Mail Call for All A.A.s at Home Or Abroad

In A.A. the incongruous often is right and logical in the operation of the program. For instance, a few Sunday nights ago my attention was riveted on a young lad at an open meeting. He looked about 17, except his eyes showed the utter bewilderment that I have recognized in so many "first timers" at meetings. I was introduced to him, but somehow when they said he was an alcoholic (his own admission) and had just been in one of the most robust state institutions, it seemed incongruous and I made a mental bet that he'd be gone for many more years and we'd never see him when the heat was off at home. But he haunted me for two weeks and I wished I had drawn him into conversation. I called the woman who had introduced us. "He's been drunk most of the time since the meeting," she said. "His family are aghast at his even considering A.A.--his father is a well-known liquor dealer." There it was. The kid was trying A.A. against some first-class odds. The next week I met him at another open meeting. His eyes looked more frightened than before. Finally he said, "I decided to come here at the last moment. Things have been bad for me all day. I've got a pint in my pocket and planned to go to New York and drink it. I'm terribly shaky."