All manuscripts are subject to a review and editing process and must be accompanied by a signed release.
Criteria for the various sections of the magazine are as follows:
Feature articles
Everything from reports about current issues or events in NA to thoroughly documented historical essays on NA’s beginnings in an area, region, or country. Please send an inquiry first. Maximum length: 2,500 words.
Sharing
Personal recovery experience, from 500 to 2,000 words in length.
Parables
These are fiction pieces in which the writer illustrates a spiritual principle or some sort of recovery-related object lesson. Maximum length 1,500 words.
Picture This
NA groups are invited to send us photographs of their meeting places. We especially welcome photos that include meeting formats, recovery literature, posters, etc.—anything that makes the meeting room looked “lived-in.” Sorry, we cannot use any photos that identify NA members.
Humor and "Last Laughs"
"Last Laughs" are NA newsletter clippings (including material from The NA Way Magazine), misreadings of NA literature heard at NA events, etc. Other humor pieces can be anything from a "top ten" list to a parody of NA’s literature to a multiple-choice questionnaire. Maximum length: 1,000 words.
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Sadly, the day that NA’s archives will be stored in this manner is still in the future, even though most of the documentation in existence is now in the possession of the World Service Office.
In March of 1997, George Hollahan, one of the executive codirectors of WSO, received a phone call from a representative of Jimmy K’s heirs, asking if the WSO wished to obtain the contents of Jimmy’s estate that were pertinent to NA.
Saying that WSO was “interested” would be an understatement. As George put it, “I was both surprised and overjoyed. I had been waiting for just such an opportunity since the mid-1980s.” After certain arrangements had been made, George picked up the archives and brought them to WSO. If the vision of a historical archive described above is a dream, what arrived at WSO was a nightmare—rotting cardboard boxes, filing cabinets with recovery-oriented bumper stickers plastered all over, broken office equipment, reel-to-reel tapes—it was a mess, though it did have character. There it sat in the middle of NA’s modern and professional World Service Office, looking totally out of place.
However, a mere glance at the disorder inspired awe. NA’s beginnings were remarkably humble—especially in light of how far we’ve come! A worldwide fellowship grew out of this. There is a Higher Power!
One of WSO’s former employees, Steve Lantos, was contracted to catalogue and organize the material. It was a daunting job—there was more than 150 cubic feet of paper, tapes, and other items—and it was expected to take many months.
Those expectations were fulfilled. Steve’s final report wasn’t issued until October 1997. In that report, he described the contents of the archives and the significance of each item.
In some cases, the significanceof an item was self-evident, such as a copy of the red-covered First Edition of Basic Text bearing #1. In other cases, the significance of an item wasn’t apparent until later. Each item was assigned a number, such as #1081 for the original minutes for a series of meetings held between 17 August and 18 December 1953 to start NA in Southern California.
What was found?
The most interesting and emotionally moving materials found were
the personal musings and writings of Jimmy K. These were generally recovery-oriented,
although Jimmy wrote a great deal about service and the direction of Narcotics
Anonymous. There were many items related to the formation of NA as we know
it today. Items describing the activities of trustees and how the service
structure evolved from the mid-1960’s to 1983 were included.
In Steve’s final report, he described a growing awareness of just how important Jimmy K was, not only to NA of the 1950s and 1960s, but even today. Jimmy’s ideas and vision for NA as a worldwide fellowship were clearly reflected in the archival material. For example, Jimmy’s original drawing of the stylized NA logo with the circles and four lines projecting from the outer circle, and what eventually happened to those lines, shows how some of his original ideas were misinterpreted years later. When looking at the cardboard poster of the original NA logo, it is clear that the four lines were directional markers depicting the dream of NA spreading in all four directions. However, a later interpretation viewed the four lines as having Christian symbolism, which resulted in a conference motion to have them removed.
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This is the original NA logo drawn by Jimmy K. The circles around the logo are in colors corresponding to the key below. The inside of the “A” is left uncolored except for a dot representing God. The rest of the inner circle is yellow, representing strength and courage. The next ring is green, representing friendship. Next is blue, representing peace and serenity. The outer ring is red, representing love. |
For many years, NA’s beginnings have been shrouded in myth and legend, strong opinion, and fuzzy recollections by surviving members. Thanks to the recovery of some of the historical documents included in these archives, we as a fellowship can finally begin to shed some light on NA’s infancy. Item #1081 contains the minutes of NA’s formation in Southern California. Item #1082 contains the original bylaws developed at the 17 August meeting. Of considerable interest is item #1220. This is an inspirational booklet written in the late 1950s or early 1960s by Father Daniel Egan, who was also known as “The Junkie Priest.” The booklet describes the Danny Carlsen-led NA movement in New York.
Jimmy K’s writing in the Little White Booklet tells us clearly that several addicts and some members of AA formed what is now known as Narcotics Anonymous in July of 1953. (This is one of many different months cited as NA’s anniversary. The minutes give the date of the first business meeting as 17 August 1953. The first recovery meeting was held 5 October 1953.) In fact, what was formed at those early meetings was called “San Fernando Valley Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous.”
The separation of NA from AA continues to be a development issue for us almost fifty years later. The archives contain a letter from AA World Services granting NA permission to use and adapt the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of AA. AA’s parallel struggle with its own development is revealed in two items: One appears to be a prototype of a pamphlet—possibly developed by AA—titled “Is Narcotics Anonymous for You?” and directed at the problem AA was having with addicts seeking recovery in AA. The other item is an article written by Bill W (the founder of AA) addressing the problem of drug addicts at AA meetings.
Also relating to this issue are records of the changes made to the Little White Booklet in the mid-1980s. These changes were intended to strengthen and clarify NA’s philosophy about drug addiction, which asserted that alcohol was simply another drug, and a member whose “drugs of choice” included alcohol could sustain his or her recovery in NA alone.
There is also quite a bit of correspondence back and forth from members to the trustees asking for clarification about membership in NA as it related to this issue, about trusted servants who attended AA in addition to NA, etc.
