Archive note: This convention recording includes introductory remarks, Bill W., and a closing Al-Anon report by Lois W. Portions overlap the longer AA Today and Tomorrow convention recording; this is an alternate joint-speaker edition. Related convention recording.
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Source: Unidentified Historical Recording – Bill W Candidate Identity Review BW0214 – Date Unknown.mp3 File: bill-w-lois-w-closing-meeting-of-the-1960-international-convention-aa-1960-archive-19123.mp3 Duration: 01:22:24
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Now I turn to this meeting. Al S., a member of our trustees, has been a devoted Montse Dickens, AA, since 1944. For years, he has made his virtues and great ability available to the group. He became a member of the board of trustees in 1958. He became a member of the board of trustees in 1958. It is with great pleasure that I present our mutual friend, fellow alcoholic, Al. I have been to some big AA meetings, but this is ridiculous.
I can only remember one other occasion in AA when we felt that we needed someone as I do now. Some years ago, when a fellow on the program here tonight, named Bill something or other, was invited by the commandant of a chaplain to talk to the chaplain of a school above AA. And Bill was asking for something, and he wanted to delegate this one. And I do the assignment. In all of AA, I was to get on to Kalau Barrett and talk to the student chaplains, I thought.
But when I arrived, I found that this was the last day of a nine-day symposium on alcoholism. For which they had called in all chaplains on all continental posts, all reserve chaplains. And everybody who pretended to know anything about the subject of alcoholism had already been there and spoken. I was beaten to death. And then to make it worse, I was ushered down into a room which was logically a mess.
And I was introduced to some 2,500 chaplains. And I was told that I had to mount about 20 steps. And I was told that it seemed to me to be suspended in mid-air. And I was so frightened that I was sure I was going to be tongue-tied. And I was told that I was going to put the right word in my mouth. But I did not put the right word in my mouth. Mr. Holt, any confusion inferred, and certainly without thinking.
What I said was, You know, since I have sobered up, I find myself not in disposes. I find myself not in disposes. They laughed just as Spence did. They brought detention, and I and the rest of the audience were all men of God. I no longer walk. Oh, men of God. I've taken up more than enough. Now I'm over my fright. I've taken up more than enough. Now I'm over my fright. And I have none for you, presenting the people you came here to see and to hear.
I could be very elaborate about this.
[00:04:59]
I could be very profound.
[00:05:02]
I could be very elaborate about this. I could be very profound. But good things, I think, are done best when they're done simply. But good things, I think, are done best when they're done simply. There's people in my life, and I'm sure in yours, fools and good people. There's people in my life, and I'm sure in yours, fools and good people. There's people in my life, and I'm sure in yours, fools and good people.
I just want to say hello, and I'm saying a few words. I want to say a few more words. I want to say a few more words, and a few more minutes. I want to say a few more words, and a few more minutes. After the declaration of the region, the region fought, and we had the old turkey, and some are good enough to stay, that two cranberries came with it. It is, as we remember, the story of how we took her for freedom, and then they fatalized her.
It concerned itself with recovery. It seems all began felling tonight, that we proceeded. Again, of our quest for freedom as a society. What this freedom means, what this freedom means, is this getting too hot or too cold? Too windy. Yes. The end of yesterday, and of yesteryear could be the beginning of yesterday. But I think we have to be serious in this meeting. But I think we have to be serious in this meeting.
And I think my opinion is positive. And without any presumption of positivity, where might we go tomorrow? Or where might we not? Call my attention to the fact that eight of the past seven have directly to do with this process of taking inventory. This matter of service all was directly related to that evil and beneficent foolishness. In Frank and Carrie's way, I've taken an inventory of AA, and taking an inventory, when we look on the positive side, and upon the blessings of God that has made that possible, is a pleasing process.
The taking of inventory,
[00:10:04]
if it is a long one, can be a pleasing process. So if any go to sleep, never mind, it'll be all right. The taking of inventory and death is, of course, a painful process. But this is the liberating process. This is not even a serious treatment. It's only going to make it sadder. Nothing could be more like bringing cause to new death than for me, in this tradition's conscious area. It's been a run-through of the tradition of alcoholics and non-alcoholics.
