I was running late as my last session at the annual conference I was attending went longer than expected. The farewell party was at the pool, which was perfect as the sun was past its apex and the near unbearable hot air was beginning to cool to a comfortable 85 degrees. As I slipped my sunnies from my left breast pocket of my dark blue Hawaiian shirt, I put them on and walked up to the sun deck. I was surrounded by colleagues, co-workers, vendors, salespersons and pool staff. I cut through the chatter and laughter and made my way to the bar. The bar tender leaned in to take my order. āWaterā I said. āJust a water?ā he asked, I confirmed my order with a nod. With water in hand, I made my way, through the smiles and greetings as warm as the air, to a couch in the shade. I spent the next hour sitting with friends, old and new, regaling one another with stories of our industry. We laughed that evening, we bonded that evening. One thing we did not do, was judge otherās drink of choice.
4 or 5 years ago, I would had a different experience. I would have been afraid that everyone was judging me, wondering why I wasnāt drinking. That fear may have prevented me from going, or having fun, or worse, prevented me from being sober.
This was not my first rodeo, Iāve been to many functions like this one and more, never has anyone asked why I wasnāt drinking. Not once have I ever felt judged for not drinking. Not once was my choice to be sober ever questioned. In fact, by being sober, you can easily spot the other folks that are sober, and you start to realize, thereās more of us than we think.
Donāt ever let your fear of judgement stop you from enjoying yourself; most times the judgment we fear is all in our head. In short, no one cares!
Now, I must give a caveat to this this story; if you are in your first year of sobriety, I donāt recommend attending events like this without a solid program and plan, itās just not worth it.
Well said.
Great post indeed!
