WHAT I LEARNED: 1. The item # for this short 12-page piece begins with an “R” because this is a reprint of various articles from The Forum magazine.  It came out in 2012 & reprints are typically only printed for a 2-year period.  However, demand for this piece must be high because it’s now 4 years later & it is still available for $1, but there’s a good chance that this will be discontinued in 2017 or 2018.  The World Service Office is currently putting together a brand new pamphlet with the working title “Parents & Grandparents of Problem Drinkers.”  It’s for a wider audience & I imagine once that new pamphlet comes out, it will replace this temporary R-18 reprint.  So stock up now if you like this item!

2. The main thing I got from this piece is the importance of, & difficulty with, letting someone you love hit their bottom.  And it’s different for everyone.  I would say to myself, “Surely being homeless & living in a drain, or being arrested & sitting in jail is his bottom.”  But what I thought (& desperately wanted to believe), was different than what reality actually was.  The only thing I really knew was when I had hit my bottom.  …When my desire to go to an Al-Anon meeting changed from casual to urgent.  That’s the only true “hitting bottom” I can be sure of.

3. If you’re searching for more Conference Approved Literature that applies specifically to parents, see my previous entry on the pamphlet: “To Parents of Alcoholics” (item # P-16) or the entire Parents’ Newcomer Packet (item # K-24).

4. I have 2 favorite lines from this reprint:

From page 3: “If I give one hand to my Higher Power & the other to someone in need, I will keep my hands out of other people’s business & I will be okay.”

From page 8: “I listened to one woman say that after many years in Al-Anon & many open AA meetings, she had never heard a speaker say, ‘I was saved by my momma.’”

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**BONUS: Episode #5 of my “CAL Chat” podcast is where this piece is discussed even further & how the featured guest uses it for outreach purposes!

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**UPDATE (6/25/18): After a two year wait, today I received the brand new pamphlet: “Parents & Grandparents of Problem Drinkers” (item # P-94)!!  It cost only 75 cents & I’ve read it through once quickly, but want to read it again taking more time with it before I post my review of it, so stay tuned.  In the meantime, below are some pics of it I took on a road trip for my Instagram account with the hashtag: #CALMovesMe  📚 🗺️

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***UPDATE (7/21/21): So far, even though the “Parents & Grandparents” (item # P-94) pamphlet has been available for 3 years now, it looks like the “Parents of Alcoholics” (R-18) reprint is still available on the World Service Office’s newly redesigned online literature store — even more amazing is that it still costs only $1.00 after all this time!  If this reprint is still available next year, in 2022, then it will have been available for 10 years 😮 – which I think is possibly the longest a reprint has been offered by the WSO! 👏  👏🏽  👏🏿