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DISTRICT 42
NOV/DEC 2014
BREAKTHROUGH
THE NEWSLETTER FOR ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS NORTHERN ILLINOIS AREA 20, DISTRICT 42
SERVING BURR RIDGE, CLARENDON HILLS, DARIEN, DOWNERS GROVE, HINSDALE, OAKBROOK, WESTMONT & WILLOWBROOK
YPAA =
Young People in AA
Coming into AA as young people, we found that there were common challenges to face. In the beginning, we often feel
we are too young to be alcoholics. Some of us didn’t drink for a long time; others didn’t drink hard liquor, stumble
around, or forget what we did or said when drunk. Being young in the everyday world we face peer pressure, stressful
relationships with our parents, and parties being a way of life. In AA, we often feel different because we may be the
youngest person in our group…..In AA we’ve found a way of life that helps us deal with everyday stress and peer
pressure; and that life is better and more fun without alcohol….All of us felt strange about going to AA. But we now see
that AA saved our lives – and is the best thing that ever happened to us. We also now know that there are many
members who are our age – in fact, approximately 10% of AA members are under the age of 30. ~ From the AA
Pamphlet, Young People and AA. **Entire pamphlet can be found at aa.org**
“Young people may be encouraged by this man’s experience to think that
they can stop, as he did, on their own will power. We doubt if many of them
can do it, because none will really want to stop, and hardly one of them,
because of the peculiar mental twist already acquired, will find he can win
out. Several of our crowd, men of thirty or less, had been drinking only a few
years, but they found themselves as helpless as those who had been drinking
twenty years. To be gravely affected, one does not necessarily have to drink
a long time nor take the quantities some of us have…..We, who are familiar
with the symptoms, see large numbers of potential alcoholics among young
people everywhere. But try to get them to see it! “ ~BB pg. 33-34
If you go around thinking you are being cheated, life becomes very
unpleasant. --Felix Salten
Sometimes we feel cheated that we have been given this darn disease to
cope with. Why us? Why can't we just be like normal people? Why did
we have to get into so much trouble and pain as a result of a disease
that hit us and skipped over other people?
Another way to look at it is: Hey, I'm really lucky. I have a killer disease,
and I'm beating the odds. I'm getting healthier every day. I got my life
back. Another way to look at it is: At least this is a disease I can recover
from.
The Big Book Promises (on pages 83 and 84) say that any feeling of selfpity will disappear by the time we are working Step Nine. We may even
be grateful for the path that led us to recovery. Do we believe it? There's
one way to find out: We need to try it. ~God Grant Me, Anon
At 70, my dad is just like he was at 35 - only more so. It's
frightening that the same thing could happen to me. --Jerry Z.
More of the same gets more of the same. What we were given
to practice, we practiced. What we practiced, we became. What
we became, we are continuing to become - only more so - every
day of our lives. We can do ourselves a favor by being aware of
what we practice. Has the past taught us to withdraw? Think of
how isolated we'll be twenty years from now! Have we
practiced generalized distrust? Imagine how deep the roots of
fear are growing.
But there's another side to that truth. If we practice finding
beauty today, we'll find twice as much beauty tomorrow. If we
work on forgiveness today, tomorrow we may be free of
resentments. If we choose to relate rather than isolate, we can
walk with friends through all the years that stretch before us.
What will the future bring us? Whatever we have invested in it.
I pray for the wisdom to see my future as largely the work of my
own hands and heart. I pray for the courage to take responsibility
for choosing my own direction. ~ Days of Healing, Days of Joy;
Larson
“This new way of life began just the week before I was 21. I returned to
my university and campus activities……Once, I was afraid social activities
would be inhibiting if I didn’t drink. Now I have grown less self
conscious about not drinking, and fun and friendship have increased. “
~ Young People and AA
In the first years, those of us who sobered up in AA had been grim
and utterly hopeless cases. But then we began to have success
with milder alcoholics and even some potential alcoholics.
Younger folks appeared…it was necessary for these newcomers to
hit bottom emotionally. But they did not have to hit every
possible bottom in order to admit that they were licked. ~AA
Comes of Age, p. 199
And if not now, when? --The Talmud
It's so easy to put things off. Sometimes we're like Scarlet
O'Hara, who hoped and dreamed for a better life by saying,
"There's always tomorrow." But is there always a tomorrow?
