Gems - Meditations on Addiction and Recovery

Talk Recovery Radio Next Episode - Thursday March 30th @12pm PST

This week on Talk Recovery Radio we welcome Andy C a person in long term recovery and author of multiple books joins us to talk about Meditation and Addiction Recovery. Catch the whole show on our Facebook page LIVE from 12-1pm PST.

About Andy

My name is Andy C., and I am an alcoholic. I have been sober since November 3rd, 1977. I am sponsored, have sponsees, am involved in service work and use the Steps. In keeping with our traditions and principles of anonymity, I have not published my last name. But I am eager to engage with you. Send me a note by clicking on the ‘message’ button below. I will get back to you as soon as I can. You know you are in AA when you don’t know the last names of all your best friends. There can be too much anonymity. The apocryphal story of the guy showing up at the hospital admission desk asking for “Big Mike from the Monday night meeting” is a story that shows the problem with too much anonymity. We are not a secret society; we are an anonymous society. So, feel free to contact me. I will reply.

Andy's Books

“Gems: Meditations on Addiction and Recovery”

Where did these GEMS come from? When I am listening to fellow alcoholics share at Meetings, I take notes. Not transcriptions, just notes of things that catch my attention. By jotting a reminder, I can later recall the thought. One night, my sponsor asked me, “what do you do with your notes?” “I keep them and reread them, often the next morning during my morning quiet time,” I replied. “They bring to mind the wisdom and humor that I heard. I meditate on the comments and see the insights that I missed. I feel grateful all over again… then I throw them away.” “You should write your thoughts down and share them,” he said, “you might have some fun and it might do some good.” So I started writing my meditations. In the beginning, I only shared them with my sponsees, who passed the notes to their sponsees, and then others in the Program. A couple of the recipients, involved in treatment centers with newsletters, reposted them in their newsletters and websites. They seemed to attract attention, so I started a website the4thdimension.ca and posted them online. One day I thought, “maybe a book is a good idea.” 

“More Gems: A Second Volume of Meditations on Addiction and Recovery”

My wife and I were walking together. I glanced at my watch as we walked along the boardwalk and took note of the time. Two steps later, she asked, “what time is it?” I could not remember; I had just looked at my watch, noted the time, but I could not recall it when asked. I had to look again. Memory is strange. I look at my watch and immediately forget the time. I hear shares at AA meetings and admire the insights, but they slip from my mind. Likewise, wisdom seen in AA conversations evaporates within minutes. These books, GEMS and More GEMS, catch and retain AA shares at meetings and thoughts that come up in conversations. We can recall the wit and wisdom and feel the love of AA meetings and conversations. Each of these GEMS is an AA share or thought among people recovering or recovered from a seemingly hopeless condition of mind and body. They are worth remembering. 

“Still More Gems: 12 Step Shares, Notes and Thoughts”

Discover the power of recovery and spiritual growth through Still More GEMS: 12-Step Meeting Shares, Notes and Thoughts. Written by alcoholic old-timer Andy C., this helpful guide provides readers with a collection of meditations on recovery in the 12-Step Recovery Community. Deepen Recovery with Still More GEMS, 12-Step Shares, Notes and Thoughts This powerful collection of reflections and insights offers a unique look at the spiritual growth that happens in 12-step programs together with ways to support and foster it. This book is an invaluable resource for anyone in recovery.