AA Speaker – Doug M – 2008 – Part 2
AA speaker Doug M walks through the Big Book from page 20 onward, breaking down step work, powerlessness, the three types of alcoholics, and how spiritual awakening solves the mental obsession.
Doug M. from Jacksonville, Florida delivers a detailed Big Book study in Copenhagen, Denmark, walking through pages 20–53 with laser focus on the core problem every alcoholic faces: the mental obsession that makes stopping drinking virtually impossible. In this AA speaker session, he explains why willpower alone fails, what the three types of alcoholics reveals about the disease, and how the steps—especially Step 2 and Step 3—interrupt the cycle of mental phenomenon and bring God into the equation before relapse ever happens.
Doug M. teaches the Big Book’s diagnosis of alcoholism (pages 20–53), emphasizing that real alcoholics lose the power of choice and can only recover through spiritual means, not willpower or self-knowledge. He explains the three types of alcoholics, the mental obsession versus body craving, and why Step 2 (believing in a power greater than yourself) is essential before taking action steps. He breaks down how God becomes the only defense against the first drink and how sponsors should move sponsees forward through the steps rather than waiting for a spiritual awakening before starting work.
Episode Summary
This is a masterclass in Big Book study. Doug M. stands in front of 200 people in Copenhagen and methodically walks the room through the foundational pages of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous—the pages that diagnose what we are and why we can’t fix ourselves.
He starts by circling the word “very” on page 20: “Our very lives, as ex-problem drinkers, depend upon the constant thought of others and how we may help their needs.” This sets the entire tone. This is not a selfish program, and sponsorship is not something to defer. Bill W. was sponsoring people six days after he got sober. Doug pushes back against the “wait one year to sponsor” rule—it didn’t exist in the early days and it kills people today.
Then he moves into the three types of alcoholics. Moderate drinkers can take it or leave it. Hard drinkers can stop or moderate if they have a strong enough reason—a doctor’s warning, a health scare, a change of environment. Real alcoholics cannot. Once they take the first drink, the cycle begins and they lose all control. Doug tells his own story: a doctor told him at 32 he had cirrhosis of the liver and maybe 14 years to live. He went out and celebrated. That’s not a hard drinker—that’s a real alcoholic.
The heart of his teaching is the distinction between mental obsession and body craving. The Big Book says on page 24 that willpower becomes practically non-existent because we cannot bring the memory of our suffering into consciousness with sufficient force. We tell ourselves we’ll never drink again, and the next time we’re emotional, angry, or anxious, the obsession takes over. We forget what drinking cost us. Doug emphasizes this is why “keeping it green” (dwelling on the horrors of drinking) doesn’t work for him—the solution has to be spiritual, not behavioral.
He digs into Step 2 deeply. The problem is we cannot quit. The action is coming to believe. The solution is a power greater than ourselves. He asks the room directly: “Do you now believe, or are you even willing to believe, that there is a power greater than yourself?” When someone doesn’t answer, he tells them to find him later—there’s no shame in it. He was atheist when he came in. But he shows how the rooms, the fellowship, and then God became the evidence of a power greater than himself.
Doug shares a story about a business deal in Sarasota where he was being toasted by executives. The obsession hit him: wouldn’t it be nice to have a cocktail? But Step 2 kicked in. The mental phenomenon (drink, drink, drink) was interrupted by sound reasoning (if I drink, I lose everything) which was then crossed by God, and he laughed at the table, understanding the insanity of it.
He also tells the story of meeting his wife on a plane, then meeting her family in Europe. When her father went to pour him wine and he put his hand over the glass, the table went silent. He felt less-than. He pulled his wife into the bedroom, they prayed for 30 minutes, and then he came out and said through translation: “I am an alcoholic.” When her brother asked what would happen if he drank, Doug said, “I die.” The obsession lifted. It wasn’t the rooms that saved him that night—it was God.
He emphasizes repeatedly: hard drinkers don’t need AA. If someone can stop or moderate, they shouldn’t be in the rooms wasting time. But real alcoholics need a spiritual solution. The 12 steps provide the path. Self-knowledge is worthless. A smart man can quote the Big Book and still relapse if he doesn’t practice the principles and work with a sponsor.
Doug is direct about the stakes. He tells the story of a young man (24 years old) whose father, a retired Marine, asked Doug what he thought. Doug said: “He will find serenity one of two ways—by working the steps or by dying.” The father asked if there was a door number three. “No,” Doug said. That’s not cruelty; that’s clarity.
By the time he finishes, he’s walked the room through the diagnosis, the problem, and the first two steps of the solution. The message is simple: you are powerless, willpower doesn’t work, self-knowledge doesn’t work, and only a power greater than yourself—found through the 12 steps—can restore you to sanity.
Notable Quotes
Our very lives, as ex-problem drinkers, depend upon the constant thought of others and how we may help their needs. This is not a selfish program.
The first drink gets you drunk. This doesn’t mean you’re a lightweight—it means once the cycle starts, you cannot stop.
If you are as seriously alcoholic as we were, there is no middle-of-the-road solution. There is no easier, softer way. There is none.
His defense must come from a higher power. You’re not powerless if you have God—you have unlimited amounts of power.
Either God is everything or he is nothing. Either God is or he isn’t. What is your choice to be today?
Fear comes into my life but for a moment, and then it goes away. I do not hold on to this fear. Live life like that. That is truly living.
Big Book Study
Step 1 – Powerlessness
Sponsorship
Spiritual Awakening
Topics Covered in This Transcript
- Step 2 – Higher Power
- Big Book Study
- Step 1 – Powerlessness
- Sponsorship
- Spiritual Awakening
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Full AA Speaker Transcript
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Welcome to Sober Sunrise, a podcast bringing you AA speaker meetings with stories of experience, strength, and hope from around the world. We bring you several new speakers weekly, so be sure to subscribe. We hope to always remain an ad-free podcast, so if you'd like to help us remain self-supporting, please visit our website at sober-onrise.com.
Whether you join us in the morning or at night, there's nothing better than a sober sunrise. We hope that you enjoy today's speaker. All right, are we ready for the third hour?
Comedy hour. Doug M from Jacksonville, Florida. Did everybody enjoy their cigarette?
Ah, this doesn't harm me. Everyone would just get off my case. Right.
Smoking. I'm trying to fix this. Okay.
All right. We're good. We are good.
We are good. We are working the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous here in Copenhagen, Denmark. I'm excited to be here.
