Share your experience visiting other groups within the Al‑Anon worldwide fellowship.
March’s topic is, “Share your experience visiting other groups within the Al‑Anon worldwide fellowship.”
As always, you can also write about Al‑Anon’s three Legacies. This month features Step Three, Tradition Three, and Concept Three.
Sharings on the Member Blog may be used in future Al‑Anon publications.
New topics are being added each month!
So happy my fellows in South Africa registered their Al-Anon daily reader meeting —Time to Reflect on the many connections within our beautiful potpourri of fellowship in the Global Electronic Area. Today it does not matter if it is morning, afternoon or evening —HOPE may be found and I am not alone –I am included and Al-Anon lives all over the world for anyone, anywhere. Thank you to all the diverse hands for being of service and allowing me to find the love of our worldwide fellowship!
Many years ago we were staying with dear friends in a suburb of San Diego, CA. I did search online for Al-Anon meetings in the area and found a Lake Murray meeting that met outdoors on a Sunday morning. You needed to bring your own chair or blanket. We gathered around a small body of water in the beautiful weather and sunshine of that area. It was so beautiful and peaceful. I don’t travel much these days but when I do, I am going to look for meetings where I am like I used to. Thanks for the reminder of… Read more »
Visiting other groups than my home group, over the years, has been one of the most enriching experiences this program has offered me. When I first came to the program, this is a choice I made either by curiosity or to follow suite with other members. However, with time, it became a personal choice that I made as often as distance, time and situations allowed. Visiting various groups gave me the opportunity to see the many colours and personalities groups could have, while respecting the principles of the program. It also gave me the opportunity to meet new members, hear… Read more »
I am so grateful for the meeting search feature on Al-Anon’s website that lets me find meetings when I travel. I have been to dozens of meetings in different states and even a meeting in Thailand. I find instant comfort in the familiar format and consistent message of our program. Each meeting has its own personality and there are local variations in the phrases and slogans the members use that enhance my understanding of the principles. It is disappointing when I show up to a meeting listed on the website and no one is there. For a brief moment I… Read more »
I was a newcomer to Al-Anon when COVID restrictions hit our area and face-to-face meetings were suspended. My workplace had pivoted to Zoom, so with this new skillset in hand I thought that I would offer to “host” Al-Anon meetings on Zoom within the local District. Wow, what a gift from my HP. Not only did I gain a quick cursory understanding of the organizational structure of Al-Anon, I also immersed myself in the Service Manual and practical applications of group autonomy. I was privileged to “listen and learn” in so many meetings. I quickly realized that I needed a… Read more »
Visiting other groups within the Al-Anon Worldwide fellowship gave me a wider view of “Anyone, Anywhere” —I really was not alone in suffering from the family disease or alcoholism. I have had the blessings of hearing the serenity prayer in many different languages. On a day I was hurting I found a meeting using the al-anon.org worldwide listing and found an area website that had e-meetings listed. When I was not included by my family of origin, a family on the other side of the continent welcomed me into their Zoom room and I found love. I kept coming back,… Read more »
When I can’t make it to my home meeting I have the option of going to quite a few others that are not too far from me. Although each meeting can be “different”, I find comfort knowing that each meeting will be the same.
When I had the literature commitment in face-to-face meetings, pre-pandemic, I loved greeting all the out-of-town visitors to give them a meeting directory and hear about meetings and groups in other parts of the country and the world. When the pandemic hit and meetings went on Zoom, I had the opportunity to attend meetings all over the country and in English speaking meetings around the globe. No matter the culture, Al-Anon principles are the same the world over. There is help and hope in Al-Anon.
I recently stepped into a new service role in which I will be visiting the meetings in my District. My first meeting brought back the fears of finding a meeting and wondering who was attending as I sat in the parking lot. The first time as a newcomer to a non-“home group” meeting, I took off. This time I took my Higher Power with me and I was greeted by familiar faces from people I’ve known throughout my years of recovery. I can walk through the doors with more courage and when I have been out of state or out… Read more »
My husband and I travel a great deal in our RV. One of the things I truly enjoy is to visit Al-Anon meetings wherever we camp. I’ve been to so many meetings all across the United States and even once in Hong Kong. I’ve learned that there is no one set way to have a meeting, But that I can learn and enjoy each group I go to. Right now we are wintering in a state far away from our home and I have really enjoyed being a member for the few months we are here. This summer we are… Read more »
Visiting other groups has expanded my awareness of the Al-Anon program and routes to recovery. Travelling to nearby towns to attend in person, and travelling world-wide via Zoom, has exposed me to fresh personal stories and viewpoints, expanding the range of experience, strength, and hope that I can learn from. I have a better understanding of our common goals, and of variations in how to reach them. As I come to appreciate these connections, I feel more connected to the people in my original small home group, too. Full circle.
In 2016, I was an American expat living in Italy. I attended an Al-Anon meeting on the island of Ischia, a small island in the Bay of Naples. The members were locals, not tourists, and the meeting was entirely in Italian. All the literature was in Italian. Yet when it was my turn to read, I read the words out loud in Italian, with full comprehension. I knew the Opening, Suggested Welcome, and Twelve Steps by heart in English. It was not a big leap to recite them in Italian, although I was not fluent. A bilingual member helped to… Read more »