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Texas when you say your name's your name like I'm rally I'm an alcoholic they don't say

hey rale like they just kind of like they don't say anything you just kind of go to the next

person well the first time I'm like hey bob and then they're like we don't say that and You just kind of go to the next person. Well, the first time, I'm like, hey, Bob.

And then they're like, we don't say that.

And I'm like, gotty, got it.

And I mean, like seven or eight times. And the first time, it's really nice. If you're out of town, I understand, you know, you come into a new facility or a new It's very similar, but sometimes there's pieces that are a little bit different and the nuances.

And of course, you know, I had that are a little bit more, right? And the nuances.

And, of course, you know, I had that embarrassment. And I didn't feel uncomfortable. And I couldn't believe I said that. It reminded me a lot of my first couple meetings in A-A. You know, I was uncomfortable. I was embarrassed. I didn't know what to say. I didn't feel like I belonged. But it was a lot worse when I was new. and if you're new tonight

I want you to know I relate

I've been there with you

nobody comes like I belonged, but it was a lot worse when I was new. And if you're new tonight, I want you to know I relate. I've been there with you. Nobody comes here with 17 years sober. We all come here with one day. And a day at a time, we learned how to live with that alcohol. But see, that wasn't my first time I ever came to Alcoholics Anonymous. First time I came to Alcoholics Anonymous was in 1991. I was part of a treatment center. I was in a psychiatric hospital. I think it sounds a little more, you know, macho, I guess. I don't know. Psych ward, you know. Most people in here, somebody bought the psych ward experience. It doesn't make me an alcoholic. Okay. But, you know, if you're new tonight and you're sitting in here, you're going to hear my story.

You may relate.

You may not relate.

But what I'd want to try to do, the best of my ability and the time they gave me today is really speak to the newer people. Because when I was, everyone I give a speech, my sponsor is Tim R. He lives on Hensale, and so I end up in Hensale every Thursday night. Otherwise, it's like half a mile beyond any links when you live downtown and you try to get out there.

He's my sponsor, he's my sponsor for reason. And one of those reasons is he's, one, not afraid to hurt my feelings. Two, he tells me the truth that I need to hear, not the truth I want to hear. And three, he's busy than I am an alcoholic synonymous and he's much more that it's busier than me but it's

important that in the time that I have that I speak to the new person generally because what he told me when I was new and when I learned when I was new is if you have people have less time than you they may listen if you try to speak to people that your peers are going to wonder where they're not speaking and if you have more time than me like the last gentleman that show he's like what could you possibly tell me you only have 17 years.

Whatever I say will be, well, that's why I thought.

When I had 17 years, what do? You have 22 years, and then we'll talk to you. And so there's always a continuum hero of the experience. But one of the things I do want to touch on before we get into it, too, is one of the things in A that I didn't understand, because I came

in here as a Marine and I understood time and grade, I understood rank structure. I knew the longer you were in something, the more that you get and more ranks long as you did well. It's not like that here. This is not a linear program. It's not like six months you'll feel like this. A year you'll feel like this. Five years you'll feel like it's a transformational program. There's people that I'll listen to that have nine months and I want what they have, and there's people I listen to that have my time and I don't want anything to have. Because this isn't about, so when you're new, this is a real part of what I thought about, you're in Alcoholics Anonymous right now, but this is not Alcoholics Anonymous. This is a meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous. So I didn't understand the difference. I thought because I got on drunk and attended some meetings that I was a member of Alcoholics Anonymous. No, I'm just visiting. And I didn't understand the difference when I was new. I thought I'm going to meetings. This is what you do to get sober. You stop drinking, go to meetings, and people talk at you, you know? And then somehow I don't drink until the next meeting and you guys get together and talk about how bad it was, and then we can remember when we talk to each other how bad it was, and we don't go and drink again. And there's a lot of things that I heard from this information, even back in 1991. I'm sure there was good speakers and they were, but I didn't hear that.

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