Step 1 Through 9 and the Promise of Forever – Bob W.

About This Speaker Tape

SE Dallas, TX 10-22-66 -

Bob W. traces the trajectory of his drinking from a 16-year-old's need for acceptance to a daily drunk who viewed liquor as a biological necessity for survival. He maps out the wreckage of a failed business and a marriage pushed to the brink, eventually hitting a bottom defined by the total loss of self-respect. Bob W. dismantles the idea of 'miserable sobriety'—staying dry on one's own terms—and makes his case for the rigorous application of Steps 1 through 9. He describes the miracle of three men who drove 700 miles to bring him a message of hope when he was too sick to speak, and how the Big Book's promises replaced his self-hatred with a reconstructed life and a rehabilitated home.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Bob W. opens by distinguishing between 'AA speakers' and 'preachers, philosophers, and liars'.
• 3:15 Discussion on the 'comfort' drinking provides and the transition to drinking as a necessity for survival.
• 6:40 Laughter: Story about the first drink at 16 and the 'prescription' for slow gin.
• 12:10 Bob W. defines an alcoholic as someone who cannot guarantee their behavior once they start drinking.
• 17:45 The emotional toll of seeing the look in the eyes of loved ones and the move to Denver.
• 21:30 Hitting bottom: the loss of self-respect and the experience of total self-hatred.
• 25:10 The arrival of three men who drove 700 miles to bring him the message of AA.
• 30:20 The 'magic words' of understanding and the language of the heart.
• 35:40 Warning against 'miserable sobriety' and working the program on one's own terms.
• 38:15 Reading the Promises from the Big Book (Steps 1-9).
• 42:10 Step 12: Discussion on spiritual awakenings and carrying the message.