There is a great deal of material about development of NA literature and revisions made to existing literature over the years. One of the longest-lasting and most painful controversies our fellowship has ever faced—the revisions to the original essays on the Fourth and Ninth Traditions in the Basic Text and the series of WSC actions that resulted in the text changing—is recounted through various documents, including the typeset pages with the changes marked and signed by the responsible trusted servants. In addition, the original, stamped copyrights from 1976 for the Little White Booklet were found in one of the filing cabinets. Some of the most fascinating and heartwarming discoveries were the original artwork for the cover and spine of the Basic Text and the original manuscripts for the Basic Text stories.
The archives, complete with duct tape and dial phone.
If NA’s priorities are reflected in the sheer volume of paper relating to a topic, then it’s obvious that carrying the message globally is at the top of the list. “Fellowship development” is one of the largest sections in the archives.
First contacts with newly formed NA communities aren’t always recognizable as being from NA communities. Often, a mental health professional or clergyman who has somehow gotten hold of a piece of NA literature, but who doesn’t quite understand what NA is, will write WSO asking for anything from a financial donation to prayers for the suffering addicts in his community. But it is from such beginnings that NA takes root and grows in a new place. The archives contain first-time communications from NA communities in Australia, Brazil, Ecuador, France, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Poland, Sri Lanka, Sweden, and South Korea.
What does this material mean to our fellowship today?
As Steve said in his final report, “The material is invaluable….
Considering the WSO’s position to act as trustee for the [fellowship’s
intellectual property], the permission letter from AA World Services is,
itself, a great find.… Likewise, having the material that explains the
reasoning behind staying away from drug specificity and changing the First
Step is highly valuable.…
“Many have talked about early NA, the fellowship in the 1950s and 1960s, but few can be found who were there and who have material dating from that era. Now the fellowship, through the WSO, has historical material dating back to the formation of NA and its early years.
“But perhaps most valuable, although in a non-tangible way, is the evidence found in this material about the man who served this fellowship for its first thirty years. As with most pioneers, he has his detractors, people who have idolized him and expected him to be more than human, and people who felt that he used his influence or overstepped his authority far too often. While that may be for the individual reader to discover and judge, it becomes readily apparent that Jimmy K was a visionary whose life was spent trying to help others find what he had: freedom from active addiction.”
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In a word, continuity. Everyone who serves NA helps to ensure that the message is carried forward—intact—to the next “generation” of newcomers.
That’s what this issue of the NA Way is concerned with—how the message of recovery has thrived and been carried from addict to addict for nearly fifty years. Oh sure, some things have changed about the presentation of NA’s message. Some points have been brought into sharper focus, and much has been revealed about day-to-day recovery, but the essential message—that no addict seeking recovery need die without a chance to find a better way of life, and that the better way can be found in NA—hasn’t changed a bit since NA’s founders wished for it and set it in motion in 1953.
Those founders are important. It is because of them that many of us are alive and living clean today. For many years, NA as a whole did not know much about its own beginnings, but that is changing now with WSO’s acquisition of some important records concerning NA’s beginnings. We are finally able to explore our history in detail, to see how the decisions made over the years have brought us to where we are today. We’re finally able to say with certainty, and prove it with documentation, that a specific person was present at a certain meeting or involved in a certain decision that resulted in a specific event.
We’ve only scratched the surface. As you will see in the feature stories in this issue, there’s a long way to go before we can make NA’s history widely available to our fellowship. Certainly there will be additional displays of memorabilia at WSO, but there will also have to be a “portable display” for our members who cannot travel to Chatsworth, California. As is often the case, more will be revealed about this, and we’ll let you know as we find out more.
Changes in the magazine
In response to input from the fellowship, the editorial board discussed
the idea of a “featured trusted servant” and agreed that it wouldn’t be
appropriate or in keeping with the spirit of selfless service to single
out one individual for special honors. Yet, the board didn’t want to lose
the idea entirely because it felt that each trusted servant is important.
Each one brings something special to the service position he or she assumes,
and the experience gained while serving in the position is of extreme importance.
How could that experience be captured and shared with others in the pages
of the NA Way?
The answer the board arrived at is to create a column that would allow a trusted servant to “speak”—almost a written workshop on the topic of service or some specific aspect of doing service. For an idea of what we’re talking about, see “Why do I serve?” by Spence on page 15. We’ll feature this column regularly, perhaps not in every issue, but certainly once or twice a year. So, again, we invite your input on this. If you know someone who would either be willing to write about their experience as a trusted servant or be interviewed, please pass his or her name and contact information along to us with some detail about why you think this person has some valuable experience with service to share. We’ll be watching our mailbox.
Cindy T, Editor
One thing I would suggest is that you print the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, and maybe even the Twelve Concepts for Service (since there are a lot of articles about service) somewhere in the magazine.
As a subscriber to the “old” magazine for a couple of years, I’m glad to see that the changes are good, and not just made for the sake of change.
I particularly enjoyed the article titled “The Privilege of Self-Support: Who’s Responsible for NA Services?” Hopefully, after people read that, the proverbial “dollar-in-the-basket” will go up a little. My group pays only $55 a month for rent, and some months we barely make it. Often, individual members purchase the literature, coffee, and other supplies themselves. We have three meetings a week with about six to ten people at each meeting. We should be taking in more. I’m also glad to see that our funds flow differently now. My group recently dropped out of an area due to what we believe to be a violation of Tradition Twelve, so now we can send money directly to the region and world levels if we have a surplus.
Well, I guess that’s it for now. Feel free to print this. I’ve never had anything printed. I’m considering a humorous article later, but I see so much of it (humor, that is) around me, it’s hard to pick something to write about.
Keleen C, Texas
Dear NA Way,
Hello. I have recently become GSR for one of my groups. I attend
an area service meeting. At the most recent meeting, an announcement was
made regarding the NA Way Magazine that disappointed me greatly.
In my early, very early, recovery, the secretary of our home group brought in some old copies of the magazine. Since then, I have acquired quite a stack of copies, some dating back to 1989. I read them quite often and have worked my way up to February 1994. I recently decided to become a subscriber.
After sending in an order, I learned that the format has totally changed. It now looks like a newsletter rather than the magazine with the attractive cover I was used to. I know change is good. I’ve learned that through writing and working the steps. I only hope that is also true in this situation.
