You write to me that the group you started and tried to hold together is gone.

I can identify with you. I live far up North, away from urban centers, a minimum of four hours travel to the big city. In 1996 we started with nine people. Most of them left because they did not agree with the SA sobriety definition. The group went down to three, and then there were days of only one person. My sponsor told me that this was a great time to work on the Steps in an empty meeting room. I had time to work on my Step Four inventory and to read recovery literature.

Thank God for all the external support of the SA Internet group where I could share by email and connections by the telephone. I knew that I had no other choice but to stay sober or die.

It is not the number of people in the room, but working with others that can assure me sobriety for one more day. Working with others means keeping the doors open for the ones who are still suffering.

Today, I am ten years sober by the grace of Higher Power and other people, especially the ones who came in and went back out. In this area in 2006, we have four meetings a week, including one in an institution for men. This is none of my doing. Higher Power gave me the strength to open the doors and keep carrying the message in the community to people who might know someone or be one who needed another one like me. This I did even when it was scary.