MY ETERNAL THANKS & EVERLASTING LOVE
FOR AN ETERNAL FRIENDSHIP
As I get ready to leave NY to go back to CA (permanently???), I am overwhelmed with love, gratitude and grief. I love my sponsor, I am grateful to my sponsor, and I terrified I shall never see him again on this side of St. Peter's gate again.
David, how do you say thank you to someone for saving your life? You carried me to the ninth step, and put the God of my understanding's hand in mine - which is what AA is all about. And you have not let me forget for one minute that my primary dependence is ALWAYS to be upon God first, not you, certainly not an AA group, and never, ever myself.
You never spared the rod nor left out a single encouraging word. You have made me a man, but more importantly, a man of God, a true warrior in the apostolic sense, less worried about the pathetic feelings of old timers and the quite arbitrary and not-so-tradition based social moirés of AA meetings than carrying our message of recovery and salvation through our twelve steps, traditions, and concepts. I could not possibly care any less what people is AA think about me - they are not important. The newcomers - the men I have in stepwork - they are the important ones. May I never forget them even for one moment.
Your parting words to me yesterday were: “…'remember – God needs warriors; he’s got enough ribbon clerks. Don’t ever forget that you were never given a watered down message – don’t you dare give a watered down message. All you know is what happened to you – and that is God is the steps. If that offends them, to hell with them. That is where they are going, anyway'.
Amen.
You are the closest thing to a father I have ever known, and I thank you.
Your loving pupil,
David, how do you say thank you to someone for saving your life? You carried me to the ninth step, and put the God of my understanding's hand in mine - which is what AA is all about. And you have not let me forget for one minute that my primary dependence is ALWAYS to be upon God first, not you, certainly not an AA group, and never, ever myself.
You never spared the rod nor left out a single encouraging word. You have made me a man, but more importantly, a man of God, a true warrior in the apostolic sense, less worried about the pathetic feelings of old timers and the quite arbitrary and not-so-tradition based social moirés of AA meetings than carrying our message of recovery and salvation through our twelve steps, traditions, and concepts. I could not possibly care any less what people is AA think about me - they are not important. The newcomers - the men I have in stepwork - they are the important ones. May I never forget them even for one moment.
Your parting words to me yesterday were: “…'remember – God needs warriors; he’s got enough ribbon clerks. Don’t ever forget that you were never given a watered down message – don’t you dare give a watered down message. All you know is what happened to you – and that is God is the steps. If that offends them, to hell with them. That is where they are going, anyway'.
Amen.
You are the closest thing to a father I have ever known, and I thank you.
Your loving pupil,
-W95th St, NYC, 11.29.2009
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Welcome as a witness to a fools journey out of the darkness. I welcome all tidings - you are all my teachers on this path toward a meaningful and purposeful sobriety.
COG, 1st Cl.