Also, I am very disappointed to learn that the NA Way will only be published four times a year. I was very excited about the previous version being delivered to our home on a monthly basis.
Why this change has taken place I do not know. My only hope is that I will still be able to read articles written by addicts sharing their experience, strength, and hope. I have learned much from them.
After reading an article pertaining to “Pen Pals” of Florida (November 1994 NA Way), I began exploring the possibility of starting something similar up here in Buffalo, New York. If it wasn’t for the NA Way, I would never have written to Pen Pals in Florida and gained a wonderful pen pal myself.
I would like to thank you for the opportunity to experience the magazine as it was. I hope to be a continuous, satisfied subscriber. May other recovering addicts have the chance to experience the articles as I have and gain hope from reading their experience, strength, and hope.
Heather F, New York
The NA Way Magazine welcomes letters from all readers. Letters to the editor can respond to any article that has appeared in The NA Way, or can simply be a viewpoint about an issue of concern in the NA Fellowship. Letters should be no more than 250 words, and we reserve the right to edit. All letters must include a signature, valid address, and phone number. First names and last initial will be used as the signature line, unless the writer requests anonymity.
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Jimmy is a key figure in NA’s history for several reasons. He wrote several portions of the Little White Booklet, the most famous of which is the “End of the Road” section. He designed the NA logo (later modified by the WSC). He served as the volunteer office manager of the WSO from the time it began to 1983.
Jimmy K lived from 1911 to 1985. The last 36 years of his life were spent as a clean and recovering member of Narcotics Anonymous.
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How did our steps end up being adapted the way they are? How was the service structure formed? Who was Jimmy K? Why did the fellowship almost disappear in the late 1950s? What is the story of the Basic Text?
Those of us who are fortunate enough to know an old-timer, someone who was around when some of these events were taking place, have heard wonderful and intriguing stories about those times. We listen eagerly, fascinated by how events were shaped by ordinary members like ourselves.
But these stories are memories, and even the palest ink is better than the best memory. So why don’t we have a written history about our fellowship available already?
A history project has been on the back burner for many years but has never been moved forward for a variety of reasons. First, most of the written records and documentation about the early days remained in the hands of individual members. No central repository existed until the WSO began storing records of NA’s development in the mid-1980s. Since that time, many of the individuals who had records of NA’s history made gifts of that information to the WSO, but others were unwilling or unknown.
Second, the fellowship has been busy with other important projects such as the development of recovery literature and service materials; also, our rapid growth simply overwhelmed our ability to do all the things that should have been done.
Finally, we simply haven’t had the money to catalogue all the material we had and still need to get, and to hire someone to objectively put it on paper.
History is who we are and why we are the way we are. It’s very important to see ourselves as we were and look at the progress we’ve made together as a fellowship. We have a lot to learn from ourselves, and we should learn it from our past—as it truly happened, without embellishment or being dependent on memories. Are we ready yet? That all depends on how much we really want to know.
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I came from a dysfunctional family where alcohol was the main drug. However, I was always certain that I wouldn’t be like my father, the alcoholic. Naturally, I didn’t know about my genetic makeup and addictive personality.
After college I secured a really nice teaching job in a small school. Several years later I found a doctor who gave me some drugs that really made me feel better than I had ever felt before. Since the pills were from a doctor, it didn’t seem wrong that I got high when I took them. The drugs worked for me. They worked very well for me.
Well, a few months later—while high—I was driving to work and came upon a very bad curve in the road. My using had gone much further than I ever could have imagined. I decided to pray to God for some insight. My prayer went something like this: “Dear God, just get out of my life and let me alone for a year. Then I’ll do what you want me to do.” After thinking about what I had asked for, I added as PS: “Don’t let me get hurt too badly.”
I thought I would never become an addict. Well, I did. It took a very short time to cop a high, and I began to enjoy them more and more. For some reason, I believed that drugs made me into the real person I had always wanted to be. The drugs gave me energy to burn—day and night.
I remember that I planned to write a fifth grade science book, get rich, and have a “real life.” Well, like all the other things I started, I never finished that one. The book never got to the publisher. Instead, I burned the draft one day while I was high and in despair. That was something that began happening more and more often. Instead of feeling good when I was high, I often ended up feeling bad.
From time to time I even wondered if I might not be an addict. Naturally, I knew that I couldn’t possibly be like my father (I was in denial still), but things in my life were getting increasingly out of hand, and the changes were making little chinks in my wall of denial.
One day I found myself without a teaching job. In addition to this little employment problem, my wife was pregnant with our second son. I decided that God wanted me to be a youth director in a church. I tried many times to get such a job, but each time the answer was “no.” I remember one Sunday, after receiving another “no,” telling my wife that it was really bad when even God didn’t want you.
I always felt a tremendous urge to be needed and wanted. Don’t we all!
It was at about this time that I began to see the same patterns emerging in my life that had been present in my dad’s life. At that point, though, with my wife pregnant and no job, all I could do was keep using in order to feel better.
To this day, I remember every detail of the events in 1967 on the day our son was born. I called my mother and started crying. I was so stoned. But I remember our conversation word for word.
I told my mom that I didn’t know what was wrong with me. Mom, however, knew the problem. And she let me know in no uncertain terms! She said, “Bill, it’s those damn drugs!” And “damn” was a serious curse word for my mother.
Well, since my mom knew about my using, I decided it was time to quit. Time to quit before I became an addict. I sorta knew otherwise, but no one better tell me I’m an addict.
So I quit. But I didn’t go to any meetings. In fact, I had no knowledge of the NA program. In my mind, I thought I simply wouldn’t need any help—if I just never used again.
In the period of time between 1967 and 1970, I managed to get eighteen months clean. I also landed a job at a state hospital as an alcohol and drug counselor. At the time, I was secure in the knowledge that now I had the job that God really wanted me to have.
One day, early in 1972, I started using some muscle relaxants from one of the units where I worked. The nurse who gave them to me was a good friend and assumed she was doing me a favor. Unfortunately, I began to use them—and some other drugs—on a serious basis. I even remember one fishing trip when I used drugs to keep moving at night. During the next three months, I used drugs on a part-time basis. I began to have problems when I worked with my patients. I remember telling myself that they needed to do what I said, not what I did.
