The Threefold Illness of Mind, Body, and Soul – Joe C.

About This Speaker Tape

26th Mississippi Convention -

A hog and a chicken walking down a road in Arkansas set the stage for Joe C.'s account of a life spent 'over the line.' From a childhood of kicking and squalling to get his way Joe describes a descent into 'wet brain' and cirrhosis punctuated by stints in the Air Force stockade and a marriage held together by grace. He recounts the 'iron cures' of jailhouses and a failed attempt to become a preacher that ended with a beer at the Harris County line. After a stint in a mental ward in Austin Joe found a peace of mind that the Bible alone couldn't provide. He details the grueling process of cleaning house through the fourth and fifth steps hiding his inventory in an old suit to keep it from his wife before finally reclaiming a shred of self-respect and a daily reprieve from the 'gangrene of the soul.'

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:45 Laughter: The hog and chicken joke about the price of ham and eggs.
• 4:15 Joe discusses his childhood selfishness and feeling 'different' from other children.
• 8:30 Description of the 'blacker' loneliness and the mental state described in the 11th chapter of the Big Book.
• 12:10 The 'dry drunk' phase: attending Bible school and the urge to return to the waterfront to 'save souls'.
• 16:45 The 'gooseballs' (tranquilizers) and the cycle of using alcohol to get off the pills.
• 21:20 Arrival at the Austin mental ward and the first time he heard a speaker mention 'peace of mind'.
• 26:10 The 'threefold illness' (physical, mental, spiritual) and the 'gangrene of the soul'.
• 31:40 The '24-hour club' in Houston and the rough love of his early sponsors.
• 36:15 Story of the 'white lightning' blackout in South Carolina and the 188 stitches.
• 41:00 Step 4 and 5: Hiding the inventory in an old suit and the midnight confession in a church.
• 45:30 Final reflections on self-respect and the importance of saying 'please' and 'thank you'.