Out here you have a certain formalism which in its mantrum repetition of reading the Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions in each meeting is magnificent and is spread ever equally. And I hope the customs will be generous. But it occurred to me as I thought about tonight's subject, realizing that I hadn't had an original idea in at least ten years ever, that it would fall into the tradition's rule of some class of tension.
And the first class of tension has to do with those ideas and attitudes which are protective. They are, believe it or not, in the temptation aspect. And then and then we have a purpose for them. In which we say our sole purpose is society but as we know at the latter end of the Twelve Steps we plug ourselves to try to practice these principles in all our affairs. Lastly, we only achieve freedom from abstention by true practice of the Twelve Steps and we only achieve a greater liberation moving toward greatness in the spirit of action when we sustain practice of the Twelve Steps.
So we have a purpose, and this is it. Then we have in Twelve Steps a specific center of liberty and this we define when we say that the conscience of this society was not reinforced by God and when moved by God this society this holds a long doubted proposition but it's one of his worst and we think it's right. For that indeed is a bold expanse of liberty and freedom under God as a God. This does have important trust not in God, but in each other, and in the call to people we call such a service.
[00:15:01]
An aspect of tradition too sometimes forgets, and I won't on which I prefer to go a little bit longer. Then we have another vital aspect of our charter for liberty. It has to do with membership in alcoholics, alcoholics in life. In society there must be, one person can be a member, a citizen in full standing. The moment he says so, he has to meet conditions. Here there are no conditions. We believe that we should have no first or second class memory. We believe that we should not enforce any obedience.
A sense of liberty. Then one tradition deals with this question of our relation to the world around us. It says that our relation there should be characterized by passion rather than promotion. Then there is the tradition of anonymity. Both have their protective aspects. First against stigma and insurance to newcomers. Then it has an aspect of protection for the moot, against security. Folks would like to pursue fame and fortune in public.
And then it has a far deeper spiritual aspect or characteristic. It has to do with the spiritual foundation on which the whole tradition rests. And indeed on which the common law says. Tradition won't depend on freedom, on the gods. On this we shall explore a bit. Now some say, naturally enough, that we in this country live in a most unfortunate time. A time when that old coin must turn with its aspirations to power and domination and self-sacrifice.
Must turn aside with fear or tantrums. Inevitably generated angers, the like of which is never seen. This thought is in far greater circulation in the world today than mankind has ever seen it. This is not good. This is not fortunate in itself. But let us never say that we are unfortunate because we have appeared in this generation. Because this coin has circulated more freely among us than ever in the citizens of the world around us.
[00:20:07]
And this coin and its pursuit has led us in the wrong and ignorant pursuit of liberty. We have sought the liberty to become worthy beyond our right. We have sought security completely. We have sought prestige. We have sought fame. We have sought power. We have sought to be justified. And when we have been butchered in these areas, more than almost any other people, when these false freedoms were not granted, we have turned upon people in anger and blame and recrimination and attack. And quite as well, we have turned upon ourselves in excessive gift and blame and attack.
And then we have found John Bollycorn, who deeply exaggerates and maps things along to help us to dream greater dreams of power, greater dreams of distinction. He makes us feel more comfortable in any dependence phase that we might have. He is more than capable, even to increase our anger and scheme for the downfall of our anger. Yes, we know the currency of this false coin. We hope we stop pushing. Let us not blame ourselves too much.
A lot of this was due to compassion for what we knew not. But even then, we were still responsible. So we were turned down into the pit, towards which the whole world moved. And this for us proves to be, as we constantly hope it will be for the whole world, not the pit of oblivion, but the pit of opportunity. And then came a courier with good news, a message of liberation. And we are free from the alcoholism.