Today, I still go to NA on a regular basis because the steps give me a happy life to live. The steps and the people of NA have given me a number of insights and suggestions for recovery that I would like very much to share:
Bill B, Missouri
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You would never have guessed that I would grow up to be an addict.
A number of different things provoked me to take that first drug when I was in the fifth grade. I felt confused, frightened, depressed, and hopeless. I couldn’t sleep. Many a voice had expressed the fact that alcohol would put a person to sleep. A sentence from a book I had read about the life of Michelangelo echoed through my head. “Drink,” it said, “it will put you to sleep. And when you wake, the pain will be less.…” I couldn’t question a theory like that. It was so straight-out; it was so simple.
So I drank.
I’ll never forget that warm, fuzzy, tingly feeling of my first time using. Little did I know that I would grow to fear it in the future.
I drank myself to sleep almost every night from then on. For almost three years, a bottle of alcohol was my idea of a lullaby. When I babysat, I’d make sure to put the kid to bed at least an hour before their parents were scheduled to come home so I could check out the liquor cabinet. If no one was looking in the morning, I’d slip some Irish Creme into my coffee before I got on the school bus. The bottle had also become my alarm clock.
When I was in the eighth grade, my parents put me into outpatient treatment for depression after I tried to commit suicide. I was on Prozac, and my parents had thrown out all the liquor in the house because they suspected that I had been drinking.
I hated the Prozac. It kept me up in the night. So I found other patients who were willing to trade me their drugs for my Prozac. I also got tips from other patients on what household cleaners to sniff or drink, depending on what energy level I was seeking. This outpatient treatment would have been heaven for any teenager who was in active addiction. And all it cost was prescription medication.
Then one weekend, my cousin caught me drinking rubbing alcohol. My parents found nail polish remover under my mattress and my inhaler from elementary school, empty, in my desk drawer. I was pulled out of depression treatment and put into drug treatment.
The patients seemed just like the ones from the hospital, until I found out they were all clean. To make things even more confusing, they refused to talk to me until I agreed to stay clean myself. To stay clean, I had to open up and start talking recovery.
I became GSR of a young people’s group at my first NA meeting. I had no idea what a GSR was, of course, but what was there to lose? I was a newcomer to the program. What better way of feeling like I belonged than to get involved?
I’ve been clean in the program now for more than eighteen months. I’ve seen many addicts walk in the doors, nervous and confused. I’ve seen the same people grow into loving, caring, grateful members. I’ve found a tender, forgiving Higher Power that I can always trust. I’ve found many beautiful friends who will always be there when I need them. I’ve found a sponsor with whom I can share and from whom I can learn. I’ve learned that I’m not alone and that there is hope. I’ve discovered a world beyond drugs that is filled with emotion and diversity and growth. I’m learning to love, respect, and accept myself for who I am. I’ve discovered the simplicity of staying clean for today. I feel the gratitude and love of the program soak through me every time I carry the message.
There are times when I feel that I’ve been treated unfairly. I mean come on, I’m a sexually compulsive, chemically dependent, severely depressed, bisexual teenager—not to mention a first-born child. I can’t help but complain about my lot in life once in a while.
Nevertheless, I have more than enough to be grateful for. God has given me hope. NA has shown me how to live. Fellow addicts have proven that I’m not alone. I’ve stayed clean today.
Cady K, Minnesota
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I am of the opinion that addiction can show up in many ways that have absolutely nothing to do with drugs. If, for any period of time, I am consistently living my life based on unprincipled actions, then I am caught up in active addiction. This is not to imply that we become perfect. I know better. But I do believe that there have been times in my recovery when I’ve had freedom from active addiction in all areas of my life.
The real question is: How free do you want to be? I believe that our program will give us unlimited freedom, just for today. I know that it gives us the opportunity to exercise choice.
One day at a time, we never have to use drugs again. That is, in and of itself, a blessing, but achieving a complete personality change offers so much more. On the occasions that I’ve been able to experience the freedom that our steps allow, well, words cannot describe the level of conscious contact I feel with my Higher Power.
To limit the level of freedom that can be attained in NA to freedom from using drugs only places a limit on the recovery each of us receives from the God of our understanding. We cannot afford to be confused about this. It is available to us all.
Marilyn W, Ohio
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Everyone told me to keep coming back. I didn’t understand why they were smiling. I didn’t think I was going to stay, even though I wanted to. I just didn’t trust myself. My track record proved that I could make promises, but I never was able to keep them.
I got a sponsor. He told me I could do it. I started making friends, and I listened. I heard about faith. They told me to develop some, to just believe.
As the days went by, a miracle happened. I started to smile. The compulsion to use had been lifted. This faith thing wasn’t so bad, I thought. I only had a little, but it seemed to be enough. Each day I stayed clean, my faith got stronger. Time went by. I worked the steps. I read the literature. I did service. I used my sponsor.
Now, over fours years later, I must rely on what I learned in those early days. I must have faith and believe today just as I did then.
I’ve been out of work for more than a month. I’m putting in the footwork, believing that my HP is taking care of me. I left my last job after months of prayer and meditation. It had become very abusive there. I was afraid of leaving, but I had to. I left, and now I am looking for a new job. My HP has taken care of me so far, and I know it will continue to if I do the footwork.
Recovery has taught me that life happens, and so do problems. My first ninety days taught me to have faith and pray. NA’s only promise has been fulfilled in my life. Freedom from active addiction is just the beginning. All I need to do is show up, stay clean, and believe. Everything else will follow.
John L, New York
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I spent years walking through life with rose-colored glasses on in an attempt to dodge reality. My life was absurd and full of denial.
My Higher Power intervened and gave me a gentle push in the right direction. I found NA and I found a sponsor.
I get a kick out of sharing my life with this wonderful man. He’s an addict, too, and willing to share life’s joys and pain. Together, we find solutions to life on life’s terms. We truly respect and love each other.
I’m free today, thanks to NA.
