As soon as the COVID Pandemic caused our meeting place to close we established a presence on zoom and emailed, texted and called as many people as we could find in our sparse files. We started out very unskilled about the technology and how to effectively run meetings that upheld the principles of anonymity and inclusion that AA promotes. We have been bombed a few times and we have had problems with that damn mute button but through it all we are able to offer effective companionship and support to those who want it. In some ways the virtual meetings have transformed our relationships and many have commented on how nice it is to see people in their homes and occasional sightings of curious pets too. We have had a speaker from North Wales, UK, people who are unable to leave their homes due to ill-health become regular attendees and people who have left the area still able to join us. We will all be glad to see the back of 2020 and hopefully soon the restrictions that the pandemic has imposed on us but also we have been strengthened by the need to help each other live sober lives through what many have found their most stressful times. So we look to the future and whatever the new normal will be no one can tell us but this I know - if the people of AA continue to band together for the good of each other and hold out their hands for the many who are lost in the sea of alcohol - then we will see the continued rise of a program which, with God's help, will offer solutions to those who seek them
