Smashing the Old Ideas – Sandy B.

About This Speaker Tape

Sober Stock 2008 - 2008

Sandy B. traces a life defined by the tension between belonging and isolation from a childhood in the Depression-era New Haven to a career as a Marine Corps pilot. He maps out the wreckage of his drinking—the heart palpitations and terror of flying a radar plane while in withdrawal and the eventual 'oxygen emergency' that ended his flight career. Sandy dismantles the 'old stories' of shame and loneliness replacing them with a truth revealed through 43 years of sobriety and a lifelong bond with a sponsor. He describes a transition from the rigid fear-based environment of his youth to a professional life in Washington D.C. where honesty became his primary asset. He makes his case for a life of surrender suggesting that the only way to find peace is to stop trying to manage the wreckage and instead learn to simply watch the world with a sense of wonder.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Sandy B. opens with his sobriety date and reflects on a 42-year relationship with his sponsor.
• 3:15 Recollections of the Great Depression and the unity of the American home front during WWII.
• 6:40 Reflections on contracting polio as a child and the spirit of the 'cripple kids' in the recovery home.
• 10:15 Discussion of Tradition 1 and the necessity of the group's survival for the individual's survival.
• 14:30 The 'con job' of the ego and the process of 'smashing' old ideas to reveal the truth.
• 18:20 The first drink at Yale University and the immediate shift in social anxiety.
• 23:10 Life as a Marine pilot and the intensity of his drinking compared to his peers.
• 27:45 The 'oxygen emergency' and the end of his flying career.
• 32:10 Meeting a former squadron mate 45 years later and the erasure of decades of shame.
• 36:50 Advice on forgiveness and the 'death sentence' of holding onto old injuries.
• 41:10 Career transition to Washington D.C. and the value of honesty in the workplace.
• 48:30 The 'movie' technique for letting go and the importance of sponsorship.