My name is Doug and I am an alcoholic. All right. This is what I would like to do.
Turn to page 20. Turn to page 20. Page 20.
At the top of the page, at the top of the page 20, I want you to highlight this. Our very lives. Circle the word very lives.
So that means this is a life and death statement that they're about ready to make, isn't it? Our very lives as ex problem drinkers depends upon the constant thought of others and how we may help their needs. This is not a selfish program.
As you may hear sometimes, I work a selfish program. Well, that's good for you. Our our very lives depend upon thinking about each other.
Our very lives depend upon helping each others. I don't know if you hear in the states you hear something happens on 366th day. Wait one year.
Wait one year before you sponsor somebody. I just told you our very lives depend on sponsoring people. And you got Yahoos out there saying wait one year to sponsor somebody.
What happens on 366? All of a sudden, we get this spiritual transformation. I mean, uh, we we could get divorced, we can get new jobs, we could sponsor people.
306. Thank God Bill Wilson, the original founder, never did that. It took him six days before he was able to sponsor somebody.
And that was just because he couldn't write. He shook so much. All right?
six days he got up out of bed and he started sponsoring people because he knew his very life depended on helping others. Once you finished the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous, once you have worked the steps as a newcomer, then you have something to share. Share it.
6 weeks, 10 years, 13 years, it doesn't matter. Okay? Start sharing it.
The icing on the cake you're thinking of. Okay? Now, I want you to um I want you to go down to the first paragraph on page 20 and about five lines down it says, "We have recovered from a seemingly hopeless condition of mind and body.
We have recovered from that." If you are an alcoholic who wants to get over it, you may be as already asking what do I do? In the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous, they are going to answer the question in the next paragraph always. So it says here it is the purpose of this book to answer these questions vaguely or does it say specifically?
It says specifically to answer these questions. Hey, how do I get sober? Oh, I'm going to answer it specifically.
Okay, it's not too tough, is it? Specifically, I want you to go down to the um I want you to go down to the uh on page 20. 1 2 3 paragraph.
Are you ready? Write this. Three types of alcoholics.
They're about ready to tell you the three types of alcoholics. All right. Number one.
Let's let's do a little test here. Now, you don't have to get up and leave if you're not an alcoholic, but let's see if you pass this test. You ready?
Number one, moderate drinker. I want you to box it in. It's a moderate drinker.
I I never even understood what that word moderation was, but I'll read it. I'll read it. It says here, "Modderate drinkers have little trouble in giving up liquor entirely if they have a good reason for it." Okay?
They can take it or leave it alone. Okay. So, that's not me.
All right. They can take it or leave it alone. Whatever.
I guess there's people out there. All right. Let's go to the next paragraph.
Then we have a certain type of hard drinker. hard drinker. We are infiltrated with hard drinkers here in Alcoholics Anonymous.
We are infiltrated with them and they're killing us. And they don't mean to. They don't mean to.
So don't get upset with them. But they were people who are able to stop or moderate. Moderate.
Doesn't that mean like let's have a couple drinks? Let's have a couple drinks after work. Sure.
then you'll go home and I'll stay here on the bar stool or on the floor. It really didn't matter to me. When I fell on the floor, they stopped giving me two at a time.
They go to one at a time, you know, whatever. So, uh, let's let's let's talk about hard drinker. He may have the habit badly enough to gradually impair him physically and mentally.
It may cause him to die a few years early. Highlight this. If a sufficient strong reason, ill health, falling in love, change of environment, or a warning of a doctor becomes operative, this man could stop or moderate.
Circle stop or moderate. I'll tell you that in my story tonight at 9:00, I will tell you my story and I will tell you a doctor who looked me straight in the eye and he said, "You are dying from cerosis of the liver." My father died from cerosis of the liver. It's an ugly death.
Okay. I was 32 years old. He told me I had about 14 years to live and I went out and celebrated.
14 years. Rock on. You know, I walked into the bar.
Hey, I got 14 years to live. Everyone's like, "Drink up." You know, I had 14 years. And I just partied cuz I had 14.
I thought I was supposed I thought he was going to say something like two or three, right? 14? Are you kidding me?
Maybe that's like a lifetime. 14. I could squeeze out maybe 15.
Who knows? So, I was not a hard drinker cuz I was excited. I was dying in 14 years.
But now, let's look. But what about the circle three? Real alcoholic.
Real alcoholic. What about the real alcoholic? All right.
He may start off as a moderate drinker. I did when I was 14, 15, 16. He may or may not become a continuous hard drinker.
And I was I was a hard drinker up until about 18. Uh I was able uh to No, maybe not. But at some stage of his drinking career, folks, if you're calling drinking a career, you may have a problem.
What do you do for a living? I drink. Sign me up, man.
I want that. Any applications? Sure.
Come on board. All right. He begins to lose all control of liquor consumption once he begins to drink.
There we go again. First drink gets you drunk. So, don't think the Kai is a lightweight.
This doesn't mean that one there to me. First drink gets me drunk, loser. It just means that the cycle continues.
Okay. So, how many real alcoholics do we have in the house? Nice, nice, nice, nice, nice.
For those of you who are thinking about it, there's a couple tests you could take and I'll show you in the big book. Okay. Stop drinking for a year.
That's what I did. I laughed. And then it says in the big book, stop drinking.
Go to the bar. drink then stop drinking. Do it more than once.
You know, you can go there and do I did it yesterday, right? Try it more than once. You know, when my wife has a half a glass of wine, she's not sitting there going, "The liquor store is closed.
I got half a bottle of wine left. I got to go." All right. Like us, man.
I remember there was a time my kids were two and three and I and in America if you leave your kids home by yourself man you're a bad parent and I was hammered and my wife my then wife is a flight attendant. She's on a trip. So I'm thinking to myself I can't leave these kids home.
So I know what I'll do. I'll pack them in the car at 3:00 in the morning and drive to a liquor store. That's what I was thinking.
Okay. Thank God nothing happened to them. Thank God.
Thank God. All right. Um, I want you to go to page 22.
Page 22, last paragraph, third sentence. Page 22, last paragraph, third sentence. We of Alcoholics Anonymous are equally positive.
These guys are positive that once he takes any alcohol whatever into his system something happens both bodily craving and mentally the obsession which makes it virtually impossible for him to stop. The experience of any alcoholic will abundantly confirm this. Do you all confirm that?
