were simply passed

along verbally to other mem-

bers, so it is impossible to

know who started using them

first. It is possible that some of

the slogans may have origi-

nally stemmed from a part of

the Oxford Group Movement

language, but it could also be

that they were original with

Bill and Dr. Bob and the early

members.

From the GSO:

Members have always inquired

as to the origins of various slo-

gans, and it has always been

difficult to narrow down; in

our research, we discovered a

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letter written by former GSO

Archivist, Frank M., dated

1989, who responded to a simi-

lar question that was posed to

him. This was Frank’s re-

sponse, “Your interest in the

origins of ‘One Day at a Time’

is shared by many of us. Like

hand-holding, however, it’s dif-

ficult to pin-point the exact

‘moment.’” That is the problem

we find with most of our AA

slogans, unfortunately!

We do know, however, that

many slogans commonly heard

have been around since the

early days of the Fellowship.

In December of 1958 Ruth

Hock (non-alcoholic), who was

AA’s first secretary, wrote a

response to a similar question

concerning different slogans.

In her reply Ruth wrote:

“…Bill [W.] and I first worked

together in January 1936 when

he had been sober just a little

over one year and at that time

‘Easy Does It,’ ‘Live and Let

Live,’ and ‘First Things First,’

were part of the daily conversa-

tion. They were also used in

the very first drafts of the

book, but probably only Bill

himself could tell you where he

picked them up…

“As far as I’m concerned all of

the above were introduced into

A.A. by Bill W. himself al-

though not original with him.

“Some of these could have

been used in Oxford Group

meetings but there is no way

for sure.”

In addition to Ruth’s response,

page 220 of Bill W.’s biogra-

phy, Pass It On, also addresses

this topic:

“Some ‘A.A. saws’ were also

used as long ago as the late

1930s: ‘First Things First,’

‘Easy Does It,’ ‘Live and Let

Live.’ Because these appear in

the first edition of the Big

Book (at the end of the chapter

on ‘The Family Afterward’),

it’s probable that the use of the

slogans originated with Bill

and that he brought them with

him from Vermont – old saws

with new teeth.”

*All the information above

comes directly from the GSO

And remember, Our History is

our greatest asset!

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A Great Service Opportunity

CFT COMMITTEE ELECTIONS

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 25 @ 6:15 PM

ROOM 106A, BRONSON CENTRE

This committee meets once a month on the 4th Tuesday to coordinate activities aimed at getting the AA message into

Corrections and Treatment Facilities.

We need a Committee Chairperson, District CFT Chairs, Treasurer, Secretary and Coordinators to manage the meeting schedules for

OCDC and OWMC

For more information contact: cft@ottawaaa.org

Insurance Program

For AA Groups Intergroup has been successful in negotiating a Group

Insurance Program for AA Groups which are part of

Ottawa Area Intergroup.

Please refer to the Ottawa AA Website for an announcement

this month. If your group’s insurance is coming due for re-

newal immediately, then please send an email to:

newsletter@ottawaaa.org

Ottawa Area Intergroup is an AA service of-

fice established pur-

suant to the Ninth

Tradition of Alcohol-

ics Anonymous to

operate on behalf of

participating groups

in the Ottawa area. It

performs functions

best handled by a

centralized office. The functions aid the

groups in their common purpose of carrying

the AA message to the alcoholic who still suf-

fers.

When it was created, Intergroup was de-

signed so that its officers would report their

activities directly to a body of representatives

drawn directly from Ottawa groups. Individ-

ual groups may choose or not choose to send

a representative to participate in the monthly

meetings. In 1992, Intergroup was incorpo-

rated as a non profit company under the laws

of the Province of Ontario. The formal name

is "Ottawa Area Intergroup of Alcoholics An-

nonymous". Intergroup holds its monthly

meeting on the second Wednesday of every

month at 7:00 PM, in Mac Hall at the Bron-

son Centre. Visitors are welcome to attend.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Here are some recent and upcoming Birthdays: None reported for November

NOTE: YOU ARE WELCOME TO FORWARD

YOUR GROUP ANNIVERSARY OR SOBRIETY

CELEBRATIONS TO

newsletter@ottawaaa.org

New Friday night men's meeting

Location: Ottawa FreedomCenter

265 Montreal Rd.

Time: 7:00 PM

Type of meeting: Open discussion

Around the Meetings:

LUNCH WITH BILL:

Please join us for a “Christmas in Novem-

ber” potluck on Friday, Nov. 28th at

noon. Theme: “Awakenings”

Saturday Morning Westboro:

November 15th - 9:00 AM and 11:00 AM

meetings are BOTH cancelled due to a

Church Bazaar...

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