Sober Is As Sober Does

 

Sometimes I hear the most amazing things. Yesterday I heard a man tell a story about how he was going through a tough time. He is 6 years sober, and really confronting some very real life stuff, heartache and loss and financial issues. This is never easy for anyone to deal with, sober or not. For those of us who are sober, however, if we are not throwing ourselves into the work of sobriety, we will throw ourselves in the other direction.

This guy left his house and went to a local dive bar. he said it felt like the most natural thing to do; of course, as any sober person can tell you, its as natural as falling off a bicycle. He sat down at the bar, smelling all the interesting aromas that can be found in any bar- the sour stink of old booze that leaked into cracks, the walls thick with the breath of desperation- and looked directly at the bartender. “I need a drink, 7 and 7, please.” The bartender looked at him for a minute, then said, “You sure about that?”

That's all he said. Simple, elegant, just a question, but so insightful and direct that our guy felt the goosebumps rise on his skin. He felt the finger of God in this thing. What bartender questions a person claiming to need a drink? What on earth is happening here?

Our guy sat back, and said, “On second thought, I have to be up early. Make that a coke.”

One can only wonder what sort of terrible hell that bartender thwarted. Our friend would have lost all those hard earned sober years, and could have gotten lost in the Darkness of this affliction indefinitely. Instead, he was able to be present to tell that remarkable story to a group of sober people, for whom the beautiful workings of  Spirit are not uncommon. Any sober person knows, through experience and through the stories of others, that we are Divinely Guided and Protected.
Thank God for that.