It made it virtually impossible for me to stop. And if I did I was restless, irritable and discontent. It says these observations would be academic and pointless if our friend never took the first drink.
The first drink is what gets you drunk. Thereby setting the terrible cycle emotion. Therefore, the main problem, the alcoholic centers in the mind, then we think in the body.
All right? Because if you can get rid of the mind obsession, then the body doesn't have the craving. Does that make sense?
So, how did I do that? How did I do that? I did it after the ninth step.
When I finished the ninestep of which I will tell you my story tonight. I had a huge spiritual awakening. Huge.
I was on an airplane. It was embarrassing but it was huge spiritual awakening. And I never had the desire to drink again.
No matter what has happened in my life ever. I I don't even default to that. It doesn't even it does I don't default to it.
I default to God. But I continue to do nightly inventory. I continue to do daily prayer and meditation with my wife.
I continually go to meetings. I continually bring people through the steps every week and then once a month I'll fly somewhere around the world and do a an AA conference. Okay?
That's the lengths that I go. That's the lengths that you need to do. Make sense?
200 people shaking their head. Yes. Page 24.
First paragraph. I love this one. Page 24.
First paragraph. The fact, do we all like facts here? I love facts.
The fact is that most alcoholics, for reasons yet obscured, have lost the power of choice in drink. I love when people say, "I got the power of drinking and not to drink." I'm like, "Then why are you sitting here? If I had the power of not to drink, I just wouldn't drink.
I wouldn't be in Copenhagen at an AA convention. I wouldn't be even in AA. I just wouldn't drink.
I lost that power when I crossed the line. Okay. I lost the power of choice and drink.
Does that make sense? Okay. It says here, "Our so-called willpower becomes practically non-existent.
We are unable at certain times to bring into our consciousness with sufficient force the memory of the suffering and humiliation of even a week or a month ago." Think about this. People sit in these rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous and they're like, "I come to meetings to keep it green." Keep it green. I guess that means to keep it fresh.
Well, when I was drinking and I I walked outside a bar and I peed all over myself, I went back in the next day. Hey, was I messed up or what? Woohoo!
Right. Keeping it green is not going to keep me sober. You know why I go to AA?
I go to AA to find people like you to bring through the steps. I'm going to go out on the line. I'm going to go out on the edge.
You ready for this? I do not go to AA meetings to stay sober. I do not.
My God in the 12 steps and AA will keep me sober in service work, but I do not go to meetings to stay sober. You do not have the power to keep me sober. I go to AA meetings because I love you all.
I go to AA meetings because I enjoy it in some parts of the US. I'm not going to mention any states because uh some of my tapes have made it back to some other parts and they're, you know, I'm like barred. He can't come.
He thinks we're do, you know, they talk a little like this down there. How y'all doing? So, and they talk about the dog and I I just two weeks ago I learned how to make chicken salad in an AA meeting.
I sat there like, "Oh my god." You know, all my sponsies are looking at me. Say something. Say something.
Yeah, I don't need to say stuff. I'll go to Copenhagen. I'll talk enough when I'm there.
Page 25. Look at this. Page 25.
I love this one. First paragraph. There is a solution.
Oh my god. Really? You know, I'm telling you, hide money in a big book and an alcoholic won't find it.
Page 25. There is a solution. Follow me here.
Are you ready? This is the solution for you relapsers. This is the good news.
I feel like a mama. That's That's the Italian mama. There you go.
Like that. For you relapsers, there's good news. You like that?
Okay. There is a solution. Almost none of us like selfarching.
Self-searching. That's steps four and 10. So write down steps four and 10.
Self-searching go like this. Four and 10. Okay.
None of us like selfarching. That's steps four and 10. The leveling of pride.
The leveling of pride. That's step one. When you admit you're powerless over something.
That is pretty darn humbling, isn't it? Step one. Okay.
The confession. What step is confession? Five.
Step five, right? The confession. Okay.
Of shortcomings. Shortcomings six and seven. Now listen to this for you relapsers.
Listen to this. Step six and seven. Which the process requires for its successful consummation.
The process of alcoholics anonymous requires you to do the steps if you are going to have a successful consummation in AA. So the good news is relapsers if you have not done this you have never failed. The bad news is relapsers, if you have not done this, you have not had a successful consummation and you're constantly drinking and you'll get a lot of hugs and kisses and you know, thanks.
I don't want that. No, let me rephrase that. I love the hugs and kisses.
I remember when I first came into AA, we had to go to NA when I was in the funny farm. We call it the funny farm, the mental house. When I went away, they sent me away where there was padded rooms and, you know, guys with guns and stuff.
And when when I was in when I was in this padded room, they sent me to A NA, Narcotics Anonymous, and and they all kind of hugged each other and they and I was like, yeah. And then you went to AA. It was like, how are you?
I'm doing well. You know, you're shaking everyone's hand. Now I'll walk up to somebody, shake their hand, they go put out their hand.
I'm like, "All right, I'm Mr. Hugger." Oh, there's that Doug guy again wanting to hug me. All right.
All right. I want you to go to the next paragraph on uh um and excuse me the um page 25 first paragraph uh where we just ended up where it said successful consummation. Go down two lines and it says therefore and this is beautiful.
When therefore we were approached by those in who the problem has been circle solved. If you solve something that's pretty powerful, isn't it? We don't talk about that here in AA.
Why? There was nothing left but to pick up the simple kit of spiritual tools laid at our feet. That's the 12 steps.
We have found much of heaven and we have been rocketed into the fourth dimension of existence. That is my experience. As I look at you and you look at me, I have a three-dimensional object of you all.
The fourth dimension is the spiritual dimension. If you have not felt it, you are missing the icing on the cake. So, how do you get that fourth dimension?
Work the steps. Clear the wreckage of the past. Help others.
Watch them get a spiritual awakening. Pray and meditate. It drives me crazy when people try to belittle a God experience.
Six weeks, right? People patting you on the head. Oh, you have this nice little pink cloud.
Pink cloud we call it in America. It is not a pink cloud. It is a God consciousness.
And I've had it for 13 years. A God consciousness. Don't belittle your God.
Don't belittle you. You can have this God consciousness every day. Work the steps.
Help others. Go to meetings. Pray and meditate.
And if you have a spouse or a mate, try it. It'll bring you closer together. All right.
Don't demoralize yourself. That drives me crazy. Drives me to drink, as I say.
All right. Um, I want you to go down to um uh I want you to go to the next paragraph. It says the great fact, and here we are again.