Mike H, Illinois
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Through NA, I have found a way of facing those feelings. I’ve learned a method of trimming back my character defects through the Twelve Steps, a Higher Power, and selfless service to others. I’ve learned that I’m able to stunt the growth of my self-centeredness through focusing on the needs of another human being. I can put my rampant ego in check through willingness to listen to others and hear what they have to say. I found that by surrendering my self-pity, I gained back a real life, on life’s own terms.
I learned that the Third Step Prayer—“Take my will and my life, guide me in my recovery, show me how to live”—is not an escape from being responsible for my actions. It is an active choice I make to surrender my old actions and behaviors (take my will and my life), in exchange for direction in fulfilling my potential (guide me in my recovery), and claim the life I threw away through the use of drugs because of my pain and fear (show me how to live).
Life began to have meaning and purpose for me as I learned to practice these simple principles. Many addicts in recovery have had similar experiences with these principles. If we find that life has become overwhelming, and our Higher Power doesn’t seem to be working in our lives, this simple prayer can point us in the right direction. It can lead us to reflect on those aspects of our lives that are going against these principles and find relief from the insanity of having to act on old behavior. True freedom comes when we surrender to a Power greater than ourselves and realize our full potential as human beings.
Michael R, California
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My first WSC was 1992. I didn’t have a position or anything. I just came down to observe. I shared a room with six other people for ten days and had a blast. Barbara J was the WSC chairperson that year and her ability to lead while serving was awe-inspiring. I was allowed to count votes and sit in on some committee meetings. I witnessed the passage of the Twelve Concepts for NA Service and the Just for Today meditation book. I was very impressed and intimidated.
I met so many very nice and spiritual people from all over the world. Some of them have become very good friends. I have attended every WSC and quarterly since that time.
I attended WSC’93 in Van Nuys, again as an observer. It became clear that there was a need for a particular type of service for which there was no job description or title. Ten-minute breaks were extending into fifteen-, twenty-, or thirty-minute breaks. It was turning into quite a problem. The agenda was slipping, and at $42 a minute (a figure thrown out by the WSC treasurer at some conference—it’s probably pretty close to being accurate) to run the WSC, these were very expensive breaks.
Being that I have extensive experience acting and singing, and I have a pretty strong diaphragm and the required pipes, I became the first self-appointed WSC hallway monitor. I kept careful track of when the breaks were supposed to end and would wander the lobby bellowing the countdown like a stage manager. “Five minutes!”… “Two minutes, everyone!”… and finally, “It’s SHOWTIME!!!”
The conference participants weren’t being bad; they just needed a “subtle” reminder of when the break was over. I was the conference alarm clock. Several people, the chair included, came up and thanked me. That made me feel included and of service. On the other hand, some people were annoyed. “Who is that guy? And why is he wearing such a bad toupee?” I could easily ignore them. The conference began to rely on my efforts, and even gave me the nickname “Showtime.”
The following year (WSC’94), I returned as the RSR (now RD) of a brand-new region. My experience as a participant on the conference floor was totally different from my experience as an observer in the gallery. I learned a lot more and gained a greater appreciation of the overwhelming amount that goes into serving at the world level. The most important lesson I learned in Atlanta was to do the work and let go of the result. I saw some of the work of some trusted servants get ripped to shreds, and yet the individuals stayed intact. They understood the difference between the work and themselves. The attacks weren’t personal (not necessarily), but merely arose out of a difference of opinion about the direction of the work.
I have continued on since then by serving on the WSC PI Committee and the Resolution Group. Both have been very rewarding and enlightening.
Why do I serve? I would not be rigorously honest if I said that it is only out of the goodness of my heart. In some ways, I serve because I must—much like an author writes because he or she must. In a way, it is like being “called.” There are not many who are willing to give up the time, the money, and the other opportunities to be of service in Narcotics Anonymous, especially in world services. (World service isn’t fundamentally different in terms of spiritual value or whatever, but the time and money it demands are far greater than other levels of service.)
I have found service work deeply rewarding and personally enriching. The skills I’ve learned have helped me in my career, and vice versa. The personal lessons I have learned have made me a better person and a more effective trusted servant in my local NA community. In some ways, I would even say that I am a better husband and father because of my service work.
There is something incredibly gratifying about listening to someone rant about world services and then telling them the way things really are in a quiet, calming voice and watching their animosity melt. It doesn’t happen every time, but just like recovery, the best communication is from addict to addict. I have a feeling of accomplishment when I can teach people how to put a project plan together so they can successfully complete a service project. These are the behaviors that have been modeled for me at conferences and world service meetings. I will serve as long as I am asked, and I shall do so gratefully.
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At the close of WSC’97, after A Guide to Local Services passed, many RSRs returned home with a new service title (Regional Delegate), a new service manual, and many questions. Though some regions had been experimenting with some of the ideas in the GTLS since early 1990, most regions had only participated in informal workshops. Now that the GTLS is recognized as an approved service tool, more regions are becoming open to initiating changes in their service structure.
Regional assemblies seem to be one of the first ideas that regions begin implementing from GTLS. The reports from regions that have held annual regional assemblies have been extremely positive.
Regions that haven’t yet held a regional assembly may feel awkward and uncomfortable about doing so, but there are a number of resources throughout the fellowship that can be called upon. Regional delegates whose regions have conducted assemblies can offer insightful information prior to the assembly. Also, there are many members who either have world service experience or are well-informed about it and can help prepare or present information during the assembly.
Once a region decides to have a regional assembly, but before the assembly is held, the needs of the areas and groups within the region with regard to time, format, and length should be determined. In most cases, regional assemblies are held two to three months before the World Service Conference. Most regions will need some time for their members to review and discuss the Conference Agenda Report before the assembly. Some may choose to have in-depth workshops with the GSRs in the region before the assembly in order to give the GSRs a place to ask questions about the CAR. Some may plan a two-day assembly, the first day of which is devoted to studying and explaining the CAR, the second to reaching a consensus on CAR issues. After assessing the needs and desires of areas and groups within a region, it should be easy to establish a format that works for the region.