And this is not with gifts and with gifts from God. We are liberated out of this pit into survival as a gift, as a chance for a new beginning. But at this point, our power has to decrease. What's the next step? Well, it's increasing glory. And it always has to begin with this self-service. Where do we stand, my dear, in all its malign ramifications? And where do we stand on pride and self-justification in its even more terrible and powerful form?
[00:25:12]
But where do we stand? And how can we do? And how can we step from day to day as individuals and as a society? Surely we can't patronize the world around us. Those folks out there pulling on a drag bandage, too. We were on the edge. Ultimately, because our suffering has brought us to a pass where we can no longer pass the buck and say if only they would behave this way or that way, then we would be happy and secure and wealthy and wise.
No. Ultimately, our suffering has forced us into a position where the responsibility should be done each and every one of us, and there is a collective responsibility on the whole of us. This is a great good point. I really hope that in our small world, without going in for any world's sake, the example of this society may be helpful for indulging on drag bandage around us. Yes. For all of us. It's a quest for more freedom on the job. An increased freedom of choice.
There are some who say that the world was so destructive that there was no one to see what was good. There is cause and effect. And if one thing happens causes another to happen, I think there is sort of a certain predestination about which we can do nothing. We are not so determined as to stop. However, the partial knowledge of that argument, we know the freedom of choice on the job can and will increase if we as individuals in society become willing to be worthy and to meet certain conditions.
So now we come to this all-important matter of making a decision every day. Each and all of us, whether it will be a decision that will move us towards destruction, whether it will be a decision that will temporarily sustain us in comfort and mediocrity, A whole world of society, regardless of books and slides, can consistently pursue the ideal of greatness and prosperity. These are the choices which face the world around us. These are the choices which place us in power.
Now what, as a society, are the first things we need to look at to be sure that our focus on that path of progress? I might add, before we take up a specific topic, that this society, for all of the frailty of much of the world around us,
[00:30:14]
I'm a lover of the idea that we have to be very grateful for the things that we have. Yet, collectively, as well as individually, we have astounding advantages over other societies in the U.S. I didn't say that we have virtues which were superior. I merely came to say that we have here inherent advantages. In which every society has to have some kind of human authority in it. And ours does not. It doesn't have to be governed in any ordinary sense. Why? Because John Bonaparte is just as far from the label of everybody. And he's saying, a bird, all will kill.
But we don't have to have a human killer. And when we obey, because we must, and we obey because we want to, we are free. That's the question. We don't have to be troubled with the management of rich property. We don't have to be troubled with the solicitation of a lot of money. We don't even have to be troubled really. We don't even have to be troubled really. The big problem which faces all societies is suspicion and confusion and criticism.
And paradoxically, very seriously, we can invoke these very things. There's a suspicion that it's just a system out there and it's looking at all of us. Geez, I don't like this. For all I'd rather kind of be in Britain. I suspect the management. That whole big rock of yours standing up there, I think I can do better elsewhere. Well, we don't have to tolerate him and save him. We hope to God he does better elsewhere.
If he does, he probably is coming back. We can't expect to improve because we can't expect to fight the war. We don't expect this country once it did have to fight a civil war to stay united. We don't expect this country once it did have to fight a civil war to stay united. We might like to fight the civil war to be sure, but not to be united. Why can't we go? Why can't we go? Of all the things I've done in my life, I'm a wolf.
We can't go having sex with another one. Now, it is a sure thing, Mr. Bob A. Ray, that the enemy's wolves had practically all the grace there is. His wolves, or certainly the early wolves, never had any trouble known to the mind of man. All of our enemies. And yet, in the whole history of this society, as good as you touch upon it, you devour it. And unless we become aware, let us ask ourselves what we ought to do with that threat.
[00:35:06]
Our conscience would say, man, God, we must pull this thing back. We must not go. But hey, now, shouldn't we take the same attitude that we do every day on the smaller scale and say, good friends, we have no fault of membership. We have no property to call upon. We have no authority to defend. If you think you can do better than other officers, Paul John Cox, you can take everything you've learned with you and a complete bullshit and accept the name Alcohol Cannabis.
