Wow! 1300 members of OA converged on the Boston Copley Marriott Hotel to participate in the above convention which ran from September 1st through the 4th.
They came from all over the US, Canada and 27 other countries. There were all kinds of workshops, a keynote opening speech and, of course, a closing speech. There was a banquet as well as a dance party. Workshops ranged from “An Attitude of Gratitude” to “The Joy of Aging in Recovery.” All were given by experienced members of OA who spoke their truth. There was also a meditation room, a bookstore, a bulletin board, a raffle, an international fellowship lounge, as well as special focus meetings and hourly OA meetings. And let me not leave out the virtual services lounge.
You could find inspiration here, you could find reinforcement, you could find a sponsor and you might also find a ride back to wherever you came from. There was so much that it was almost overwhelming. It was hard to choose among the workshops but it worked better if I picked one and stayed. Which is exactly what I did.
There were lots of people to meet and even eat with. You could talk recovery all day and night if you so chose. Everyone was pretty laid back and quite happy to be here.
There were lots of important messages, one of which was to live in the steps. This is important as once I did the steps, I thought I was finished. But we are never finished because the disease is never gone. So we must continue to work the steps and we can do this in more than one way. You can also twelve step a problem and use the program to find out what is bothering you and how you can best deal with it so you don’t pick up.
One last great tip was to begin the day with the question, “What am I willing to do for my recovery today?” An awesome undertaking but very useful because whatever comes up, that is what we need to do that day.
Once again it was a great convention and on August 20, 2020, they will do it again in Orlando, Florida. Look for it!
By MaryAnn F