Page 25, third par uh second paragraph. Page 25, second paragraph. The great fact is just this and nothing less.
That we've had a deep and effective spiritual experience which has revolutionized our whole attitude toward number one life toward number two fellows toward number three God's universe. The central fact of our lives today is the absolute certainty that our creator has entered into our hearts and lives in a way which we indeed miraculous. It is a miracle.
He has commenced to accomplish those things which we could never do by ourselves. If you are as seriously alcoholic as we look at the word were past tense we believe there is no middle of the road solution and there is no middle of the road solution. There is no easier softer way.
There is none. Uh I work out with a with a a a retired Well, they don't retire. Marines are like the top of the top and he's not a retired Marine.
He's whatever they call him, but anyway, a Marine. He's 72. The guy has seen hell.
He says he has not seen more hell than he has watched his 24 year old son going through alcohol and drug addiction. And I said, "Get that kid on the phone in my office today." I don't Did you hear me say tomorrow? you came up to me and I gave you to him and I said within three hours I want him through the steps.
Okay. And I and the guy calls me up and he said, "Well, I just saw my psychiatrist and then they brought me to the hospital. I saw a doctor and they're going to put me on an abute and then they're going to put me." I'm like, "Dude, what do you just go to an AA meeting with me?
Let's work the steps." Well, they think it might be a little I I I do this. I back off. I was like, "You know what?
I wish you the best and and maybe this may work for you. And I'm thinking in the back of my mind, 100% this guy's a goner. He's a goner.
And I and his father called me up. He goes, "What do you think?" I said, "This is the scoop. You ready?
Take notes. He will find serenity of one of two ways." And his father was like, "Oh, that's so great. Thank you for the good news.
Either by working the steps or dying." And he says, "Well, is there is there like a door number three?" I said, "No." And so I'm very peaceful with that because my my heaven, my belief is, "Oh my god, you know, I am not afraid of dying. Absolutely not." Okay? And I don't know how he's doing.
I really don't. Breaks my heart. But, you know, we see this time and time again, but it says in the big book with working with others that you may lose a chance with somebody else.
So, don't try to change people. Just let them go. They'll come back.
Alcohol is a huge persuader. Man, I was to my knees when I got back. Help me.
Yeah. You think you got a problem? Whatever.
Just just just just help me. Okay. So, it says here um there's no middle of the road solution.
We were in a position where life was becoming impossible. If we hadn't passed into the region from which there is no human no return through human aid, no return through human aid. So, if that is a true statement, there's no return through human aid.
Then how are the meetings going to keep me sober? You're all human. Oh, come here.
Give me a hug. No, I don't want to give you a hug. I just want to stay sober for more than a day, right?
Does that make Does this make sense to you? I wish I made this stuff up, but I actually didn't. All right.
Chapter three, more about alcoholism. More about alcoholism. What I want you to write down is more about alcoholism is this chapter discuss what's going to happen before you take the first drink.
Check this out. You're going to love this chapter. Okay.
What happens before a relapse? So this Oh, by the way, this is a zero. In America, when we make a zero, we make that.
I did not know that you all had a letter like that. Sorry, I'm trying to email that American. Then all of a sudden, I'm going to end up on your 10step list under resentment.
You know, jerk off American. Oops, I didn't mean to cuss. Sorry about that.
You may want to strike that one from the record. All right. Okay.
More about alcoholism. You ready? I want you to go down to the fir the second paragraph.
Second paragraph, folks. Now, we're going to start rocketing. This is step one.
I want 200 people to take step one with me. We ready for this? We excited?
Do you all think I'm like that Tony Robbins guy? Somebody Somebody said that. somebody and I'm like I almost did a deal with that guy once but he found out who I was and didn't want to move forward.
Anyway, step one, are we ready? This is what I want you to ask your sponsies. Look him straight in the eye and you say, "Do you fully concede to your innermost self that you are an alcoholic?
To your innermost self, to your God self? Not to your wife, your kids, your work. Do you believe to your innermost self that after everything we just read after everything we just read and I kept watching your heads go like this?
Yep. Yep. Yep.
Do you believe to your innermost self that you are alcoholic? Yes. Let's hear.
Yes. Nice. There was a guy there in row five who didn't say yes.
See um this is the first step in recovery. The delusion that we are like other people or presently maybe has to be smashed. Smashed.
Why do you think they didn't I think I did break this thing. Why didn't Why didn't they use the word broke? Because if it's broke, you could fix it.
Smashed. If you think you're going to be like another alcoholic and have a little cocktail and leave a half a glass of wine, it ain't happening. If you think you're going to do one line, yeah, might as well just pick up a quarter ounce, whatever.
Right. Okay. Has to be smashed.
We alcoholics, men and women who have lost the ability to control our drinking, we know that no alcoholic, circle the word ever, squiggly lines, ever gains control. ever. I've never seen it.
Okay, I want you to go to um um it says here on page uh on page 30 1 2 3 third paragraph and it's about uh let's see here four four five lines down it says we are convinced all 100 people were convinced a man that alcoholics of our type are in the grip of a progressive illness over any considerable time we get worse, never better. Every time somebody goes out, I said, "How was it?" And they they give me a horror story. So, I believe you.
I don't want to try it. I believe you. From my understanding and from what you all told me who have relapsed that if I go back out, it's like taking 13 years and just fast forwarding it.
And it gets worse. I don't know how it can get worse. I was in a You should have seen when I woke up at 3:25 in the afternoon, February 1st, 1995.
It was not a winning streak for me, guys. I lost a month. I still can't recollect January 1995.
Like, what happened to it? Just poof, gone. Okay, I don't think it gets much better than much worse than that.
Go to page 31, last paragraph. This is the one I love. I want you to write right next to it.
This is the alcoholic test. You ready? For all of you out there that are thinking about this, we do not like to pronounce any individual an alcoholic.
And I don't. It says, "But you can quickly diagnose yourself. Step over to the nearest barroom and try some control drinking.
Try to drink and stop abruptly." Ouch. But check. Tell me.
Tell me they didn't know us. Turn the page. Try it more than once, you know, because they know somebody's going to go over.
I'm good. I'm giving my soup. Looks good.
I'm See, I'm not an alcoholic. I remember I quit for a week. I was on morphine, but I quit for a week.
I thought I'm not an alcoholic. Yeah. Freaking idiot.
I was all It will not take long for you to decide if you are honest with yourself. Okay. If you're honest with yourself.
