Sneaking Up On Spirituality, Dressed in Black, Late at Night

Tidbits and small bites from The Plain Language Big Book . . . 

The word "Fellowship" appears often and it is capitalized.

Fellowship: A friendly feeling that exists between people who have a shared interest or are doing something as a group.

The term "tremendous fact" carries over from the original Big Book.  It's a fact!  It's tremendous!  Some of us believe that this is another of the many coded words or phrases for God that are sprinkled throughout the text.

There is a comparison between "average drinkers" and "hard drinkers."  The Book suggests that ". . .  if we continue to drink frequently, we will  form a drinking habit that's almost impossible to break.  When this happens, it can seem like we've crossed an invisible line."  Yes, indeed.  I jumped on that line, I stomped the shit out of it before I crossed over.  I tried to rub that invisible line off the face of the earth with my metal-tipped jackboots.

"The alcoholic's main problem lives within the mind.  Once in a while, alcoholics tell the truth.  And the truth is usually that we have absolutely no idea why we take that first drink.  Some drinkers make up excuses when people ask about their drinking, but in our hearts we don't know why we do it."

I laughed out loud when I read that.  No way that's in the original Big Book, right?  That's a witty little bastardization.  Except it's in the original, the only change being substituting "alcoholics" for "he" because they were talking about one specific member.  We all know the joke: "How can you  tell if an alcoholic's lying?  His lips are moving."

This sentence is also taken directly from the original, word for word, even including the italization.  "But there is a solution."  While that is certainly great news the solution is that "We have had deeply spiritual experiences."  If this is offensive to you - don't despair.  Approach the spirituality aspect however you'd like: pissed and defiant, sneaking up on it in the middle of the night, dressed in dark clothes and a black balaclava, skeptical and dismissive, laughing at the naivete of the easily duped long-timers.  You'll get there.  Or maybe not.  Maybe you'll ". . . continue drinking to escape from how awful our lives have become until we eventually die, bitter and alone."  If that sounds good keep doing what you're doing.  You'll get there, too, if you need to.  Some of us do.

The concept of a "vital spiritual experience" is referenced as well, leading to a "profound transformation."  A spiritually transformative experience.