November 24
A Decision We Shared
The group tries a change after careful discussion, and it does not work. Those who opposed it remember their warnings. Those who supported it remember the good reasons. Soon the practical question of what to do next competes with a more absorbing question: whose judgment has been vindicated? We can spend the whole meeting settling that second question while the original problem waits.
Concept XII describes an advantage of thorough discussion: people can share responsibility when a decision turns out badly. Our willingness to do that brings personal recovery into common work. We can acknowledge evidence without celebrating somebody else's embarrassment. We can revise our position without pretending we never held it. A group needs members who can learn together more than it needs members with spotless voting records. Prayer and inventory may help us surrender the private victory that would make a common correction harder.
What would change if I cared more about correcting our decision than proving my earlier judgment?
We still have a problem we can face together.
For the A.A. nerds: Twelve Concepts for World Service, Concept XII, Warranty Four.