Even in Prague

Prague, Capital of the Czech Republic.  Certainly not a city you would associate with addiction, or any other disease.  But there we were in early July, attending an AA meeting with our son.  The city was a brief stopover at the end of a river cruise celebrating a family anniversary.

Without fanfare, Jacob announced he’d located an “English-speaking” meeting. As in the States, he invited both his father and me to join him.  Whenever, wherever, he does this, I always feel honored, flattered, loved.

After several texts with a woman who gave him directions, we found the bold “AA” sign flagging a building on a busy main street near the old part of the city. In a spare basement room we sat beside our son, still and quiet, while the Czech leader welcomed the small group and opened with familiar passages.

I was keenly aware that this was Jacob’s meeting, not ours.   No doubt we could have found an Al-Anon meeting, had we tried.  Travelling, I turned daily to “Courage to Change” for balance and inspiration.   And now, here we sat listening, treated to the reassuring phrases and stories of some dozen men and women from many countries, a witness to their program and their recovery in a foreign land.

If my son could find an AA meeting in a city where he knew neither the language nor the geography, how available must this program be for those who seek it?

Once again, I marveled at Jacob’s strength and resolve, and the healing powers of the AA fellowship.  I think the meeting refreshed us as much as it did him.

Even on foreign soil, recovery flourishes.