Page 33, first paragraph, six lines down. Page 33, first paragraph, six lines down, starts off in quotes. Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic.
Commencing to drink after a period of sobriety. We are in a short time as bad as ever. If we are planning to stop drinking, there must be no lurking, no reservations of any kind, nor any lurking notion that someday we will be immune to alcohol.
So, newcomers, get over it. You know, I I need to put it a little more gentle. I'm sorry.
Newcomers, you know, let's take it one day at a time and we'll work together. Get over it. Really, get over it.
Work the steps. Help others. You'll have a life that you would not have dreamed of.
I have a life today. My sponsor gave me my 10-year chip a few years ago. When he met with me, um I had 90 days sober, maybe a little more.
He says, "What do you want?" I said, and you may not all understand this. I have a hole in my soul that the only thing that fills it up is alcohol and drugs. That's it.
It's a hole. I just want to fill up that hole. So, he gave me my 10-year chip.
He says, "So, tell me about that hole. How do we do?" And I'm like, "Oh my god, I have missed it by a thousand%." We so undershoot the mark. Most alcoholics do.
Okay. Think big. Believe big.
All right. It says here um this is very big uh page 331 to it's the uh second uh third paragraph. To be gravely affected, one does not necessarily have to drink a long time nor take the quantities we do.
Okay, that's important because you're going to get a lot of people saying, "Well, you know, I only I wasn't an everyday drinker. I wasn't every other day drinker, but when I drank, my god, it was just nasty because I needed that other day to, you know, just stop the shaking. All right.
And then I would drink on the other day. It was just, but apparently I would have become an everyday drinker. So, I want you to turn to page 34, first paragraph, third sentence.
Here we go. Ready? Another alcoholic test.
I love this test though. Okay. Page 34, first paragraph, third sentence.
If anyone questions whether he has entered this dangerous area, let him try leaving liquor alone for one year. I read that and said, "Are you insane?" I I and then I told my story about the week. I said, "I went a week without drinking." And then my sponsor, who's pretty sharp, started questioning me.
And then he found out that, you know, I was on morphine for a back operation. Whatever. It says if he is real alcoholic and very far advanced there is scant chance of success.
Scant chance of success. That is true with me. It says here in the second paragraph third sentence second paragraph page 34 third sentence whether such a person can quit upon upon a non-spiritual basis depends upon the extent to which he has already lost the power of choice whether he will drink or not.
Hard drinkers do not need a spiritual awakening to stop drinking. They don't. They just kind of stop or moderate.
I have sponsored many of them until I get to this page. By this time, they're either staying because they want to learn a spiritual way of life or they're out of my house. And I've done it many times.
Dude, I say you do not need Alcoholics Anonymous. You're a hard drinker. You know nothing about craving.
You know nothing about mental obsession. You're fine. Just stop.
Well, that's it. Yeah. No aa.
No. You know, he's celebrating, you know, at the door. I see him years later.
They're doing fine. You know, I celebrate cuz I have to stay here. I celebrate because I have you all around the world.
All around the world, I have family. Think about the magnitude of the bigness of this. Two guys, two guys sitting together in Akran, Ohio, okay, after Mother's Day.
Really, our birthday should be the first week in May. But Dr. Bob had a few cocktails, okay?
Because he wouldn't do the ninth step. So that's why we're June 10th. Okay, two guys changed the world.
If you don't think you could change the world, you are so missing it. You're missing it. I'm getting calls from Johannesburg, Japan, Australia.
We all could do this. You could change the world. You can just believe it.
We are so fortunate to have this way of living. Um, I want you to do this. I want you to go to page 37.
Page 37. Page 37, fourth paragraph. Uh, page 37, second paragraph, fourth sentence.
37, second paragraph, fourth sentence. It starts off with this. But there was always the curious mental phenomenon that paralleled with sound reasoning.
Their intrivial ransom insanity trivial excuse for taking a drink. Check this out. Mathematically you have two parallel lines.
Correct. Two parallel lines. You have the let's call let's go right back to the big book.
You have the uh mental phenomenon which parallels with sound reasoning. So you have sound reasoning here. mental phenomenon here, right?
Sound reasoning would state if I take this drink, I lose everything. This is what alcohol does with us. This is alcohol.
All right? It just wipes thing away. She's gone.
Kids are gone. Work is everything's gone. Just that alcohol.
So, we have this mental phenomenon and we have the sound reasoning thinking don't take the drink, don't take the drink, don't take the drink, don't take the drink. So, you it's paralleling each other, right? You got this mental phenomenon saying drink, drink, drink, drink.
You know what stops this? And we're getting to it right now. What happens is this.
It crosses right here in the second step. came to believe that a power grain ourselves could restore us to sanity. Sound reasoning.
I did this deal. Um it was a is a big deal. And I'm sitting in Sarasota, Florida.
We have a home there. If you've ever been there, if not, come. We've given it to the universe.
We let everybody use it for free. That's that's another gift that I've given to the universe. It's our home in Sarasota, Florida.
And it's beautiful and serene. But anyway, I I did this huge business deal and I'm sitting around with all these businessmen in this and it's it it was November and it's like 75 degrees and the sun's setting and the palm trees just went and everyone is toasting, right? And what do I have?
I have my son Pagino and we're all toasting and they're toasting and telling me how great I am and great and great and great. Guess what comes into my mind? Wouldn't it be nice to join these guys in a cocktail?
I've never had a cocktail in my life. I drink a good drink. So then all of a sudden the mental phenomenon comes in.
Have that cocktail. You are super hero. And then sound reasoning crosses right here.
Step two comes into my life and all of a sudden I'm sitting at the table and I start laughing. The problem was no one was talking and they're like, "What are you laughing at?" And what am I going to say? Well, actually, I'm an alcoholic and I thought about having a drink and then if I have a drink, we just gave you $2 billion.
Come on. Okay, that's what they're talking about. The only way to get that is through God.
All right, I want you to go page 3712, third paragraph. It starts off with this is a dry drunk. This is a person who doesn't work the steps.
Tell me if you felt this way. Ready? In some circumstances, we have gone out deliberately to get drunk, feeling ourselves justified by, has anyone ever here felt nervous, anger, worry, depression, jealousy?
Now, everyone's shaking their head now. Some people are like, "Right, that's a dry drunk." I know people that talk in meetings 30 year. I go 30 years sobriety.