If we live too many of our days counting on tomorrows, we
may find ourselves putting off achievements and growth
now.
What if tomorrow never came? What if all of our time to do
what we wanted was put in the hours left in today? We'd be
scurrying around like mice trying to cram as much as we
could into this short period of time. But today, not having
such a deadline, we believe our time is endless and no goal
or task is so important that it can't be put off.
The time to achieve is now. The time to live is now. For as
long as we believe tomorrow will come, we'll be living for
tomorrow. If we don't believe today is the greatest gift we
could receive, we'll never know how to live for today.
Everything we want to achieve, to learn, to share can begin
today. If we don't live the best we can right now, then
when? ~Night Light, Dean
District 42’s Breakthrough is a bi-monthly publication. Send all submissions to [email protected]
ILLINOIS STATE CONFERENCE
OF YOUNG PEOPLE IN AA
March 20th-22nd, 2015
The Westin Lombard Yorktown Ctr
http://iscypaa.org/
For details and more information
I’m 15 and think I might have a problem with drinking but all of the people in
the A.A. meetings here are so much older than me. Can I really be an
alcoholic?
You certainly could be. Alcoholism can develop at any age. A.A. does not
diagnose alcoholics. You’ll have to decide for yourself whether or not you
have a problem with alcohol. Check out the pamphlet, “Is A.A. For You “ to
help you decide.
http://aa.org/lang/en/subpage.cfm?page=71
If you are the only person your age in A.A., we can help you. This is why
ICYPAA exists. Many of us came to A.A. in places where there were very few
young people in A.A.. Email us at [email protected] and we will help you
connect to other young people in A.A. online.
The International Conference of Young People in
Alcoholics Anonymous (ICYPAA) was founded for the
purpose of providing a setting for an annual celebration
of sobriety among young people in AA. Since its
inception, a growing group of people, who at first would
not consider themselves as "young people," has become
regular attendees. The number of young people
suffering from alcoholism who turn to AA for help is
growing, and ICYPAA helps to carry AA's message of
recovery to alcoholics of all ages. This meeting provides
an opportunity for young AA's from all over the world to
come together and share their experience, strength, and
hope as members of Alcoholics Anonymous. AA
members who attend an ICYPAA return home better
prepared to receive young people who come to AA
looking for a better way of life. www.icypaa.org
“Alcohol ruined me financially and morally, broke my heart and
the hearts of too many others. Even though it did this to me and
it almost killed me and I haven't touched a drop of it in
seventeen years, sometimes I wonder if I could get away with
drinking some now. I totally subscribe to the notion that
alcoholism is a mental illness because thinking like that is
clearly insane.”
― Craig Ferguson, American on Purpose: The Improbable
Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot
I don’t know if I would have been able to stay sober if I had not
found the YPAA community. I was able to relate with everyone within
the rooms, but to discover those who were my age too astonished
me. I had always imagined that I was too young to get sober. I
thought no one would take me serious being a young girl with an
alcohol problem. I wasn’t even legally old enough to step into a bar
at that time. These thoughts were exposed to me as insanity later in
time. Within the rooms of AA and YPAA I am empowered for being
“young.” There is no age requirement for A.A. and especially NOT for
YPAA. We all are young at heart which makes the YPAA community
so special. I have been able to meet friends (who have become my
family) all around the world. It is only through Alcoholics Anonymous
that I am able to continue my new life’s journey. Nicki C.
Area YPAA Meetings
NEXT GENERATION GROUP
Friday Night, 9PM
WSAC
SOBER AFTER DARK – Open YPAA
Friday/Saturday Nights
HOLY COVENANT CHURCH
9145 Grant Street, Brookfield
AA’s Meeting in Print – The Grapevine
https://store.aagrapevine.org/ProductsList.aspx?WG=413
District 42’s Breakthrough is a bi-monthly publication. Send submissions to [email protected]
“Your best days are ahead of you. The movie starts
when the guy gets sober and puts his life back
together; it doesn't end there.” ― Bucky Sinister
If you drank enough to get
to AA, you drank enough.
Identify, don’t compare.
