¡La vida sobria!

By Bees | January 17, 2023 |

a picture showing cloud shaped like swordfish for LifeRing blog post

Shannon tomó esta foto de un pez espada hecho de nubes nadando a través del cielo. Aprendió que el pez espada simboliza la fuerza, el coraje y la capacidad de superar los obstáculos de la vida.


LifeRing is excited to introduce our newest online focus meeting for Spanish-speakers:  La vida sobria (the sober life). This is a How Was Your Week check-in meeting held weekly on Sundays at 5:00pm Pacific.

     La vida sobria
     ¿Cómo fue tu semana?
     Sundays at 5:00pm Pacific Time

La vida sobria is the brilliant idea of LifeRing Community member Shannon. In this introduction, Shannon shares personal history, inspirations, and goals for this new LifeRing focus meeting.

I am Guatemalan, Mexican, and Irish, was born and raised in San Francisco, CA, and have spent my life straddling distinct cultures and languages. My Abuelita (grandma) always spoke to me in Spanish. When I was a child, I didn't understand every word she said to me, but I could feel the love with which they were spoken. I remember asking my Mom why my dad didn't speak to my Abuelita in Spanish, and she said that it was because the nuns who ran the grade school that my dad and aunts attended ridiculed my grandparents for speaking Spanish to their children. From then on, they mainly communicated with their children in English, resulting in my dad and one of my aunts losing their Spanish.

That story broke my heart, and I vowed to learn the language so that it wouldn't die in my family and so that I could communicate with my Abuelita in Spanish. I started studying Spanish in high school, and I received a B.A. in Spanish Studies from Santa Clara University. When I was finally able to communicate with her in Spanish, it meant the world to her and to me.

When I first thought about convening a LifeRing meeting, I knew it had to be in Spanish. I can't think of a better way to start the new year than to merge two very important parts of me, my Spanish-speaking self and my sober self.  Sobriety and recovery can be extremely challenging and inspiring, so it's vital for people to have a space where they can communicate both their challenges and their successes in their native language.

La vida sobria  (the sober life) is a HWYW meeting, and I'm incredibly grateful for this opportunity to provide Spanish-speakers in the LifeRing community an additional space to talk about their week in recovery and to give and receive support in their native language.

Walking and taking photos also help me in my sobriety and recovery. I take daily, long walks at my local park. Movement and creativity are nourishing, and I love sharing photos that I've taken on my daily walks with other wonderful members of the LifeRing community.

— Shannon

LifeRing is currently recruiting new convenors and co-convenors to support our growing recovery community. You can learn more about the requirements and the rewards of being a LifeRing convenor on the LifeRing Start a Meeting webpage. Other ways you can support LifeRing are listed on our Engagement Opportunities webpage.

 

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2 Comments

  1. kathleen on January 17, 2023 at 1:50 pm

    thank you so much shannon! what a touching story! best of luck to you with your meeting.



    • Shannon on January 17, 2023 at 2:03 pm

      Thank you, Kathleen!