I haven't worked the steps a damn I wouldn't want one minute of that guy so Brian like oh my god drink here I got a I got a bottle I used to carry a bottle in my car because of 12step calls someone almost died and and some people need to have some alcohol but make sure you give them the alcohol like almost before they get there because what happens is if you give it to them and then they got an hour they're like well you know maybe I maybe dude you were just sleeping been in your poop. You haven't seen this the light of day in 3 years. I mean, maybe we're getting a little out of control here.
I think you need a rehab. All right. I think you need alcohol.
It's anonymous. But I had to take him to a detox because medically he was a mess. All right.
I want you to turn to page 39. Page 39, first paragraph. All right.
Here we go again. You ready? This is powerless.
This is the powerless we're talking about. You ready for the powerless? All right.
Here we go. powerless. That may be true for some certain non-alcoholic people who though drinking foolishly and heavily at the present time are able to here we go circle stop or moderate because their brains the mental obsession and bodies the body cravings have not been damaged as ours were.
But actual the actual or potential alcoholic with hardly an exception will be absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-nowledge. This is a point we wish to emphasize and re-emphasize to smash. Second time they use the word smash smash home upon our alcoholic readers and is has been our to us out of bitter experience.
Okay. Self-nowledge is not going to help you. I had this really smart guy, dear friend of mine, Jeff, just got this barred, just got this barred.
He's an attorney. They took away his license in Virginia. He tried to drink himself to death in this Manasses place and he could quote the big book better than me but he never practiced the principles made the amends did the four step but he knew it self-nowledge he met me he's still sober to this day and it's I don't know 7 8 n 10 years 10 years probably now he's a wonderful human and he only deals with lowbottom drunks it's all he does cuz he was one he comes pulling up in his Maserati.
The drunks look at him like, "Can I help you?" "Yeah, I'm taking you to rehab. Jump in, you idiot." The guy goes to a rehab in a Maserati, doesn't he? He's the best.
And man, he'll big book him all the way up. Here, read this. Shut up.
You don't need to say He's the best. He's the best. He's He has this prayer and meditation meeting now in Sarasota.
Um, I want you to turn to page 42. Okay. The last paragraph on page 42 states this, highlight it.
Quite as important was the discovery that spiritual principles would solve, circle all my problems. I have since been brought into a way of living infinitely more satisfying and, I hope, more useful than the life I lived before. My old manner of life was but no means a bad one.
But I would not exchange the best moments for the worst I have now. I would not go back to it even if I could. And that's my experience today.
Okay? It'll solve all your problems. Just not your alcoholic problems, all your problems.
You are going to hear a story tonight at 8:00 from a lady who has transformed in front of my eyes that I love more today, seven years ago. We have a word, and I hope maybe you all understand this. We have a word in in English called adore.
Does everybody know what adore means? If you adore somebody that's above we have another word called love. Uh tamo is in Italian, but we have called love.
I I have my one American in front in the back and she understands everything I'm saying. I adore her. I just don't love her.
That that is something I never could have fathomemed in my life. And I'm going to show you through the steps how I invented her. I I swear to God, you're probably like, "Oh my god, Tony Robbins, he's far off to the right, this guy." But I learned this through the steps and I'm going to show you how to do that today.
Okay? And if you settle for anything less, shame on you. Here we go.
Doing the mama thing. Okay? All right.
It says here, page 43, bottom of the page, last paragraph. Once more, the alcoholic at certain times has no effective mental defense against the first drink except in a few rare cases. Neither he nor any other human being can provide such a defense.
His defense, please circle the word must come from a higher power. Are you ready for this? So I find this lovely Italian.
Actually I picked her up on my flight. Uh I I was uh I was doing a flight. Uh she was going to Rome, Italy, and I was the captain and I saw her in the terminal.
I was like, "Whoa, you know, hey." and she kind of looked at me and smiled and of course you know being the arrogant American I'm like she digs me and she was looking at the guy behind me. So the flight attendant when she went walking on the airplane said excuse me the captain wants to see you up front and she comes walking up front they were pulling a prank on me and I look at her and she goes excuse Capitano and I turn around like and the first officer was like what was that all about? Right.
So that's how I met my wife. I I picked her up on an airplane. So I pick my wife up on an airplane.
She doesn't give me her number or nothing. Three years later, I see her in Charlottesville, Virginia. She says a capitano.
And I'm like, "Miss Italy." You know, she's got this long first name. I'm like, "Miss Italy." And we've been inseparable since. We get married.
Then I go to meet Mama Papa. Ah. Yeah, Europeans, you know this.
I don't. It's like, let's get married, you know, one of these American things. And um so I'm sitting there, her father's a brain surgeon.
So he's good with a knife. Her brother's a doctor and architect and he's like he's like a sculptured god. I mean, they're all great looking.
I'm like, so here I am meeting the in-laws and they're all around the table and the first thing they do is there's wine everywhere and they go to pour me a glass of wine and I put my hand over it. Wine's going on. They're like, and the place goes silent.
Now I'm feeling less than. I'm in a country. No one speaks English except my wife.
And I said, "Did uh did you tell them I was an alcoholic?" She goes, "No, it's none of their business." I'm like, "Oh my god, I I I I Yes, it is their business." So now I think now I think of course they're talking about me, you know. So I said, "Come with me to the bedroom." And it was because of this saved my life right here. It says here, "His defense must come from a higher power." I started calling America and no one was answering the phone.
It was me and God and that was it. I had the obsession of drinking. I wanted to fit in.
I wanted to be a part of them. But guess what happened? The mental phenomenon was happening.
It crossed the second step. God came into my life. We went into the bedroom and we sat there for 30 minutes praying and meditating.
Now they just met me. I'm dragging my wife into a bedroom, their ears up against the wall and they're like, I'm a weirdo. What's up with this American dude and what is he doing to my daughter in my room?
So, we come back out of that. We come back out of the room and we go up front and I said, "Okay, translate. I am an alcoholic." And they didn't know what that meant.
And her brother raises his hand. I thought I was like in class. I'm like, "Uh, yes." And he asked her, "What happens if you drink?" And I said, "Just say I die." And they have never offered me a drink again.
The obsession went away. And it was God. It wasn't the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous.
I couldn't escape to a meeting cuz meeting makers make it. I escaped to God. And what happened?
I stayed sober and I have a beautiful relationship with them. Oh, and they adore me after 5 years. What is seven years?
