The Promises – Stuart R. – Promises in Paradise – St. Thomas, USVI – 2012

About This Speaker Tape

Stuart, a Texan with a penchant for 'tumping over' things, recounts a life of wreckage defined by a father's alcoholism and a childhood spent in hotel bars. He describes a chaotic middle age marked by two DWIs, a series of unstable marriages, and a legendary bout of 'visions of grandeur' that led him to buy a bass boat and a pet pig named Burl on a whim during an ice storm. After a brush with death from a pulmonary embolism, Stuart reflects on the power of prayer and the shift from a 'group of drunks' as his first Higher Power to a deep, spiritual faith.

He emphasizes the importance of working the steps in order and the redemption found in reconciling with his daughter, Jessica, whom he now calls his movie partner.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Introduction: Stuart's sobriety date (Feb 10, 1992) and his home group in Irving, Texas.
• 12:15 Laughter: Story about bashing his father's inability to stay sober.
• 18:40 Description of childhood in hotel bars and the 'romance' of drinking.
• 26:10 Discussion of his first DWI and the legal advice to refuse the breath test.
• 35:20 The 'Burl the Pig' story: Buying a pig during an ice storm.
• 45:10 Laughter: The pig entering a living room during a girls' slumber party.
• 52:30 Step 1: Conceding his innermost self as an alcoholic in the mirror of his truck.
• 1:02:15 Discussion of sponsorship and the danger of 'talking the talk' without walking it.
• 1:15:40 Mention of the 12 Steps and the 'third legacy' of service work.
• 1:28:10 The pulmonary embolism and the power of prayer.
• 1:38:20 Discussion of the Big Book and the spiritual awakening resulting from the 12 Steps.