“‘You fellows are somebody. I was once, but I’m a nobody now. From what you tell me, I know more than ever I can’t stop.’ At this both the visitors burst into a laugh.” (Page 157, Big Book)
“Why not bring him into contact with some of our alcoholic crowd?” (Page 38, Big Book)
“The minute we put our work on a service plane, the alcoholic commences to rely upon our assistance rather than upon God.” (Page 98, Big Book)
“When we saw others solve their problems by a simple reliance upon the Spirit of the Universe, we had to stop doubting the power of God.” (Page 52, Big Book)
“you must remember that your real reliance is always upon Him.” (Page 164, Big Book)
Alcoholics Anonymous is like a sea. Waves rise and fall back, visible for moment before collapsing.
Why did the fellows laugh? They realise he’s got it backwards. It’s his being somebody that is the problem, whilst they, appearing to be somebody are in fact nobody: Alcoholics Anonymous.
One takes one’s turn in a meeting. One takes one’s turn in sponsorship. As important as stepping is stepping back. As soon as there’s a risk of becoming somebody, become nobody. Disappear. One of the crowd. Do the job and move on; let others take up the slack and learn how to do the job. Be on hand to advise. Or maybe not. I need AA, and AA needs me, but I do not need any particular AA person or AA group, and no particular AA person or group needs me. Without me, any particular person or group is fine. If I think I need a particular AA person or group needs me, or I need a particular AA person or group, or if a particular AA person or group thinks they need me, something has gone wrong; a false reliance has been set up, and it must be severed, so that we can all, individually and corporately, be restored to our own individual, personal reliances on God.
AA works because we remain strangers. It is the strange I can listen to. Those I know, I cannot listen to. I cannot hear what they are saying. The strange, the unattainable, the different, the perplexing captivate the attention, and it is through them that I learn. I cannot help anyone I am close to. It is the distance that makes communication possible, and the gap is created by anonymity.