When the time and length of a regional assembly have been determined, it will be necessary to find a place to hold it. A centrally located place within the region is a good choice because it should offer easy access to all the GSRs. If the assembly is a two-day event, it will be helpful to find a location that offers affordable lodging for GSRs who need to stay overnight. Two-day events may also include dinner and a recovery meeting and/or seek assistance from the local fellowship in providing information about local NA meetings and events. Some larger regions may find it more beneficial and cost-effective to hold two regional assemblies in different locations rather than one centrally located assembly.
A problem that often arises is that some groups cannot afford to pay their own way to the assembly. To solve this problem, some regions set aside funds to assist with accommodation costs. Others find that it works better to have areas assist with funding their GSRs; some areas may even choose to hold fundraisers for this purpose. As awareness of the regional assembly’s importance begins to grow within the region, groups may decide to set aside the money to fund their own representative to the assembly.
The next thing to decide will be the format and structure of the event. Whatever type of session—small working groups or open forums—will best promote open sharing by the participants is the one that should be used. The participants will also need to determine how their conscience is to be measured: simply through the RDs’ evaluation of the discussion or by a formal vote. The assembly may choose to elect its Regional Delegate for the following year at the beginning of the assembly so that person can begin “training” during the assembly. With some planning, some of these decisions can be made prior to the assembly, but if a region is holding its first assembly, it may need to leave certain things open so the GSRs can work out what they feel most comfortable with at the assembly. Some regions may choose to have a second assembly following the WSC. A post-conference assembly can give the RD an effective way to inform the groups about what happened at the conference, which in turn will enable the GSRs to keep their groups abreast of world service issues.
To some, the benefits of having a regional assembly may not be clear at first. To others, it’s exciting to think of having an event where all the GSRs in a region can come together in unity to work to establish a collective conscience for the RD to share with the world. It’s important to keep in mind that structural changes on a regional level can be just as difficult for the areas and groups as for the region itself. There is no perfect style or form that will fit every region. As the regional body communicates with its areas and groups, an assembly that serves the needs of all participants will evolve.
The WSC Policy Committee is interested in hearing about your experiences with implementing GTLS so that others can gain insight from them. Write the WSC Policy Committee c/o WSO.
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I often think about how it is for me to do service today and how it was some years ago. It fills me with gratitude and a sense of awe. The changes in my life due to the program of NA and doing service are enormous. It has saved my life at least once a day. I remember how my life was in the years before I hit rock bottom with my addiction. And I only have to take a look at my living room table to gauge where I’m at today. It’s always filled with service material, unfinished assignments, and faxes from the WSO translations department. I’m in my third year as a member of the World Service Translation Committee, and I feel blessed because I have been given the opportunity to do the kind of service I love the most: translations of NA literature.
When I got clean, we had three groups in Norway—one in Oslo with two or three members, one in Horten with three or four members, and one in Moss, where I live, with about ten members. The person with the most clean time in my home group had about two years. The first time I sat down with him after a meeting, I was thinking, “Wow! Two years, man! This must be the most serene and healthy man I’ve ever met!” A couple of months later, he became my first sponsor.
More important to this story, he was one of the people who took the initiative to form an area service committee. I went to the first ASC meeting and there we formed a local translation committee. I joined immediately. We had absolutely no experience to lean on at first. We just wanted to have some literature in Norwegian to put on our tables, something we could read that everyone in our meetings would understand. We wanted something that would help us identify as part of the NA Fellowship—something that was ours, and ours alone.
During the first years of NA’s existence in Norway, most of the regular members also went to meetings of another fellowship. This certainly colored our attitudes and our way of thinking. But slowly, some of us stopped going to other fellowships, and we started to develop what I today call the genuine NA identity. (Speaking for myself, I have nothing negative to say about any other fellowship. But I belong in NA. I completely identify with what the Basic Text tells me about the disease of addiction. My heart and soul belong to NA. I just wanted to mention that we struggled for our own identity and to overcome the influence from other fellowships for a long time.)
This is how it has been every time we have established or tried to establish new service areas. We have always started from scratch. Sometimes we did the right thing and gathered experience from more developed NA communities or WSO. Sometimes we tried things without seeking out the experience of others; sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t. Some of the efforts we began failed more than once due to poor planning or personality conflicts. But we have learned from every mistake. Today we have working subcommittees within all the usual areas of service, and they’re stable.
I’ve personally experienced good and bad things in service. Sometimes my lack of humility has driven other people away from doing service—something I regret deeply. One thing I’ve learned is this: When you’re trying to stay clean and recover in a very small fellowship, you can’t afford to reject people. You can’t be too selective about who you do service with. There just aren’t that many people around! Your whole existence depends on staying together as a group. That’s just how it is trying to recover in a pioneer community. You just try to love the other members to the best of your ability, no matter how they act, what they say, or what opinions they have about service. You just have to try to accept the situation as it is, support each other as best you can, and try to reach an agreement on how to do service. The important part is that we do it together. My life has depended on staying clean, and staying clean has depended on me staying loyal to my home group and doing service.
I stayed in the Norwegian translation committee for four years, and I’ve done lots of service in various positions, both locally and at the world level.
I have had countless memorable experiences in service work, but I’d like to share two very special ones.
After two years on the LTC, I received a letter from the WSO one day. I opened it, and into my lap fell the first four informational pamphlets translated into Norwegian. I started to cry for joy because, finally, here was the result of two years of committee labor, two years of discussion, anger, laughter, and doubts. I cried because I knew that these pieces of paper in my hand represented another crazy addict like me staying clean and finding recovery in Narcotics Anonymous.
Not too much later, we received our first shipment of IPs and we started to pass them out to the groups. Then, in August of that same year (1993), we had our first NA convention in Norway. Seventy-three members registered. This was the first major gathering of NA members in Norway. Finally, we had something that everyone in the room could understand to put on our literature table. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the joy I experienced and sensed in the other members when they saw that we actually had NA literature in our own language. A number of our members don’t understand English very well, so for them this was beyond joy. As one put it, “Thank you. Now I understand what’s wrong with me.” He had been clean for almost a year.
I also worked in other areas of service during the time I was working with our LTC. The need for services was there, at both the group and area levels, but there weren’t too many people willing to or capable of doing the service required. Some of us had as many as three or four different service positions at the same time. At one point I found myself doing service as a coffeemaker and treasurer in my home group, as chairperson at the area, and as secretary in the LTC. I don’t recommend this, but sometimes things like this happen when an NA community is getting started.
