If They're Ready. . .

These reassuring words have started many a desperate alcoholic on the road to recovery--or so it is hoped. What follows is the shared experience of eleven AA members who have been on the telephone "firing line."

I was a volunteer at our central office early in my sobriety. After receiving a particularly distressing call for help one day, I expressed my concern to our office manager about whether or not I had reached this caller. Had I said the right thing? Should I have said something differently?

In turn, she shared her experience, strength, and hope with me in this way: "If they're ready, you can't say anything wrong. If they're not ready, you can't say anything right."

That has helped me time and time again when working with others. I have learned that if I do my best at the time and share what is in my heart, I cannot go wrong.