We'd kind of like to hang on to that one. And when you arrive, where do you arrive? And when you arrive, where do you believe? Under new ideas and under new authorities. And you grow. And you develop. And in recovery. And you grow, sir, in numbers. And in maturity. And in recovery. And in freedom under God. And in maturity. And in freedom under God. Alcohol Cannabis is going to take some life from you people.
If it still turns out. Folks, if it still turns out. That your death rate mounts. That your death rate mounts. And your disincentive is back in full force. And your disincentive is back in full force. And you haven't any more choice. And you haven't any more choice. You'll just be so damn glad there's a Bank of Alcoholics Anonymous. You'll just be so damn glad there's a Bank of Alcoholics Anonymous.
There's nobody. For thousands of years. For sickness and disease. And we have nothing to fear. This is an inherent experience. This is an inherent experience. Let me emphasize again. It's a gift of God to us. It's a kind of a singular gift. That's a fear. Of the world outside. In greater part. Of the world outside. In greater part. Of the world outside. Of food. Now there comes this question. Of food.
And this is a kind of a. And this is a kind of a. Kind of a point. Somewhere between fear and lovelessness. The middle road I think. The middle road I think. The middle road I think is a great beautiful road. So all these traditions. Deal not with fear. Deal with food. And food means anticipation. And it means. Gives an attitude. That kind of voice. That kind of voice. Can't face it. Who are these specific things?
And when you speak to them. How are we doing? They first. Came on election with documents. I don't know how. Let me go through these a little bit if you want. How are we doing in our relationship? How are we doing in our relationship with each other? We're doing a whole lot better. What? We're doing a whole lot better. Than we used to. These things are messing with us all. I'm not seeing these things no more.
Don't get easily. Intimidated. And retarded. And anger. And aggression. And gossip. Nor will so many as formerly turned. Into antiques.
[00:40:03]
To save the movement. From the sinners. Notably me. Now those in so much of this. As there was. Because we are a role. In the face of that coin. Marked Peter the father. As his son. Which means we are growing. In freedom under God's grace. But believe me. This is an everlasting. And eternal job. I think. Humble. You think of all the consequences. That this movement. As a. Losing mad attention or something.
As a whole. We are listed one. We have to look for improvement. Now let's pick up. Some of our other relations. Now let's pick up. Some of our other relations. We have. Facilities. And people at work. Relationships that are close. But yet not quite odd. We have. Caught. We have drying out places. We have. Recruits. We have meditation groups. We have. Well we don't have to. Sing a lot. I think. A good deal of fear.
About these places. And therefore. A very considerable amount. Of those. Compared with what it needs to do. To me it's laughable. Looks to you to be very serious. Well it's very amusing. I. Forgive me but I snicker about it. In the old days. As the plumber would go. He said. Let us. Be close. Close. There are sinkholes in the neighborhood. They put cars in there. More females get into trouble. Than the back seats of automobiles.
Above all. We must be respectable. To the sad disparities. In the circle of those days. Which turns out to be very obvious. That by dint we were going to have clubs. So was he going to be a function of A.A. Or just a function of the folks that really badly needed or wanted clubs. While we spent lunch. Those of us who are comfortably housed. And fed. And warm. These loners. And others who are gregarious in the club sense.
Found something very worthwhile in his club. And that no club is so damn bad. That it hasn't got a club sign on it. Anything. Anything. We've got an A.A. We don't have to batten up. Just disappear. We don't have to maul it. We don't have to fight about it. We don't have to save the movement from it. And you know that. John Barney. Is a very smart operator in this area. We can depend on him. John. John.
Now we end up. If I may so say so. In quite a lot of nonsense about some of the. about some of the nearby operations due to the terrible dirt of hospital inactivation. A lot of drunks have gone into the business of drying out places.
[00:45:01]
We can buy non-fat steak packed free and house up to dry. You can get a doctor on the job that's wearing… Well, boy, that was once a problem. What would drunks know about this? Would we be careless about medical protection and get hooked for plastic and medicine? And you have to think, what if you stepped off the back porch after dinner every night? What would become of this? The answer was very simple.