We just tried to get things done somehow. And the miracle happened! We stayed together and we started to grow—first as a group and then as an area. The area committee almost collapsed at one point due to lack of support from the groups and some personality conflicts, but we worked it out, and our groups started to multiply.
Today we have twenty-two groups in Norway. And we’re just about to experience a surge of growth! We survived despite our initial problems, and today our area is close to what I believe would be ideal. Well, maybe not ideal, but certainly more mature. We have a very strong NA identity in Norway, too. Our members are very attentive to applying the Twelve Traditions to their service work, and we see a rising awareness about the Twelve Concepts. Narcotics Anonymous is well-established in Norway. It’s here to stay!
My personal recovery and service work took an unexpected turn when in May 1995 I was appointed to the WSTC. Doing this kind of service brought a totally new dimension into my life and recovery. I have met our worldwide fellowship in person—members from Israel, Brazil, the Philippines, Germany, the USA, the United Kingdom, Australia…. Doing service at this level has given me the opportunity to grow up and live up to a potential I didn’t even know I had. This became very clear to me as I presented the WSTC report in front of some 300 fellow NA members at WSC’97. I stood up at the podium in front of all those people thinking, “This is really me, giving a report in English in front of the World Service Conference of Narcotics Anonymous!”
Just a few years earlier, I was on skid row in a very small village in Norway, using every possible drug I could lay my hands on.
Thank you for allowing me to do service, and thank you for saving my life.
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Ever been away from your home area and visited an NA meeting?
The posters on the wall, the place where the coffeepot sits, the tables,
the chairs, the literature—it all adds up to an atmosphere of recovery.
And you thought NA meetings were only held in church basements!
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I got clean in a prison in Massachusetts. For years I often wondered how that happened, even why it happened. I didn’t really have a desire to stop using; I had tried many times over the years to stop using and I had always failed.
I just accepted that I was an addict and would use until they threw dirt in my face. The last ten years of my active addiction were a horror show. I was homicidal, suicidal, godless, hopeless, and full of self-hatred. I hated what I had become. I didn’t know anyone who was clean, and I had never heard of Narcotics Anonymous.
I no longer wonder how or why I got clean. Today I know. It’s because some NA members thought it was important enough to bring an H&I panel into the prison I was in and let me know there was a better way of life and that I didn’t have to use anymore.
That was thirteen years ago, and I’m still clean and in recovery. I’m a grateful member of the WSC H&I Committee. As a result of doing H&I service, both locally and at the world level, my life has changed for the better. I have become a useful and productive member of society. I have goals and aspirations. Words can’t describe what it feels like to be a person with dignity and hope, when before I had neither.
As a result of doing H&I service, I’ve met some wonderful people who have opened their hearts and homes to me. It’s difficult to capture thirteen years of H&I service in a few paragraphs. I was lucky. My sponsor is an H&I guy and most of my closest friends in NA are also involved in H&I.
Everything I’ve learned in service has made me the person I am today. I’ve become a loving and caring person—someone I never thought I could be. I want to leave you with this: Remember, service to NA is service to yourself.
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The thick prison wall stood very tall and looked impossible to break through. I walked outside through the big steel door, and a deep sense of gratitude came into me. Two other NA members were with me. A year before, they had been incarcerated in this very same prison. They heard the message of recovery from an H&I effort in this prison, and are now giving back what was given to them. We had just finished our H&I meeting. The meeting began two years after our public information committee met with the prison authority.
Our public information committee was new at the time, and meeting with the prison authority was one of our first efforts. We believed strongly that there was a missing link between NA and the public, especially when it came to the professionals and organizations that deal with addicts. Our objective was only to inform these people and organizations that NA exists and that addicts with a desire to stop using are welcome in NA. It sounded easy, but staying within our traditions and our country’s laws at the same time proved to be very challenging.
Narcotics Anonymous in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was made up of a very small group of recovering addicts. When NA started in Malaysia about ten years ago, our only meeting shifted from one place to another and existed in secrecy. Back then, it was like an underground movement. Every time we met, it was in fear that Malaysian law enforcement might apprehend us for holding an illegal gathering (our law requires an organization to register with the government and meet certain terms and conditions).
We couldn’t do any formal PI or H&I work. Carrying the message was mainly done by word of mouth among members and close friends. NA was perceived as either a religious program or some kind of Western ideology. I recall attending the first NA meeting in Malaysia, afraid of being with a group of addicts because this might attract the attention of the police, and we might even be subjected to urine testing. Our law states that anyone caught being an addict in Malaysia will be subjected to two years of compulsory rehabilitation in an institution and another two years of probation.
Despite the barriers and challenges that we have to face, members who stay with the program stay clean. The local professionals are becoming more and more curious about NA. In 1991, an international convention on drug abuse treatment and related services was held in Kuala Lumpur. A representative from NA world services attended to present a paper. For the first time, the worldwide Narcotics Anonymous program, adaptable to any culture and any language, was made known to professionals in Malaysia.
After the convention, the fellowship started some formal service work. We still kept a low profile. About three years ago, the NA Asia/Pacific Forum was held here in Malaysia, and we had the opportunity to learn from the experience of the fellowship about NA service. We also took advantage of the presence of WSC people to arrange a meeting with some important people who could assist us in our effort: the vice president of the World Federation of Therapeutic Communities, and others who have influence over government policies.
A group service committee was formed shortly after that. PI made a move to introduce NA to the prison director, and a few months after that the first H&I meeting started in prison. Since most of the addicts speak the local language, “Bahasa Malaysia,” we also started a meeting in that language. Our Higher Power gave us the courage to approach the director general of the Government Narcotics Agency (the government agency responsible for rehabilitating addicts). He was very receptive and invited us to do a workshop presentation. I was very grateful to be at the presentation. More than sixty officers from throughout the country were there and they were very receptive to Narcotics Anonymous as a means for addicts to find recovery. Besides accepting Narcotics Anonymous themselves, they invited us to introduce NA to the addicts under their care and offered to help us start more meetings.
