600 guides in moments in the room
The Sign-In Sheet Wants Your Last Name
A sign-in sheet wants your last name for a court or a program. There is no set procedure. Ask what they write. You do not have to share your story.
The Smell in the Hallway
You smelled it in the hallway before you saw them. You can skip the confrontation tonight and go to an Al-Anon meeting instead.
The Song Put You Back There
A song came on and you were back in a room you used in. Change the song and get to an NA meeting before the memory finishes the night for you.
The Spanish Edition and Forty-One Stories
The Spanish Big Book adds 41 stories by Spanish-speaking members. Your life need not be one of them. Sit in an English room, or look locally for your language.
The Speaker Sheet Is Not a Promise
A no-charge sheet for members who speak in correctional facilities is not a promise that someone is coming to you tonight.
The Speaker Talked
It is a speaker meeting and you needed the floor. You did not get it. Do not interrupt. You can talk to someone for two minutes after, or find a discussion.
The Spiritual Experience Appendix
You waited for a lightning bolt. Nothing came, and you think you failed. Appendix II is titled Spiritual Experience. You can still go to a meeting tonight.
The Stairwell and the Phone
You are in the stairwell with your phone, and the meeting is above you or below. You can walk up, or join a phone meeting if the room feels impossible.
The Stall at Work, and You Are Late
You are in the stall at work, late, and the shift looks impossible. You can finish the day without using again, and find an NA meeting after.
The Steps in Your Ears
The steps will not stay still on the page tonight. The Twelve Steps page offers audio, a PDF, and an ASL version. You can listen instead of fighting the print.
The Text Said On My Way
They texted that they are on the way, and you are doing math on the drive and the bar. Put the phone down. If the danger is a drunk driver, call 911.
The Text You Sent a Newcomer Sits There
You texted someone new and they have not answered. A text is not a leash. Go to your own meeting tonight. You do not have to chase a reply.
The Time Is on Your Hand
You wrote the meeting time on your hand so you would not talk yourself out of it. The ink is still there. Go, or find the next one and confirm the listing.
The Timer Went Off
You set a timer for your own A.A. meeting and it went off. You can stay or you can leave. A desire to stop drinking is enough, and you do not have to speak.
The Toast Is Coming
The glasses are about to go up and yours is the problem. You can pass the toast, leave the room, and find a meeting after.
The Topic Is a Book You Do Not Own
The topic comes from a book you do not own. You can still sit in the meeting and listen. You do not need a copy in your lap before you are allowed to stay.
The Topic Is Gratitude
The topic is gratitude and you are bitter. You can pass. You do not have to perform thanks. A desire to stop drinking is enough to stay in the chair.
The Topic Is Resentment
The topic is resentment and you have one with a name on it. You can listen without spending the name. You do not have to resolve it before the hour ends.
The Traditions Started as Suggestions
The Traditions feel like a law code you already broke. They grew as guidance. Bill offered them in 1946 as suggestions, not as one man's dictum or a creed.
The Treatment Pamphlet Is Not a Review
You are in a facility holding P-27. It shares experience from administrators and from members. It is not a rating. The meeting inside is still peer support.
The Twelve and Twelve Came Out in 1952
You heard the Twelve and Twelve essays came out in 1952 and you feel decades late, or you feel you must master a relic. You can go to a meeting anyway.
The Video Link Died
The video link died and the meeting started without you. Some groups use a dial-in call. Find a phone meeting and confirm the listing before you dial.
The Waiting Room on the Screen
The online meeting left you in a waiting room and nobody has let you in. It is a locked lobby, not a verdict. Try another link or a phone meeting tonight.
The Wine Aisle Stopped You
You stopped in the grocery wine aisle and almost bought a bottle. Leave that aisle tonight and go to a meeting, or join one by phone from the lot.
The Workbook Will Not Send an Interpreter
You cannot hear the share, and a workbook is not an interpreter on the way. It is for members carrying the message. You can still try to sit.
The Zoom Asked for a Password
The meeting link asked for a password you do not have. You can try another listing or a phone meeting tonight. A locked link is not a verdict.
Their Wedding, and You Are Watching
It is their wedding and the drinking has already started. You can step outside and find an Al-Anon meeting without making a scene.
There Is a Solution on a Hard Night
Chapter 2 is titled There Is a Solution. The title is not a guarantee you will recover. A.A. cannot predict who recovers. Tonight, go to one meeting and listen.
They Are Not Home and You Cannot Sleep
They are not home and you cannot sleep. You can stop refreshing the phone for one hour and sit in an online meeting with the camera off.
