Clarence S. on the Big Book, the 12 Steps, and the First Nine Steps as a Cleanup

About This Speaker Tape

Clarence S. maps out the specific impulsive nature of the alcoholic arguing that they are a breed of cats who operate on emotion rather than logic. He recounts his own wreckage—being dumped in New York City in winter without an overcoat surviving by sleeping in tractor-trailers for fifty cents a night and drinking seven-cent pints of rail.

He dismantles the idea of alcoholism as a habit or a taste framing it as a terminal illness requiring a strict prescription. Clarence S. walks through the 12 Steps as a process of admission submission and restitution emphasizing that the first nine steps are a one-time cleanup while the final three are for daily construction.

He closes with the miracle of his own arrival in Akron having walked into his first meeting in February wearing one black shoe and one brown shoe.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Clarence S. opens with a joke about his age and the 43 years of sobriety.
• 4:30 Story: Being dumped in New York City in winter and sleeping in tractor-trailers.
• 11:15 Discussion on the nature of the 'real alcoholic' versus the 'stupid drunk'.
• 16:40 Biblical parallels: Noah as the first rummy.
• 25:10 The 'Prescription' metaphor: Warning against modifying the 12 Steps.
• 32:45 Step 1: The importance of the 'unmanageability' portion of the step.
• 41:20 Step 4: Clarence S.'s specific approach to the moral inventory and the '20 questions'.
• 52:10 Step 7: The concept of the 'tape recorder' of life being erased.
• 1:01:15 Step 10: His nightly routine of personal inventory with his wife, Grace G.
• 1:12:30 The miracle story: How he was led to Dr. Bob S. and Bill W. in Akron.
• 1:22:10 Step 11: Defining prayer as talking and meditation as listening.
• 1:34:50 Closing: Reflecting on his first meeting in February wearing one black shoe and one brown shoe.