marinadock.org

My Fellow Marina Dockers:

Happy New Year to each and every one. If I missed you when I sent out the New Year cards or if you got two cards instead of one, happy New Year again and again. We had a beautiful sober Christmas and New Year holiday season. In my twenty plus year association with the Marina Dock, I have never seen the volume of people we have had over the last year, particularly in November and December. Obviously we don't keep records or collect data of any kind on our clientele, but I know a new face when I see one I think it is safe to say in 2007 we have had more than a thousand newcomers cross our threshold. In fact if I may wax poetic for a moment, here is how I would phrase it as a potential sonnet writer.

"A thousand jaded faces, have taken their respective places
When as a court of last resort they found our Greenwich Street Oasis.
Their faith was but a sliver, their bodies they were aquiver
It wasn't that long however until they discovered we deliver.
How could this be real they ask, coffee, love and meetings, sans recriminations?
We smile, pretend it's easy but know it's nigh impossible,
Without your caring ways, loving hearts and generous donations."

Thank you very much for thinking of us last year, I have to say you were definitely there for us financially when push came to shove. I think everyone understands that this is fundamentally a higher power based business an evolving ongoing creative process that requires ingenuity and money to keep it solvent. Of course it comes with a price our operating expenses are in the twenty two to three thousand dollars a month region, yes that's a twenty. Most of the time this is a challenge but we always seem to land on our feet. It helps when you have quality people working for you right down the line. Our staff and volunteers are all people with unique skills and long-term sobriety coupled with a genuine concern for their fellows. Where for example would you meet in a days walk a guy like Harry, our weekend point man. Harry has 28 plus years of recovery, he is a veritable walking encyclopedia of sobriety, and has a big following here at the weekends. Thank you again Harry for the guidance on staying sober and living life on life's terms.

Regretfully, Michael L., our weekday morning person, is starting a new job in January and will only be available on a volunteer basis on Monday and Tuesday mornings. Michael has played a vital role in getting people to contribute over the years we will be forever indebted to him for his efforts and to you for your generosity. We hope this relationship will continue into 2008. On behalf of the Marina Dock staff and patrons we sincerely wish Michael the very best in his new job.

If you did not make a donation last year and have donated in the past please consider us again for a tax-deductible contribution this year. In February we will be sending out a statement to all who have donated in 2007, if you have questions about your statement call us or email me at the address below. We look forward to being of continuing service to you this coming year.

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taking a trip

I took a ride down to Santa Barbara over the Christmas and had a wonderful time attending meetings and making new friends. I would like to thank my sister Martha, and her fellowship friends Maureen, Australian Rex, Kathleen, Shawn, Brian, Denise, Linny, Peter, Brigid, (from Carrick) and Denise who just moved into her new apartment, good luck Denise. Thank you all for making my stay such a memorable one with your warm and welcoming ways. I have to say I enjoyed the break and loved the fellowship there. Of course I noticed little differences in some of the format and how meetings are conducted. They end most meetings with a real moment of silence followed by the "Third Step Prayer" I have to admit I felt a little embarrassed I could not recite it verbatim; I could only jump in here and there when I recognized a line or two. I have decided meetings in Santa Barbara have a positive effect on the brain and could very likely enhance neuroplasticity.

Recently I saw a program on PBS about brain exercise and how it relates to the aging process; the idea of brain exercise is to age with your faculties intact. After all who wants to live to be a hundred if you can't remember anything after the Summer of Love? Then again there are those who claim they could not remember anything before 67 either, it would be nice if aging impacted long term memory instead of short-term, that way we would not stress every time we jump up from the couch to do something and then promptly draw a blank. We would not regret the past because we would never remember it; we wouldn't have to worry whether the door was open or closed period. Instead of having a hankering for nostalgic recollections of our first soiree or our exaggerated accomplishments on the playing field, we would remember where we put our check books, so we could write one to The Marina Dock. In any event maybe a good first step would be to try to memorize The Third Step Prayer and perhaps our sponsor's phone number. Here is an extract from what I found on Wikipedia on the topic of mental elasticity.

Neuroplasticity (variously referred to as brain plasticity or cortical plasticity or cortical re-mapping) refers to the changes that occur in the organization of the brain as a result of experience. A surprising consequence of neuroplasticity is that the brain activity associated with a given function can move to a different location as a consequence of normal experience or brain damage/recovery. The concept of neuroplasticity pushes the boundaries of the brain areas that are still re-wiring in response to changes in environment.