They Are Pouring for Your Birthday
People are pouring drinks for your birthday. You can put a hand over the glass. You can leave your own party. You do not owe anyone a toast.
They Asked About a Burning Desire
Someone asked who is close to a drink or a drug. Your hand will not go up, and you are close. You can say one sentence, or catch a person after.
They Asked If Anyone Needed to Speak
At the end they asked if anyone needed to speak, and your hand would not move. You can let the meeting close. You can also say one sentence at the next one.
They Asked You for a Topic
The chair asked for a topic and your mind went blank. You can pass, or name one small feeling or a line you heard. You do not have to introduce yourself.
They Asked You to Be GSR
They asked you to be GSR and your stomach dropped. The leaflet outlines the role and what a group keeps in mind. You can say no. Servants do not govern.
They Asked You to Chair and You Are New
They asked you to chair and you barely know the room. You can say no. Membership is a desire to stop, not a job you must take tonight.
They Asked You to Speak and You Went Dry
They asked you to speak and your mouth went dry. You can pass. Sharing is up to you. No national rule sets a day count before your voice is allowed in the room.
They Asked You to Speak at Work
Your job asked you to explain A.A. to the staff. P-40 is for members asked to speak outside. You can decline. A staff room is not automatically a newspaper.
They Brought Alcohol Instead of Your Soda
The glass in front of you is not what you ordered. You can send it back. A wrong drink does not cancel a desire to stop.
They Came Home Early
They came home early and your body braced for a fight that did not come. You can still be scared. You do not have to celebrate or interrogate.
They Died Before You Could Say It
The person you harmed died before you could make it right. Step Eight is a list and willingness. A direct amends needs someone living. You can go to a meeting.
They Drank Again and You Feel Foolish
They drank again and you feel foolish for believing the last stretch. You can go to a meeting tonight. Hoping did not make you a fool.
They Found Alateen, and You Drink
Your teenager found Alateen, and you drink. That room can exist before you admit anything. Your own door is a desire to stop drinking.
They Found Narateen, and You Use
Your teen found Narateen, and you use. That room is not your program. If you drink, A.A. asks a desire to stop. If you use drugs, NA's door is open.
They Hugged You at the Door
Someone hugged you at the meeting door and you froze. You can step back. You do not owe anyone a hug, and staying after the meeting is optional.
They Laughed on the Way Home
Your friend laughed at the meeting on the ride home. You can go back tomorrow without them. Their joke does not decide who belongs.
They Missed What You Reminded Them
You reminded them, and they missed it anyway. You can stop replaying the reminder and sit in an Al-Anon meeting tonight.
They Offered to Pay You for a Call
Someone offered you money to talk to their brother about drinking. Twelfth-step work is never paid. You can refuse the cash and still care for him.
They Offered You Money to Tell Your Story
Someone offered you money to tell your drinking story. Usual twelfth-step work is never paid. A paid speaking gig is not that work, and no wage is set for it.
They Said No to the Amends
You tried to make it right and they refused. Chasing them can be the injury Step Nine names. Do not send another text tonight. You can still go to a meeting.
They Said the Problem Is You
They said the problem is you, and part of you believed it. Al-Anon is for people affected by someone else's drinking. You can listen tonight.
They Said They Were Done and the Glass Is Out
They said they were done, and the glass is on the counter. You can still go to a meeting for you. A broken promise does not grade your love.
They Slept on Your Couch Again
Your adult child or sibling is on the couch again. You can love them, bring water, and still go to your own meeting tonight.
They Started Telling You What to Do
You finally spoke and someone told you to leave, or stay, or hide the keys. You can stop sharing. In Al-Anon, people tell their own experience.
They Still Use the Name You Left
People in the room are using the name you no longer use. You can say the name you use, or only listen. If the room is unkind, you can leave.
They Talked About Personality and You Froze
Someone spoke about personality and you froze. You do not have to confess a diagnosis or a label. You can listen. A share is not an intake form.
They Want You as Secretary Forever
You are new, and the group wants you as secretary with no end date. Rotating leadership is best. You can say no. Servants do not govern.
They Want You to Sound Like Them
You copy how other people talk, and you feel like a fraud. Membership ought never depend on conformity. The only requirement is a desire to stop drinking.
They Were Sweet and You Flinched
They were kind this morning and your body did not believe it. You can take that flinch to an Al-Anon meeting tonight and only listen.
Thirty-Four Questions You Can Skip
You think you must pass 34 sponsorship questions before you may ask. You do not have those answers. You can attend tonight with no sponsor.
This Is A.A. Is Not a Costume
Someone handed you This Is A.A. and you think you must become the people it describes before you can sit. Go tonight and only listen.