Since becoming sober, I have been fortunate to experience several random situations where my recovery may have been an advantage to another alcoholic. The Responsibility Statement *I am Responsible, When anyone, anywhere reaches out for help, I want the hand of A.A. always to be here. And for that, I am Responsible” was read as part of the meeting format of my original home group. It has always impressed upon me that the gift of my sobriety is my responsibility to share.
Today I am retired, but I was previously employed as a case manager in a homeless shelter’s recovery program. The recovery model was a 12 Step recovery model, and having been sober and an active member of Alcoholics Anonymous for over 25 years, I had little problem with the alcohol component of the substance abuse criteria. However, not having been a member of Narcotics Anonymous, I was not familiar with their 12 Step literature, as the drugs I used during my drinking life were utilized as companion substances; I had not considered myself to be a drug addict. Needless to say, I needed to educate myself with the N.A. literature in order to effectively work with my addicted and cross-addicted clients.
I used the local commuter train system to travel between home and work, and I had decided to utilize my travel time reading the N.A. basic text. At the next station a man, whom I’ll call Joe, walked by dressed basically in construction worker clothing and gave me a long glance as he passed by. After several minutes, he approached me and asked if I was in recovery. I told him the reason for having the N.A. basic text, but I was actually a member of A.A. After asking if we could talk, he seated himself across from me and related his story.
Joe told me he was living in a halfway house in the next county and was currently working as a carpenter apprentice. My new friend stated he had at one time work for a company which had contracted logistical services to NFL teams. Having made an income in the six-figures, he had been quite a party animal, starting with heavy alcohol use and graduating to dual-addiction with various drugs, leading to being very undependable and a termination. Joe continued to relate the story his downward spiral, which eventually lead him to his current situation in the halfway house.
He stated he has been in recovery for just a couple of months and had an A.A. sponsor who was also dually-addicted, having found years of recovery in Alcoholics Anonymous. Joe told me he had taken a bus to the commuter train’s beginning-of-the-line and then to downtown Orlando to meet a friend who had held an expensive watch from his party days. He said he had pawned the watch for a nice price and was returning to purchase carpenter tools needed for his new trade. He also mentioned he had former party friends at a stop along the way, and as the train approached, had thought about getting off there and party one last time.
Joe said he felt very fortunate to get on the train and find someone reading recovery literature. He asked if I had a medallion and could he take its picture with his phone. After snapping the picture, he phoned his sponsor and related our train experience. He passed the phone to me and his sponsor thanked me for helping Joe. As we chatted, we discovered we knew a couple of mutual A.A. friends, who were also helping Joe. Our conversations ended when we reached my stop, having avoided Joe getting off to party with his old friends. Joe said he was ready to get back to the halfway house and had made plans to see his sponsor that night at a meeting. I have not heard from Joe since that encounter and am not sure if he has stayed in recovery. I do know that God does put people in our lives, even for a brief moment, to help us with our recovery. All I have to do is just be willing to listen.