November 30
The Small Commitment
It is easier to imagine ourselves giving an important talk than checking whether the meeting information is correct. One task promises an audience. The other may receive attention only when it has been neglected. Yet an alcoholic who arrives at the wrong address cannot benefit from the wonderful talk. What seems minor from inside a group can matter greatly to someone trying to find it.
Service gains its importance from the need it meets. Remembering that can change our relationship with work that lacks prestige. We need not take every available commitment or claim to enjoy every detail. We can simply respect the one we have accepted enough to carry it reliably. A.A.'s ability to welcome people rests on many ordinary acts of care. Some happen at a microphone; others make sure a person reaches the room in the first place. We may never know whose evening depended on ours.
What modest responsibility matters more to its recipient than it seems to matter to me?
Someone may be relying on a detail we can attend to.
For the A.A. nerds: The A.A. Service Manual, “A.A.’s Legacy of Service.”