The blunt ones went out of business. The good ones stayed in business. We now mauling these people, and we only exerted real group opinion upon them. To dampen their eagerness to use the name Alcoholics Anonymous publicly to get customers' money. There we stuck a little, and there we should stick, but not angrily, just persistently. Then there come the benign activities of friends around, retreats or runs for AA.
We have communication groups, and we have breakfasts where people eat and talk about God. It does these things. And every once in a while we get a few minutes to think, and we say, well, this could be no part of our lives. Without that, we're wrong. But if we begin to say, Mr. Red, members, you should not do these things, we are getting into business with government. We're in the home with the rest of the assembly that's completely wrong.
And we can keep the breakfasts, the retreats, the dry-on-earth courses, or we can leave them alone. Do one thing we insist upon in the interest of our own security. Please, dear people, don't tag these efforts publicly with your faith in me. Honorable wife, God bless you. Assembly is life. Now we come to a little more public subject. We're going to take one more step out. Lots of people are living in the city nowadays.
They're not spectacular, though still small. They're drunk. Let me give you a little yarn. In about the year two of Alcoholics Anonymous, I was down with dear old Fitz Meadows, whose delightful sweet story in that old book was called, Our Southern Plain. And Fitz said to me at the end of the way one day, about the year two days, he says, dear Mrs., I think we ought to get the government back again.
They said, let's go over to Washington and see the health department. Over to Washington we went. I guess we had 40 members. We didn't have 20, 25 members. We've been dry a while. We wanted to see the head man. And he wasn't available. But we did see a gent that's become a great friend of this society.
[00:50:02]
One of those perceptive people who understood the language of God. That's Dr. Lawrence Cole. And whether he's here or whether he isn't, I offer my thanks to him on behalf of all of us. He was then, I think, Assistant Surgeon General of the United States. And we came in and told him the little story of our trip. And of our return. And he was impressed. He said, you know, this is the first time I've had any hope whatever of chronic anxiety.
We have pondered and pondered down here what to do about this terrible mounting problem of chronic alcoholism. And the answer has been nothing. The disabstention is so great that if it weren't for the fact that drinking is a totally sceptic thing, everybody would recognize it as hopeless lunacy. They'd be quashed with a stick or a plane or a clutch of money. Too cheap. Now people who drink and do it, well, they might be a champ.
And we're just spending the money to put up a high fiddle for narcotic addicts down in Washington. But drinks have to now make all sense. Now you give me a little hope. I need a hand every day. You can't help this thing. So the interest of the world has been around in trying to solve this problem. And we ourselves are the very first to say that this is a problem that has to do with the soul. What do you think we do for it?
Some people don't. It's a problem of It's a problem of ignorance and of the intellect. Ignorance and of the intellect. And some people who consider themselves ignorant may or may not have intellect. All I have to say, you know, our IQ is a little higher. We once were on the psychiatric test on a bunch of drunks. I was in it myself, too. And we came in just on par with everyday folks. Oh, where was I? I've got to get back to documents here.
Where was I at? Oh, it's creeping. We were talking about the relation with outside agencies. We were talking about the relation with outside agencies in the field of alcohol. We were talking about the relation with outside agencies. I don't know where I was. I don't know where I was. I don't know where I was. I don't know where I was. So here are clergymen in succession from Moses and the Cross in succession from Moses and the Cross and worldwide from the other great churches.
We can learn about them from them a lot, about the soul and the soul. We can learn from the psychiatrist and the psychologist about the ailments of the emotions. And then there comes the ailments of the body. And then there comes the ailments of the body which accompanies it. And the body is no doubt deformed. And the body is no doubt deformed. And that is coming increasingly into view right now. Now, how are we going to be related?