Seven years. Mama just started saying she loved. She didn't trust me.
me. God, you know, I mean, ding. A little halo.
All right, we're going to go and we the agnostics. This is step two. We're all going to take step two together.
Then we're going to take a break. Are you ready for this? This is the God part.
If you're atheist, get over it. Ready? Here we go.
What? What? What?
Okay. Right. My my sponsor kept on saying to me, "You're hosed.
You're you're done. you're you're going to drink again. I'm like, well, where's door three?
There's got to be a door three. No. Find God, die.
How's that? Is that good? I was like, no.
All right. Here we go. Um, first paragraph.
If you go to the uh four sentence, it says, "If when you honestly want to, you find you cannot quit entirely." Circle or. If when drinking you have little control over the amount you take, you're probably an alcoholic. This is the first time they've called you an alcoholic.
If this be the case, you may be suffering from an illness which circle the word only. A spiritual experience will conquer. How do we get the spiritual experience?
Through the 12 steps of alcoholic synonymous. So when my sponsor kept saying me I was hosed if I didn't find God. I was he was okay with that because he knew step 12 states having had a spiritual experience as the result of these steps.
Okay, I'm going to put step two up here. That's step one. We'll go over that real quick.
But here's step two worksheet. On the step two worksheet, you're going to see a problem, an action, and a solution. A problem, what you need to do to get to the solution.
We just don't leave you hanging here. This is what I gave you. You have a problem, you got to take action, and you go to solution.
I have a great friend here now, and I'm not going to mention names. He says, you know, uh, I have a fear of speaking in front of people, as you could tell. So do I.
Um, and so, uh, I'm very modest. Um, actually my sister's got the modesty. I kind of bypassed me, but he he he says, "I'm I'm frighten.
I'm just waiting for a sign, you know, and uh uh I'll know and God will tell me when it's right to." And I said, "Okay, okay. How many times have you been asked to speak? What do you want?
A 2×4 beside your head from God saying, "Speak already." You know, we find these we find these um these these things from God and we just let it go right by. Woo! I'm waiting for a sign.
God must be up here like this. You knucklehead. How do you miss this one?
All right. Tell me when it's time to speak. Your four guys coming up.
Hey, we really like you to speak. We heard what you had to say. God, please help me.
I'm not ready yet. Get out of the mind. Get into the soul.
Okay. Get out of the mind. get into the soul.
All right, I want you to do um I want you to go to um um section one, two, third paragraph on page 44. Third paragraph on page 44. Fourth sentence, it says, "But after a while, we had to face the fact that we must find a spiritual basis of life or else we die." Folks, this is life and death stuff.
We die if we don't find this. How do we do that? Steps.
12 step. having had a spiritual awakening as the singular result of these steps. Okay?
So, relax. Wait till you get to the 12th step. Then, if you don't get it, you're hosed.
That's it. You're done. Okay?
Page 45. Page 45. I want you to go to the first paragraph.
The first paragraph states this lack of power. That was our dilemma. We had to find a power by which we could live.
And it had to be a power greater than ourselves, obviously. But where and how are we going to find this power? Question.
Here's the answer. Well, that's exactly what this book is about. Its main object, circle, main object, its main object is to enable you to find a power greater than itself which will solve your problems.
It doesn't say alcohol problems. It says which will solve your problems. So, do you remember in the beginning about 90 hours ago when I said there's a main purpose?
There was a main purpose, right? And the main purpose it was on page Xi. The main purpose was to show you precisely how we have recovered.
Now we have a main object and the main object is to help you find a higher power. Folks, why are we even going anywhere else? We got it right here.
A purpose is going to show you exactly precisely how you have recovered. The object is to help you find the God which will help you recover. It's all in the big book.
So why should I love when people say, "Well, I got my own way of working the steps." Okay, genius. You know, good for you because I am not that bright and I need to take an easier, softer way. And that is the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Does that make sense to everybody? Everybody's shaking their head. Okay.
Page 46, first paragraph. 46, first paragraph, second sentence. Let us make haste to reassure you.
That's my phone. To reassure you, we found that as soon as we were able to lay aside prejudice and express even a willingness to believe in a power greater than ourselves, we commenceed to get results. Even a willingness, you know what my willingness was?
My willingness was I was still working these steps with this guy in Fernandina Beach, Florida. When he said, "Came to believe a power greater than ourselves can restore you to sanity." Do you believe that? I said, "No." He's like, "All right, how about if we try it this way?
Will you believe that the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous have kept you sober? I'm like, "Yeah, for right now. Yeah, yeah, I could do that.
Move forward. Move forward." Then when we got to step three, made a decision to turn our will and life over the care of God. Will you do that?
I said, "No." He says, "Will you make a decision right now to finish the rest of the steps?" And I said, "Absolutely." See that? So, he kept moving me forward. I hate these sponsors that go around and say, "Well, come back to me, kid, when you find God." I'm like, God, where are you God?
You know what I mean? Walking through the woods. Where's that burning bush?
It's the steps that are going to help you find God. You're just not sitting there thinking, you know, sitting like this. Jesus Christ.
I have it. Oh, do you love that chime? It's an alarm.
It's the Buddhist alarm that I have here. Okay. So, now this is what I want you to do.
It says here on page 46, second paragraph. This is the second step promises. There's promises all through this book and these are beautiful.
Much to our relief, we had discovered we did not need to consider another's conception of God. Our own conception, however inadequate, was sufficient to make the approach. That was beautiful, folks.
This is for people you're going to work with that don't believe in a god. Okay. It says here, "As soon as we admitted the possible existence of the creative intelligence, a spirit of the universe underlying the totality of things, we began to lo we began to be possessed with a new sense of power.
Circle power. Now we have a new sense of power. So don't let people say you're powerless.
You're not powerless. You have unlimited amounts of power because you now have a God that has power. Okay?
So now you're being possessed by a new sense of power and direction, life will become clear. Provided we took simple steps. So when people say to me, hey, where's that power on the you work the steps?
No. But where's the power? You work the steps.
No, but where's the Let's go on that little thing again. Okay, I want you to turn to page 47. 47, first paragraph.
I want you to write second step. Step two. Okay, box it in.
This is the second step. I want you to ask your will look your person in the eye and you will say this. We need to ask ourselves what one short question and you say to him, do you now believe or are you even willing to believe that there is a power greater than yourself?
Yes or no? I ask you this question. Do you all now believe are you willing to believe that there's a power greater than yourself?