My bottom is
where I put
down my
shovel.
If a candidate for AA is ready, you can't say anything
wrong; if he's not ready, you can't say anything right.
Sitting in a bar, having drinks with a friend, I casually
pointed to two old drunks sitting across from us and said,.
“That’s us in 20 years!”
My friend replied, “That’s a mirror you idiot!”
Proudly showing off his new apartment to a couple of his friends late one night......the drunk led the way to his bedroom
where there was a big brass gong.
"What's that big brass gong for?" one of the guests asked. "It's not a gong. It's a talking clock" the drunk replied.
A talking clock? Seriously?" asked his astonished friend. "Yup" replied the drunk.
"How's it work?" the second guest asked, squinting at it.
"Watch" the man said. He picked up a hammer, gave it an ear shattering pound and stepped back.
The three stood looking at one another for a moment.
Suddenly, someone on the other side of the wall screamed, " For Christ sake, it's ten past three in the morning!"
You are driving in a car at a constant speed. On your left side is a valley, and on your
right side is a fire engine traveling at the same speed as you.
In front of you is a galloping pig which is the same size as your car, and you cannot
overtake it. Behind you is a helicopter flying at ground level. Both the giant pig and the
helicopter are also traveling at the same speed as you.
What must you do to safely get out of this highly dangerous situation?
Get your drunk self off the carousel.
~~ A Note of Thanks from Mary O. ~~
It has been an honor to put together the Breakthrough for
the past two years. I had been told that I would get more out
of it than I put in, and truer words have seldom been spoken!
My sobriety has been strengthened greatly through this gift
of service and I look forward to reading the thoughts of the
new editors, Robert and Veronica.
Meeting Location Changes
Conference Information
District Website Info
Service Opportunities
And Much More
See Next Page
District 42’s Breakthrough is a bi-monthly publication. Send all submissions to [email protected]
Check out the District 42 Website for information on
meetings, events, service opportunities and more.
http://aa-nia-dist42.org/index.html
MEETING LOCATION CHANGES
The Old Timer’s Tapes
(Charlie & Joe Big Book Study)
Mondays at 7pm has moved to:
First United Methodist Church
40 N. Lincoln (at Irving), Westmont
The “Thank God” Women’s Group (Hinsdale)
Fridays at 7pm has moved to:
Christian Church of Clarendon Hills
5750 Holmes Ave, Clarendon Hills
MEETINGS NEEDS SUPPORT
Finder Keepers – Tuesday nights
7pm – Step Meeting
St. Paul United Church of Christ
5739 S. Dunham Road, DG
A little INSPIRATION with your morning
coffee….
Hazelden Gift of the Day
Go to hazelden.org to sign up for a daily
inspirational thought to be delivered to your
email inbox each morning.
--------------------------------------------------Grapevine Quote of the Day
Aagrapevine.org for a daily quote or sign up to
have it delivered to your inbox.
Saturday Big Book at Noon
12pm – Big Book first 164 Pages
WSAC 2nd Floor
Sat. Night Time for Change
7pm – Big Book/Step
Gloria Dei Lutheran
4501 Main Street at Grant, DG
To keep it, we must give it away…….
Go to the Dist 42 website for Service Opportunities!
D 42 Answering Service - 630-887-8671
District 42 Address:
900 Ogden Ave #195
Downers Grove, IL 60515
http://aa-nia-dist42.org/
NIA Address:
NIA Treasurer
NIA
PO Box 51
Lake Bluff, IL 60044
www.aa-nia.org
GSO Address:
The General Service Office
Grand Central Station
P.O. Box 459
New York, NY 10164-0423
www.aa.org
Looking to “give it away” with your old Grapevine
issues? Send them with your GSR to the next District
Meeting for redistribution to AAs in the prisons.
Come to the Next District MeetingService Opportunities Available!
District Meetings are held:
Tuesday of month at 7:00p.m.
Grace Church, 120 E. 1st Street, Hinsdale
There are a number of opportunities for service work
available; attend the District Meeting to find one
that’s right for you.
3rd
Submissions for Jan/Feb issue must be submitted by Dec 15
District 42’s Breakthrough is a bi-monthly publication. Send all submissions to [email protected]