Now, how are we going to be related? To all these people who under the hope that we have given them are living each in their several wounds to litigate this dire illness upon which we have made all of them very strange. Shall shall we be like them? Now, the condemnation of the medical profession and some new drugs and drugs
[00:55:00]
that give us a heavy duty. We ain't mad to give you pills. We don't drink your water. We don't have to take your pills. Even though they're good for other people, do we? So let us form new to mitigate the body ills of people. Let us be one of them. Let us be friendly. Let us take a firm stance when we know what we're talking about. And let us be filled with eager and hopeful expectancy otherwise. I think we should do that.
There isn't any danger. Frankly, this is not very expensive. Send this illness on the emotional. Send this illness on the emotional. I think one of the last darkest moments I think one of the last darkest moments was that day back in very early times of alcoholics anonymous. Very early times of alcoholics anonymous. And we just cracked a couple of those nuts back there, darling. And a couple of these clients came down there from one of them, and they took over their first meeting.
Our first, one of our meetings. And we had a wonderful I.A. And we had a wonderful I.A. And we had a wonderful I.A. that he said was wonderful. And he loved it, darling. And he loved it, darling. And he loved it, darling. And he had a lot better ideas in mind. And he loved it, darling. And he had a cynical sense of humor. And he'd been a motion picture magnate quite briefly, I might add. And he'd been a motion picture magnate quite briefly, I might add.
And the man he loved And the man he loved and the motion picture people had had him analog. and the motion picture people had had him analog. And he'd become very contentious And he'd become very contentious with the copy and all it's worth. So here are these funds who are beginning to trust us to come out of boondoggles to A.A. meetings. Doctors trained in psychiatry who now come to the meeting and sit in the back row to see what is going on.
to see what is going on. And I'm going to hurt And I'm going to hurt I'm keen enough to believe that he didn't know what he was doing. And if every psychiatrist got a lamb dick, he ruled this shit out. he ruled this shit out. Not for five minutes, but for thirty-five minutes. Well, I suppose the psychiatrists on the back row said, Well, I suppose the psychiatrists on the back row said, Well, we hope this is not too prevalent, but this is probably a case of considerable maladjustment.
He was most capable of a clarity for them that we never have been object to. And both of me and our board of trustees held up the hand held up the hand of this movement from its beginning when it was costly and took time, courage, good understanding and good humility to do so. He got me to read a paper before the New York State Medical Association. Before the American Psychiatric Association. I'll never forget it.
I'll never forget that great annual meeting in Montreal. Maybe nine out of ten of the people in that room who heard my curbstone opinion as a stockbroker about alcoholism. And I added with priming that good illumination with the Roman scientists and things. Nine out of ten took the slightest stock in what I was saying. This was so far from where they are. Their tradition and mine have been so different.
But they did one thing that we often fail to do. They tried hard to see what was it. And they had seen recovery. And they asked themselves what this meant. And they accorded me something that we that we too often do not accord with God. We are called to this society, respect. An effort to understand, and even though they differed with us as to what happened, they knew that plenty was going on that was good.
[01:00:03]
And that we could often do what they couldn't do. And in their humility, and we prayed about our own, they said, yes, publish this paper in our magazine. Take it out of there as a pamphlet and show it to worldwide psychiatrists everywhere. This was one of the most moving examples of humility in a quarter where humility can come hard. That I have ever seen. I want this speech to be called, let's be friendly with our friends. I guess most people agreed that this was a good idea, but some people said we aren't certain friends in which I'll be goddamned if I want to be friendly with.
Okay, we've got some state efforts around, rehabilitation things, we've got some private efforts, some of them are good, some of them are fairly good, some of them are lousy, just like a group shot. As a society, we are a decade older than they are, and we are in the colonial era process. And we attack these people when they don't give any name, when we think we should merely educate them, when we should educate the public. Today I can't offer it's indifference, only a friendliness and cooperation where this is mutually possible.
There's been a plight of attacking people who pretty generally are dedicated. They are in these agencies, they're folks with an eye on the main chain. But have we no members and alcoholics and anomalies who are not having an eye on the main chain? There is a time that we could have been fearful that these enterprises would be tempted to lose our name for purposes of raising money, for purposes of getting publicity, for purposes of bringing off a sort of matrimony between us and education and research and rehabilitation. There is a genuine cause, let us not say for fear, but for concern and apprehension, yes.
