“How do you practice your program during this pandemic?”

Haha! Thanks for asking. I was on a Zoom meeting the other day when a young man said with some alarm, “I feel like I’m living like a monk!” That just fits for me, I’m thinking. :))

Yes, we are still in social isolation here, and our meetings are mostly on Zoom. Of course I miss my Home Group terribly, but thank heavens for Zoom! From being angry and frustrated with the Zoom calls, I have moved into a place of gratitude for this technology, which was already available and free when we needed it. As I am single and retired, I have the freedom to participate in Zoom meetings most days. I have commitments to four meetings in my home city, and one or two international ones. It is exciting to me to participate in our worldwide fellowship on Zoom, and to invite SA friends from Europe and Asia to our meetings here at home. I have been privileged to lend my support to the emerging Fellowship in India and Africa.

Since my service work on the Buddy List has been suspended (I hope temporarily), I have more time to devote to sponsorship, which I love. It’s wonderful to see how, as the new man works the steps, his eyes start to light up with little sparks of hope and joy and even humor. I see my role as a coach or guide to the Steps, and I try to encourage and support his good efforts.

Forty years after my student days in Paris, I have the wonderful opportunity to go to SA meetings in France, without buying a plane ticket! I am getting reacquainted with the language, and learning for the first time the specialized vocabulary of lust recovery. I try to add something to the meetings, even when I speak slowly or get the genders wrong. I love the way in French we don’t just “attend” meetings, we “assist” at them.

I am trying to be more intentional in my prayer time, and to take the Higher Power with me on my walks and in my garden work.

Thank God for SA, and the SA Fellowship, to fill the emptiness!