Jimmy D. at the FOTS Toronto Step 11 Speaker Series – 2023

About This Speaker Tape

FOTS Toronto Step 11 Speaker Series - 2023

A Dallas man's spiritual life is built on the wreckage of thirteen years of alcoholic drinking in a corporate office and the ghost of a grandmother he failed to welcome home. Jimmy D. describes the struggle to sit in silence for five minutes without the 'worldly clamors' of old regrets rushing in a practice he's maintained for twenty-six years. He warns against the 'flying blind' period—the danger of treating AA as a crash cart for emergencies rather than a daily discipline. Through the lens of a secretary who had known him since he was nineteen he recounts the moment he realized his sobriety was a thin veneer over the same old character flaws. He advocates for a rigorous 11th Step practice using a single-tone recording on his phone to center himself moving from a 'taker' to a 'giver' so he can show up at 5:30 AM to make coffee without needing to suck the room dry of energy.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Introduction and jokes about 'senior moments' and Mary B.
• 2:15 Discussion of his first sponsor and the importance of having a home group.
• 4:10 The 11th Step challenge: Trying to sit in silence for five minutes and failing after 17 seconds.
• 6:30 The conversation with his sponsor, Greg G., about honesty and 'trying again tomorrow'.
• 9:15 The 'crash cart' metaphor: Treating AA as an emergency room versus a daily practice.
• 12:00 The 'flying blind' period: A story about his secretary and the return of his character flaws.
• 15:30 Reflections on Bill W. and the necessity of spiritual growth beyond just talking at meetings.
• 18:00 The use of a single-tone recording for meditation and the transition from taker to giver.
• 20:15 Mention of Howard P. and the impact of a 55-minute talk on the 11th Step.