Step 12 Gave This Alcoholic a Purpose in Life – Mike C.

About This Speaker Tape

1988, a little house in Zaltora. Mike C. wakes up from a blackout to a nightmare of blood, urine, and feces. He describes his early life as a mix of the Beverly Hillbillies and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, a chaotic childhood that led to a lifelong habit of "running." A blackout drinker, Mike recounts waking up in a New York junkyard and nearly killing people in a series of wreckage-strewn car accidents. He was a "pickle" long before he hit bottom, treating the world with contempt prior to investigation.

After a phone call to a crisis center, Mike found the fellowship. He admits he spent five years as a "blathering idiot" before truly surrendering. By donating his time to a women's crisis center to atone for verbal abuse, he began to see the other side of the coin. Now, Mike relies on a Higher Power and the 12th step to maintain his sanity, finding purpose in the humbling process of sponsorship and the "promises before the promises."

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:45 Mike introduces himself and celebrates Dewey's 14th sobriety birthday.
• 2:15 Laughter: Mike describes Jeff as 'Kojak from the AA police' and his temporary Higher Power.
• 5:30 Mike describes his childhood family dynamics as a mix of the Beverly Hillbillies and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
• 7:10 The 'cucumber and the pickle' metaphor for his early descent into addiction.
• 10:45 Discussion of the 'Doctor's Opinion' in the Big Book and the phenomenon of craving.
• 14:20 The junkyard in Lackawanna: Mike recounts a blackout episode and missing naval ship movements.
• 18:50 Mike discusses the wreckage of his drunk driving, including accidents in Arizona and Colorado.
• 22:10 The 1988 bottom: waking up in a house in Zaltora surrounded by filth and making the call to the crisis center.
• 26:40 Mike's experience with the 'disease of alcoholism stick' and the initial struggle with the word 'Higher Power' in meetings.
• 31:15 Step 5: The story of sharing the last of his fifth step with an old-timer in the Sierras.
• 34:00 Amends and service: Volunteering at the Women's Crisis Center in Salinas.
• 38:30 The 'set-aside prayer' and final thoughts. Applause.