And in those days we were pretty small. But today, the tradition of alcoholics and anomalies is extending to far greater powers than any law. We know that its protection is something that we need. And these people are learning about it and learning to respect it. And the public is learning about it and learning to respect it. And those who in carelessness, eagerness, willfulness, misuse the public use of it, well, they're finding the tradition unprofitable.
So we don't have to get so afraid of these people. We just, this is the point of the growing up process. And you must remember that these agencies are pro and will be in folks in increasing numbers. By alcoholics who are afraid of coming in here for fear they're going to get jobs up in their company. Therefore, all families will be tempted only by our insistence that they don't mutilate, maim, and exploit these agencies.
[01:05:13]
All to do very freely and warmly with us. Because they are channels of communication to these uncounted millions that we haven't even got. And can be increasingly so. And no matter how much politics, or how much wolfed men, or how many tall gobs, or how many vested interests are established, this is the history and grief of the evolution of something. We are thanked among ourselves. It's too great that no one or any member of these agencies could possibly be detailed as wise as we are as gobs. Isn't that so?
Now when the drunk gets himself sober, or God gets him sober. You know he's a good gang guard. He's very resourceful. He gets a job and he communicates with cops he can. But my gosh isn't this wonderful, what a wonderful job he's doing. Our behavior has forced them into a false position for which they are largely blameless and often unconscious. The relation between us as AA members is one of participation and cooperation, not of domination and defense.
Each with respect to the other. But under alcoholism, two marriages can avoid being damaged. The woman has to become the head of the house. She has to wear the pants. The man becomes the family. And this gets to be a bullshit thing over years and years and years of repetition. Now then, the repair of this relationship, the one that means the most to us, is a fool's business. And up until a few years ago, my idea of repair was to say to my partner, well I'm going to take you down to a few offerings. And down there you can warm our hands at that wonderful new fire we've got.
You may as well bake some cake and pass the coffee. And you will get a load of this stuff. And give me this textbook. And I want this and that. So Martha's down, and she takes a look around, and she hears a ruffle. But then soon, Paul Cunningham, as the case may be, has another playmate. Some of them female, too. And she is in a war. And she and Sonny are quite unconscious in most of which cases. A singularly blameless situation.
Of the awful twist that mystifies them. They don't understand. Now, according to my friends in society, and out of our own experience, it all looms upon us what the trouble is.
[01:10:01]
And so there has grown up, not as a part of AA, but nearest in part, a great society which grew faster in the last ten years than we ever thought of growing in our first ten. And this society represents the efforts of our partners in marriage to restore how we have been deformed, and set about the repair of this deformity, as we had to set about the repair of our deformities. Sometimes we resent this a little. They're crushing our exclusive club.
But if there's anything we should be fine with, it's this. God knows it's in our interest. And at this time, just as you have allowed me to stand for you in some respects, so has Lloyd stood for Al-Anon. And let her chat about this a minute while I get my room. Good evening, everybody. Here is the convention, AA's twenty-fifth anniversary. At least 3,000 of the grateful relatives, wives, husbands, mothers and fathers, daughters and sons.
Many of us belong to Al-Anon's family, too, which I'll tell you about. A fellowship based on the principles of AA. The principles of problem resolving, whether or not in AA. If we stand together, we better solve our common problems of fear, insecurity, lack of understanding of the alcohol, and help others with similar problems to stay in our family's personal lives. In Al-Anon, we took Lloyd in. We admitted we are powerless over the problem of alcohol in our home.
We tried to get our hands off your problems and to stop both of us nagging and managing your lives. We took our own in control. Admit to God and another human being the exact nature of our wrongs and make it amend to those we have wronged. We seek through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understand it and we tell this message to others. In other words, we in Al-Anon are trying the best of our ability to live by the very same principles that have meant so much to you.
