Steve B. at the Steps 4 to 9 Road to Recovery – 2004

About This Speaker Tape

Iceland, 2004. Steve B. stands before a room of "spiritual giants" and Vikings, cracking jokes about the cold and the absurdity of the alcoholic mind. He doesn't offer a polished sermon; he offers a gritty, honest look at the wreckage. To Steve, the Steps are like Ex-Lax—you don't have to believe in them for them to work; you just have to take them.

He strips the glamour from sobriety, calling the young newcomers "losers" for hitting bottom so early, and mocks the "normies" who never had to ruin their lives to find a Higher Power. He describes the Fourth Step not as a chore, but as a visceral process of listing the people he wants to kill—specifically those who push elevator buttons repeatedly or block airplane aisles. For Steve, the inventory isn't a biography; it's a search for the "exact nature" of his wrongs, focusing on the four defects: selfish, dishonest, self-seeking, and frightened. He concludes that the real prize isn't perfection, but becoming human.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:45 Laughter: Steve jokes about the 'one-step program' of the Vikings.
• 8:12 The 'Ex-Lax' metaphor for the 12 Steps.
• 15:30 Steve discusses the Fourth Step and the fear surrounding it.
• 22:10 Discussion on the 'Taliban' (Big Book Thumpers) and the simplicity of the inventory process.
• 31:45 Detailed breakdown of the four character defects: selfish, dishonest, self-seeking, and frightened.
• 38:20 The 'undeliverable' email sent to a high school bully.
• 46:15 Discussion on the Fifth Step and the privilege of hearing another man's secrets.
• 54:10 The story of the stolen lumberjack jacket and making amends at Target.
• 62:00 Reflections on his father's death and the nature of living amends.
• 68:30 Closing thoughts on the primary purpose of the program and the joy of helping newcomers.