The concept of neuroplasticity is also central to theories of memory and learning that are associated with experience-driven alteration of synaptic structure and function in studies of classical conditioning in invertebrate animal models such as Aplysia. This latter program of neuroscience research has emanated from the ground-breaking work of another Nobel laureate, Eric Kandel, and his colleagues at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

For those of us who need a refresher on The Third Step Prayer it can be found on page 63 of The AA Big Book:

"God, I offer myself to Thee--to build with me and to do with me as Thou wilt.
Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do Thy will.
Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help of Thy Power, Thy Love, and Thy Way of life.
May I do Thy will always!"

Still, maybe it is the simplicity and brevity, but my preference will always be for Reinhold Niebuhr's "Serenity Prayer." Niebuhr's original text, from in Elisabeth Sifton's book The Serenity Prayer. The slightly edited Alcoholics Anonymous version below omits the word "grace" from the first line, shortens some of the remainder, and sets out the prayer in the form of verses:

"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
courage to change the things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference."

An expanded version exists, but its origins are unknown; it is certainly not by Niebuhr, who invariably cited his original version.

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The Newsletter

Last month I suggested people who are non contributors send us $30.00 for the year to cover the mailing cost, the response was overwhelming, thank you all two of you, Wade D., and David B., believe me I don't take it personal. Now we are pursuing a different tack, Harry and I are going over to Evans Street to apply for our nonprofit mailing. There are of course hoops to jump through but we are willing to go to any lengths, after all, necessity is the mother of invention.

The recent service for Chicago Mike and Allen B was well attended. Many people spoke fondly and lovingly of both, and I got to see a number of people I had not seen in years. Close friends dying always seems to change us, we are confronted with the fragility of our own mortality. It reinforces the reality that all we have is today and we should live for today and today only.

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"The future is a verb in hibernation" (Seamus Heaney)

My New Years resolution is to try to cultivate an attitude of gratitude and practice the discipline of living just for today. Here are a few affirmations I found that I intend to at least read and hopefully embrace however haltingly just for today.

Just for today I will try to live through this day only, and not tackle all my problems at once. I can do something for twelve hours that would appall me if I felt that I had to keep it up for a lifetime.

Just for today I will exercise my soul in three ways: I will do somebody a good turn and not get found out; if anybody knows of it, it will not count. I will do a least two things I don't want to do--just for exercise. I will not show anyone that my feelings are hurt; they may be hurt, but today I will not show it.

Just for today I will be unafraid. Especially I will not be afraid to enjoy what is beautiful, and to believe that as I give to the world, so the world will give to me.

In closing we are exploring the possibility of a fund raiser to generate some cash flow for 2008, We have a steering committee of sorts already in place , if you feel you have organizational or entertainment skills we could use please let us know if you are available to help us with this project. David B came up with this idea and we decided to make it a joint effort so we can help out the Alano Club as well, it is one of those rising tide ideas. We are also in the hunt for a donated vehicle to haul our ever increasing volume of supplies, the car I have cannot take the beating much longer. Again any vehicle donation is a tax deductible contribution. In the meantime let me tell you that we feel you are all coming from a place of love and abundance, we are definitely getting that vibe. We love you and we mean that sincerely. We hope to see you over the next few weeks, come on down and spread the love.

Remember there is plenty of additional off street parking at the public parking lot on Moulton Street; you enter Moulton from Webster between Lombard and Greenwich. It is probably at this point a lot cheaper than the street meters to park there, I think it is around $2.50 an hour. Please don't smoke or talk loudly outside the front entrance, move to the east beyond the tree. Our membership dues are $500.00 for two years $300.00 for a year $175:00 for six months or a dollar a day $30.00 for a month. We take cash, checks and visa or master card.

One final stab at Irish semantic incongruity "This job is killing me but I love it" in the words of Andre Gide: "It is better to be hated for what one is, than loved for what one is not". Happy New Year everybody and if you are feeling under the weather come by, relax take a few deep breaths and share your experience strength and hope.

We welcome good stories especially if they are true? Besides challenging ourselves creatively it is a good mental exercise, apparently when mental tasks become easy they have a negative instead of a positive influence on Neuroplasticity. Contact me at the e-mail address below.

The solution is love,

"Irish Tony"