My own experience is a good example of how living by the AA and Al-Anon principles brought community and confidence in both community and self-care, even after their circumstances. They encouraged me to be a thought-pounder for your marriage. And being an alcoholic from a young age, I used to smoke every time we drank. Although I warned some about him, I was not particularly concerned, because most of my life, I thought I could tell him.
And that a lengthy header would be so common and complete, that he would not need an hospital stimulus. However, I did. I do think it got worse and worse.
[01:15:03]
I do even know my life had but one purpose. Helping myself to it. Helping me to realize there must be something about it. And together we tried everything we could think of. Nothing moved. My whole life has been one terrific fun adventure of all. I had to assume a family responsibility. And look after him as a mother would care for a child. It is hard indeed to watch such a fine man become so comfortably pleasant and hopeful.
And the miracle happened. And Bill became a changed person almost overnight. We were all struck by this amazing relief. And our happiness and gratitude were unbounded. Bill worked endlessly and tirelessly trying to sober up other alcoholics. Our house was full of all the lives of them. And all strangers and civilized. After a while though, I began to realize there was nothing as happy as I thought it would be.
And feeling the wonderful miracle that had happened, which we had been looking forward to for so long. It was incredible and touching. Living like a true alcoholic. I was deeply hurt that soon as I had seen Bill, in a few minutes, that I had seen him accomplish our whole married life. I was living the fact that Bill and I had no life together anymore. That I was left alone while he was off somewhere scouting up new grooms.
And working with old ones. My life's job of sobering up Bill, with all his responsibilities, which made me feel so needed, had suddenly vanished. And I had not yet found anything to show for it. Acting as a domineering mother of a paralyzed alcoholic. And acting as a real provocateur of a sober man. Are two entirely different ways of life. It took me a long time to recognize the many adjustments that I must make in my thinking.
And more so reactions. But when I did finally realize that a change was necessary and needed. I decided to try to live by the same principles that had done so much for Bill. Hoping they would do as much for me. By the breeze, as we looked together on the program, our home life did become happier and more serene. There was understanding and give and take on any differences of opinion. All over the country, as AA Group, co-sorties of members seemed to feel as I did.
The need for a problem of self-understanding and development. It is this spontaneous recognition of need that is solely to the effect of our fellowship. And has been a large part responsible for its remarkable growth. In the five years since they closed convention, the number of AA Groups has more than doubled. We had about 300 groups at that time. We now have over 1,400. Outside North America, in the 20 countries that AA has reached, there are 136 groups all told.
Four of them are teen groups. Of these 136 groups in U.S. territory, there are groups in Guam, two in Honolulu, and five in Puerto Rico. In Africa, both Northern and Central India have eight groups, and there is one in Libya. On the tape of Good Hope, we have ten groups. In Nepal, two groups, and in the Transvaal, nine. In Asia, there is a group from Japan, and two of the 17. Five provinces, Australia, have 56 Alanon groups.
Australia and New Zealand, the number of 14 groups, are two of the areas with the most rapidly growing Alanon population.
[01:20:03]
Alanon is in New Zealand, and there is a group in Belgium, and there is a group in Denmark. Finland has three registered, but we understand there are several more. Germany has five groups, and Holland one. In Ireland, while North Ireland has ten, Scotland one, and England ten. South of the border, there is a group in each of the following cities. Mexico City, Havana, San Jose, Costa Rica, Buenos Aires, and France.
Alanon is getting around. And it couldn't have done so, of course, without the staff and enthusiastic volunteers at our Central Service Office in New York. We have five paid workers, and many willing volunteers. In 15 Alanon areas, many groups are constantly coming in for better information and communication to the area. The reliance and growth of the Alanon movement has been one of our greatest thrills.
Alanon and children of AA's and of alcoholics generally have banded together in fellowship similar to Alanon and with the same purpose. There are now 96 of these groups, and their potential benefit to the use of the world is limitless. We at Alanon are proud to be having a part in this great convention, and we hope every AA that lives will announce Alanon member, find a great home life, and happier and more free because of Alanon.
We thank you for this great opportunity to spread this message, which we have adopted as our own. Please don't let us.