Yes or no? Yes. There was a no.
And that's fine. I need somebody to know if you would to pull me aside sometime during this time and we'll talk. Don't feel it.
I think it came from the right. Don't feel you're different than anybody. I was atheist, dude.
You ain't getting much more. People would mention God in the meeting. I'd be like, I made sure everybody knew I was leaving.
Okay? And I will tell you about my spiritual awakening after the steps and you'll be like, "Whoa." Okay? So, come get me, whoever said no.
And that's cool. It's okay. We're only on step two.
Relax. Okay. It says, "Or am I even willing to believe there's a power greater than myself." As soon as a man can say that he does believe or is even willing to believe.
We emphatically assure him he is on his way. Emphatically assure him that he is on his way. Okay.
Page 48. And this is to the person to the right hand side of the room who said that they did not believe. Page 48.
I want you to go from the top of the page line two. Many of us have been so touchy that even casual reference to spiritual things made us bristle with antagonism. So you're not alone.
This sort of thinking though had to be abandoned. So my sponsor said, "From this point forward, you will not stomp out of the room. It is impolite.
It is unprofessional. And you're a baby, so stop it. Hold your breath if you want.
I could care less." and I stopped it. Okay, I want you to turn to page um 49. Page 49, second paragraph, first sentence.
We who have traveled this dubious path beg. How many alcoholics beg? We're begging now.
We beg of you to lay aside prejudice even against organized religion. That's tough, isn't it? Isn't organized religion the reason for all this love we have?
Right. Oh my god. That's it.
My religion's right. And if you don't believe in it. Is that crazy?
Once again, God's up there like this. You're missing the mark. Wake up, people.
Okay. This is choice. This is freedom of choice.
Freedom of choice. I'm going to give you freedom of choice and then I'm going to give you 10 reasons why not to use it. Right?
Here's freedom of choice. But you got to follow these ten commandments here. You got to follow this Quran because if you don't, you're going to hell.
But you have the freedom to choose. Just make you choose. Just make sure you choose my way if you want to get to heaven.
Oh, and by the way, you are born in sin. That little baby back there. I mean, come on.
Wake up. I'm not going to say any more about that. That's all I'm going to do.
Page 50. Page 50. page 50.
Okay. Um, I want you to go to the third paragraph. On one proposition, however, these men and women are strikingly agreed.
All 100 agree on this. Can we even agree where to go for lunch? How about five of us or dinner?
We're already arguing on where to go. Okay. Every one of them, everyone has gained access to and believes in a power greater than themselves.
This power in each case has accomplished the miraculous, the humanly impossible. As a celebrated American statement put it, let's look at the record. Here are thousands of men and women, worldly indeed.
They flatly declare that since they have come to believe in a power greater than themselves, which is step two, to take certain attitudes towards that power, which is step three, and to do certain simple things, which is steps 4 through 12, there has been a revolutionary change in the way of their living and their thinking. In the face of collapse and despair, in the face of total failure of their human resources, they found that a new, here we go again, power, a new power, so you're not powerless. power, peace and happiness and sense of direction has flowed into them.
This happened soon after soon after they wholeheartedly met a few simple rules which is the 12 steps. Okay, got it. Page 51 from the top of the page countdown five lines.
And this is a fact. I love this fact here. Page 51, top of the page, countdown five lines.
When many hundreds of people are able to say that they consciously that the consciousness of the presence of God is today the most important fact of their lives, they present a powerful reason why one should have faith. And I just looked at my sponsor and I said, "Bip, they're all wrong. They're all wrong.
I'm right." You know, they're weak. They're losers. All right.
In America, I would say a lot of alcoholics are on some type of of medication. All right. I I don't have a problem with that.
I will still sponsor somebody, but I do ask them when they're done with the 12 steps to go back to their doctor because most of the time, 99% of the time, they don't need it anymore and they feel kind of weird taking it. But I want you to read page 52 and I want you to go to the second paragraph. I want you to go to the second paragraph and on the third sentence, if I walk into a psychiatrist and I say this to him, hey doc, I'm having trouble with my personal relationship.
I can't control my emotional nature. I'm afraid of misery and depression. I can't make a living.
I have a feeling of uselessness. I am full of fear. I am unhappy.
If he doesn't put me on Prozac, he's committing malpractice. But you know what that is? That's a dry drunk who has not worked the steps.
Has anybody in here felt like that? Yeah, I see some naked eggs. Yeah, I know you have.
All right. Okay. So it says here um wouldn't seem to be of real help to other people.
I want you to go to the next next paragraph on page 52 after we just read it. Next paragraph when we saw others solve there's the word solve their problems by a simple reliance upon the spirit of the universe. We had to stop doubting the power of God our ideas did not work but the God idea did.
Page 53 second paragraph I want you to write second step choice. This is going to be your second step choice. Oh, you took my stuff.
Just write second step choice. You ready? I'm going to ask you this.
When we became alcoholic crushed by a self-imposed crisis we couldn't postpone or evade, we had to fearlessly face the proposition. I ask you, either God is everything or he is nothing. Either God is or he isn't.
What was your choice to be today? Is God everything? Oh yeah.
Okay. So God is everything. So if God is everything and you truly believe that there is a reliance upon God, there should be absolutely no fear in your life.
Huh? Is that a pie in the sky dream or what? Let me tell you this.
Fear comes into my life but for a moment. But for a moment. and then it goes away.
I do not hold on to this fear. I do not have fear. I don't have fear.
I don't have fear of losing my children. I don't have fear of losing my wife. I don't have fear of drinking.
I don't have fear. Live life like that. That is truly living life.
I flow with life. I was talking to another gentleman who has a fear of flying. What we really found out was that he has a fear of control or lack thereof.
Okay? And maybe if you had a pilot like me, he should be scared. But no, we have other pilots on the plane, so you don't have to worry about that.
All right, I want you to turn to um I want you to turn to I want you to turn to as I keep going, I want you to turn to chapter 5, how it works. We are going to take a break. Smoke them if you got them.
And what I would like you to do before you all leave, when we come back, okay? Right now, what we're going to do is we're going to pass around the basket. So, please stay seated if you would.
We're going to pass around the basket. Or would you rather do it when you come back? We'll pass around the basket when you come back.
Go, go, go, go. Shoo, shoo, shoo. Smoke.
Thank you for listening to Sober Sunrise. If you enjoyed today's episode, please give it a thumbs up as it will help share the message. Until next time, have a great day.