The Restoration to Sanity Business – Mickey M.

About This Speaker Tape

W. Missouri Conv. Springfield MO.1986 - 1986

A childhood spent drinking since age five Mickey M. describes a life lived as a 'vandal' and an 'altar boy' simultaneously hiding behind a mask of competence while his internal world dissolved. He recalls the arrogance of identifying with Napoleon and the isolation of a 'private world' where alcohol made him feel like a magic lover and dancer. The turning point arrived when the mask slipped—symbolized by him ripping a banister off the stairs during an argument with his wife Marie M. After three failed attempts with psychologists who treated his personality but ignored the bottle Mickey M. found a way out through Al-Anon and a chance encounter with a man who had been jailed for a murder he didn't commit. Now a business owner in Denver he views his career in advertising not as a curse but as a gift from his Higher Power and focuses on breaking the cycle of domestic violence he witnessed as a boy.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Mickey M. opens by thanking the committee and discussing his fear of flying into Kansas City.
• 4:15 Discussion of childhood drinking and being kicked out of schools for 'discipline problems'.
• 7:30 The 'private world' of the alcoholic: feeling like a magic lover and dancer while remaining shy and isolated.
• 12:45 The influence of a senior English teacher who asked him to be objective about how others perceived him.
• 16:20 The 'mask' slips: Mickey M. describes tearing the banister off the stairs during an argument with Marie M.
• 21:10
• 26:40 The moment of surrender: realizing he cannot stop drinking and the introduction to AA via Al-Anon.
• 31:15 The 12th Step: A sponsor shares a story about being jailed for murder in Tennessee.
• 35:50 The 'protection of a Higher Power': telling his boss he is an alcoholic and the boss's unexpected reaction.
• 41:10 The 1975 International Convention and the story of 'John L.' from Ireland.
• 48:30 Reflections on breaking the cycle of family violence and the image of his father strangling his mother.
• 54:10 Closing metaphor: The story of Papillon and the importance of waiting for the 'second tide'.