Editor’s Corner
Many of us first experienced the joy of service in early recovery when we started giving back to our home group—turning up on time, sharing respectfully and honestly, helping set up the room and welcoming newcomers.
Many of us first experienced the joy of service in early recovery when we started giving back to our home group—turning up on time, sharing respectfully and honestly, helping set up the room and welcoming newcomers.
In November 2022 I had the pleasure of travelling to Rome for the Italian-speaking fellowship’s convention (this is how I describe it, but I believe they called it a workshop). It was held in a beautiful spot, just behind the Colosseum, as you can see from the picture (taken from the gardens of the convention site).
SA as an organization stays strong. We have face-to-face meetings in over 70 countries where newcomers can find recovery to change their lives. We also have hordes of online meetings, so that any of us can find a live meeting at any time of the day. We are indeed fulfilling our goal to “be there” whenever someone needs us.
The ongoing, ten-year Census of Sexaholics Anonymous is progressing. Regional Representatives are disseminating information on how to access and complete the Meeting Registration Form. Completed Meeting Registrations are being shared with members of the GDA (General Delegate Assembly) and other trusted servants every fifteen days. This feedback process assists all trusted servants in reaching out to areas that have not participated in the Census.
When I heard the 2022 EMER Regional Convention was going to be held in Armenia, I immediately asked at work to have two weeks off in October. I knew from the past how refreshing and strengthening conventions and after-convention fellowship are, and didn't want to miss the fun. It really exceeded my highest expectations!
When I first came to SA I did not know how fast to leave after the meeting. I did not want to be there. I did not believe it to be fun at all! That was more than 4 years ago. Since then a lot has changed. I frequently crack up before, after or even during a meeting. There are some real jokesters here in SA Amsterdam. Especially jokes about recovery or the struggles we are going through make me laugh. But it doesn't stop there.
This morning I was praying. During my prayer ritual I received a message from an SA fellow. He asked me to write an article for Essay on the topic of Fun in Recovery. It was surprising to me, because at that very moment I was thanking God for my friends and for the fun we have when we spend time together.
“If newcomers could see no joy or fun in our existence, they wouldn’t want it.” (AA 132) Such was my experience when I attended my first SA meeting in Manchester, UK, back in the winter of 2003. SA was still very new here, and there were very few members, hardly any of them sober. There was no welcome, no joy, no message of a positive and joyful sobriety. “And this is what SA is all about?”, I thought.
When Autumn arrives and the weather in Northern Europe turns damp and windy, it's nice to think back on pleasant times in recovery. I attended the regional convention in Israel in May 2015. It was a lovely venue. As the convention was ending, we heard that there was going to be an SA tent camp by Lake Galilee afterwards, organized by a UK old-timer and Israeli members. I signed up straightaway.
I'm Jesse and I'm a sexaholic. I'm very grateful to SA for its limited membership requirements. I meet ALL the requirements. I have a desire not to lust, and I want to be sober (Tradition 3). I've been sexually sober since June 9, 2013, and for that I'm very grateful.