I have a friend who lives in a small town in Alaska. She is clean and sober, and I have known her for approximately 25 years. We have kept in touch across the years through many states. My friend knows everything about me, and has watched me stumble through the good and bad of sobriety. There is nothing that I am too ashamed to tell her.

Over the last 8 months or so, I have telephoned her at least once a week; many times every other day. She has been instrumental in leading me thorough my last breakup. She was very patient with me while I slowly rediscovered reality and let go of what I thought I could never live without.

To get back to my story, I must add a note about the phone service up in Alaska. The phone company considers the city she lives in "rural" even though it is a city. When the phones go out, which they do quite frequently, they are down for many days. I can be mid-sentence and the phone service will go out. Then, I have to wait days to finish telling her my tale of woe.

Coupled with the irregular phone service, she also has a really old phone which she forgets to put it in the cradle to recharge. When that happens I either get cut off, or can't hear a word she is saying. If you have any idea of my personality, you would be safe in assuming that this drives me absolutely crazy. Did I mention that she doesn't have an answering machine either?

So I bought her a new phone and shipped it up there. I called her and said, "Dear Friend, I bought you a new phone. It will be there in 4 days."

Four days later, I called, "Dear Friend, did you go to the post office and pick up your new phone?" She said, "No, I didn't get there today, I will go tomorrow."

I called the next day, and said, "Friend, did you get your new phone?" She said, "Yes, I did. It is sitting here in the box. I just need to clear off a space on my counter for it."

Two days later I called, "Friend, did you plug in your new phone?" She said, "No, but I did read the box, and it is a really nice phone. Thank you so much!"

"Yes", I said, "It is a really nice phone. Honey, go get the box and open it up." I sat in silence for a long time, so long that I turned on some music. She came back to the phone and let me know that the new phone was plugged in.

Today, I called and left my first message.

Now, for the humor in this story. Together we have nearly fifty years of sobriety....... This experience demonstrates how AA is a program for life.