A Probation Officer asked ...
... IF I WANTED TO STOP DRINKING
When I was 79, I was arrested again. Although this time it was different. A probation officer asked me if I wanted to quit drinking. I said yes, and he went on to tell me about Alcoholics Anonymous and about the local municipal court alcoholic rehabilitation program. He asked me if I wanted to try it, and I figured I had nothing to lose, so I started going to meetings at the court.
I went to one meeting with a half-pint of wine hidden in my shirt. A grey-haired man named Jim said he was an alcoholic and had drunk for a long time, but in A.A. he'd learnt how to stop drinking and start living. He asked if there were any questions. I asked if this organisation expected a man 79 years old, who had drunk all his life, to stop drinking just like that. Jim said if he'd done it I could do it too. I figured maybe he was right, so I reached inside my shirt, took out the half-pint and gave it to the man sitting next to me. I haven't had a drink since...
...The years are going by -- one day at a time -- and I guess I don't have too much longer to live. But I don't care. The main thing I want is to die sober. Meanwhile, I try to help the younger people find sobriety and happiness the way I have. I tell them, "If I can do it, so can you." My name is Louis. Read my story here.
Reprinted from the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous, with permission of A.A. World Services, Inc.
