January 1963

I saw one A A work Step Nine

THE NEW YEAR’S PRESENT by Emerson S. Schwenk

OR five years I’ve sat behind this in your dining room. I sat there the F desk and I can’t remember a week without someone coming in off other night and I noticed your walls are not exactly good-looking. I know, the street WANTING! Wanting car- I’m a painter. I wondered whether care, a meal, groceries, clothing; you’d like me to paint them? Of one drunk even wanted a prayer! All course, you’d have to buy the paint, had the most plausible reasons: “My but I’m trying to rebuild my life and mother is sick, needs drugs; I have this is one way you could help no money. I’ve been in prison, just me. . .” got a job and need to be staked until I heard rumblings ‘inside my head Friday when 1get paid . . .” etc. . . . “There’s a catch to this some- I have searched the faces of these where . . .” and lots more cynicism people and my own motives and al- began to form lines like, “He’ll never ‘ ways I say to myself, “How do you do it!” But he did. When you come know he won’t do what he says? to our church you’ll see his handi- There are honest people in trouble work. and there should be a place where There’s a moral in addition to the they can go to ask help without a truth of this story. Here was a man social case history or an FBI clear- who said he was down, way down. ance. If not the church, where?” So he wasn’t afraid of a church in a Christmas came and went. The decaying area. Nor was he afraid of day after came and went and then Negroes, whites, dirt, left-wingers, Bob came. He was escorted to the shoplifters, delinquents (name your chair opposite my desk and I said, .own list). He wasn’t even afraid of secretly, inside my mind, “0Lord!” Unitarians for he never heard of us. even before he opened his mouth. All he saw was dirty walls. Having My muscles tensed all over. I didn’t standards for himself and the church, want to say, “Yes” and I have a ter- he wanted the walls clean. So he rible time saying “No.” I listened. It painted them and painting was his was a new story. way of going up. You taught us some- “I’m a member of AA. We meet thing, Bob. Thank you very much.