I hope that as NA grows in Malaysia and PI and H&I efforts continue here, more addicts will get the NA message. I pray that no addicts will die without having the opportunity to work the Twelve Steps of Narcotics Anonymous.
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| 1986 | 1996 | |
| Number of countries with NA meetings | 40 | 90 |
| Number of registered NA groups in the US | 7,638 | 12,938 |
| Number of registered NA groups outside the US | 735 | 2,720 |
| Number of English-language Basic Texts
sold by WSO |
215,352 | 206,512 |
| Number of 10-year bronze medallions
sold by WSO |
572 | 4,768 |
| Approximate number of Starter Kits
sent out by WSO |
900 | 1,000 |
| Number of different languages in
which Basic Text is published |
1 | 8 |
| Number of registered attendees
at world convention |
1,600 | 7,116 |
| Amount of merchandise sold
at world convention |
$41,556 | $355,782 |
Sources: (1-7) 1986 and 1996 WSO Annual Report; (8-9) WCC Historical Data
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We thought it might help if we began introducing you to some of the staff at WSO and describing their responsibilities. “Spotlight on staff” will be a regular feature of the NA Way Magazine.
This month’s staff member is Dee Joyce Price. She began working for WSO in the fall of 1986. Hired as the receptionist, responsible for answering three incoming telephone lines and greeting visitors, Dee found the position much to her liking. “It was wonderful. Everybody hugs, and of course I liked that,” she recalls.
Dee’s
responsibilities have grown a lot in her eleven years on staff. The WSO
now has eight incoming phonelines. This might be an unmanageable number
if they all rang at once; thankfully, that rarely happens. Also, many callers
choose to go through the voice mail system. Dee checks all the incoming
regular mail and email to mailwso@aol.com. She sends out all the H&I
mailings and a great deal of other mail such as overnight packages to trusted
servants. Dee’s voice is the one callers hear on WSO’s voice mail message.
She stays up to date on everyone’s responsibilities and keeps track of
the comings and goings of all staff, so she can direct callers to the proper
place to get their questions answered. Dee also answers a lot of questions
herself to help take some of the load off fellowship services. She keeps
an updated phoneline directory on her desk so she can help callers find
their way to a local NA meeting.
Dee’s initial feelings about working for WSO have changed only in that they’ve grown stronger. The NA Fellowship has become a second family to her, and she loves it when they come to visit. So next time you’re in California, stop by.
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For the last several years, we’ve all grown accustomed to seeing the words “Alternate Merchandise Store” on convention programs. It’s become so routine to most of us that it’s no different from a recovery meeting, a dance, or a banquet. We wait for the designated time on Sunday morning when the store will be operating, and go in hopes of finding bargains or unique NA merchandise.
When it was first established as a common practice at the world convention, the alternate merchandise store was intended to provide a place for areas and regions to recapture funds that might otherwise remain trapped in boxes of leftover T-shirts. The WCC wanted to eliminate, or least minimize, the old-fashioned “hallway sales” of NA merchandise. NA members responded positively to these alternate merchandise stores, lining up eagerly to wait for the stores to open. So, given all these very good results, what could possibly be wrong?
As is often the case, what the alternate merchandise store started out to be at the world convention and what it has wound up to be are very different things. What happened at WCNA-26 in St. Louis in the alternate store gave us a very ugly picture of a good thing gone wrong.
The process of trying to get all the vendors into the designated room progressed rapidly into bedlam despite the fact that a structured system had been set up to ensure that each vendor had a pre-reserved spot. It became dangerously possible that someone could be hurt as some vendors pushed and shoved their way past staff and security people who were attempting to check passes and direct people to their spots. It was as poor an example of recovery in service as we have ever seen. We’d like to think it was an isolated incident, but it seems that more and more, behavior such as this is becoming the typical experience—not only for the world convention but for regional conventions that allow alternate merchandise stores.
What is it about this particular service opportunity that turns normally reasonable, step-practicing, text-quoting trusted servants into rude, intolerant, demanding maniacs? We do not want to unfairly depict members involved in alternate merchandise sales. Unfortunately, the number of people who conform to this description seems to be growing each year.
We have reached a place where what was formerly considered a special opportunity for areas and regions is now considered an “inalienable right” available upon demand. As a result, the WCC has found itself between a rock and a hard place. Our efforts have always been directed at supporting NA members in the desire to obtain leftover convention merchandise. In hindsight, it seems that our efforts have resulted in facility rules being stretched or broken, union contracts being violated, and our risk for liability increasing because of some of the behavior associated with alternate merchandise sales. In addition, the administrative burden placed on WCC by facilitating the alternate store has now grown to the point where it almost requires one staff person dedicated solely to dealing with the store. As if these problems weren’t enough, the alternate store has had a deeply disturbing effect on attendance at the Sunday morning recovery meeting. Though the store isn’t scheduled to open until after the close of the meeting, some members skip the meeting to begin lining up. Surely this wasn’t intended when the alternate store idea was conceived!
We realize that many NA communities have come to depend on the alternate store to raise funds, but, in reality, this is not what it was created for. It was created only for two purposes: first, to diminish the “hallway sales” of merchandise at the world convention, and second, to allow NA communities to sell leftover merchandise. Today there are NA communities that create merchandise solely to sell it at the world convention.
Clearly, the problems that have arisen force the WCC to at least be more stringent in setting guidelines for vendor participation in the alternate store and, ultimately, to evaluate the store’s true benefit to the fellowship. We’re sorry to say that if we felt we could, in good conscience, eliminate the alternate store right now, we would. But experience has taught us to look for ways to resolve issues by first reaching out to our members for assistance. As you discuss this problem in your service committee meetings, please keep track of what members are saying and forward those comments to us as input.
I hereby grant permission to the World Service Office, The NA Way Magazine, their successors, assigns, and those acting on their authority to publish the attached original material titled. I understand that this material may be edited. I further understand that this material may be reprinted in other NA fellowship journals. I possess full legal capacity to exercise this authorization and hereby release the World Service Office and The NA Way Magazine from any blame by myself, my successors, and/or my assigns.
Signature: ____________________________
Date: ________________________________
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