…Another SA group has begun to meet in Lincroft, NJ, on Friday evenings at 8:30. It is held in a parish center.

Forty-seven attended, mostly from the Chicago and Milwaukee areas, but also including members from as far away as Minnesota, Indiana, Iowa, and California. St. Luke’s Lutheran Church was an ideal setting. (Mt. Prospect is the only city we know of where church names are added to city street signs. Wish we knew the history behind that.) Several SAA members attended, and we had marvelous rapport and unity with them.

Time’s running out for supersaver air fares for our next international convention in St. Louis December 5-7. We’re rushing this ESSAY out, hoping everyone can get in under the 30-day advanced notice required for discount air fares.

Periodically, things catch my attention in such a way that make me wonder whether SA is going through some sort of trend. Recently, it seems to me, many of us are becoming more aware of the true power of the disease.

The phone number for SA’s national Central Office in Simi Valley, California is (818) 704-9854. Due to our having only part-time office help, an answering machine is on a considerable portion of the time. But we do respond as soon as we can.

…I continue to go to meetings here in CT as well as NY. Sobriety frees me up inside; I’m less self-conscious. And strangely, time goes more quickly as I am more capable of getting involved in the demands of my profession without the burden of lust. Temptation is ever present; each time I have to decide—once again—and unite myself with my Higher Power.

I can’t ever begin to tell you what SA has meant to me, or how it has changed my life. I still feel like I’m in the midst of an earthquake, and my whole old world is crumbling around me. But the real world that lies beyond is so peaceful! And beautiful. It feels strange not to be on the emotional roller coaster anymore after 30 years of living there.

I believe if I saw myself as I really am, I would not be able to go on. And unless I see more of myself as I really am, I will not see any reason to go on.… I learn by bringing my wrongs to the light. The more I reveal, the more I will have revealed. I can take my inventory, but until I share it with someone, I can’t talk about my willingness to be rid of it.

I have recently turned my addiction over to God through the work of some friends who had gone through it before. Needless to say, the release I now experience is so sweet, compared to the hell I was living before.

Thanks for the literature you sent in the mail. We had our first meeting last week and I am excited about our program getting started. Reaching out is the first step toward recovery. I am confident we will continue to grow—we are three and possibly four people now. It is such a relief to be able to be honest with others and find and give acceptance.…

…Our SA fellowship here has been a great help to my sexual sobriety. In our last meeting, we talked on the Fourth Step. I have found that by working the Steps, I am continuing to grow spiritually. As well as constantly being aware of my addiction.

…Please know that we understand the importance of General Services activity and are very grateful for the efforts…others have put forth to make this program of recovery possible. For these reasons, we have committed to provide support to GSO on a regular basis.…

…We now have two weekly meetings in CT—the “No Matter What” and “Sobriety is Possible” meetings. A third will start on Tuesday, July 22, as a Step meeting; it’s tentatively called “Just for Today.”…

The St. Louis SA group is looking for our help and support in planning the December convention.

We spoke out of recovery and celebrated sobriety for three days in Oklahoma City. That first night as sobriety was held up so we could see the recovery on the faces of those receiving the hugs, chips, and joy that comes with clean and sober living, I felt a gentle Power wash through our gathering. Gentle, but in waves it came, nine years, four years, three years, “the class of ’83,” two years, one year, nine months, six months, two, and one month.

The time spent with other SA members is always rewarding, but Saturday was so warm and filled with the spirit of sobriety and love. Thank God for others who are struggling and who are sober.

…Kansas City was wonderful! What a high and how truly God-given it was to make the connection with fellow sex drunks from all over the world. I was on a “pink cloud” for a week or so afterwards and I’ve made some friends that I never had before. God was telling me through all the wonderful people there, that I was finally home and that my primary addiction is lust.

Now I can fully understand the enthusiasm and hope, which were expressed from SA members in the comments to the Retreats you had in the U.S.A. Let me tell you some personal thoughts about our convention we had last weekend in Karlsruhe and what I experienced there.…

What a marvelous time we had in New York City April 26th! And Cleveland May 3rd! Two one-day SA happenings. The get-togethers got us together. It seems to happen every time.

Tom O. reports that twenty people attended the May 3rd SA Marathon at St. Peter’s church in Cleveland. This included three women, and areas represented were Rochester, Detroit, Toledo, Dayton, and Cleveland.