October’s mailing from the World Service Office centers on Conference Approved Literature, with a few time-sensitive notes up front. The clocks change on November 1, and In The Loop is moving to one monthly newsletter. From there: CAL milestone anniversaries, the right CAL for the season you’re in, two titles on the eBook shelf, what to do when a group changes locations, a reminder about sharing CAL responsibly, three sharings from The Forum, and a blog topic on the role CAL has played in your recovery.

Time to fall back: the change from Daylight Saving Time to Standard Time may affect your meeting on the AFG Mobile App on Sunday, November 1

Falling back to standard time. As Daylight Saving Time ends in North America on Sunday, November 1, meeting times on the Al-Anon Family Groups Mobile App (AFG Mobile App) might be temporarily affected. The World Service Office (WSO) is working diligently to ensure a smooth transition and to overcome the challenges of managing these biannual changes.

Your patience is greatly appreciated. The WSO will monitor the meetings throughout the day to resolve any issues quickly, and participants are encouraged to confirm meeting times within the AFG Mobile App as close to the meeting time as possible.

Thank you! speech bubble graphic

Thank you for your feedback. Thank you to everyone who completed the recent In The Loop survey. The WSO appreciates your feedback and continued engagement.

Based on what members shared, the WSO will introduce several enhancements to In The Loop beginning in January. While those updates are still being finalized, one change takes effect right away: starting in October, In The Loop moves from two scheduled emails per month to one monthly newsletter.

More to come in the months ahead!

Al-Anon Family Groups 75th anniversary: 75 years of experience, strength, and hope in our literature

Celebrating CAL Milestone Anniversaries

As the Al-Anon fellowship celebrates our 75th anniversary throughout 2026, we also celebrate significant anniversaries of several pieces of Al-Anon Conference Approved Literature (CAL).

75 years

  • Purpose and Suggestions (P-13): Although revised over the years, Al-Anon’s first pamphlet, written by Lois W. and Anne B., remains in print today.
  • “One Wife’s Story,” written in 1951, is now published as “Lois’s Story” in Part II of How Al-Anon Works for Families & Friends of Alcoholics (B-32).

65 years

  • The Forum and Purpose and Suggestions were translated into French.
  • The Al-Anon Family Groups (B-5), Al-Anon’s first book, was translated into Spanish.

50 years

  • Blueprint for Progress: 4th Step Inventory (P-5) (original booklet version)
  • Alateen Just for Today bookmark (M-13)

30 years

  • Courage to Be Me (B-23)

25 years

  • Living Today in Alateen (B-26)

15 years

  • Many Voices, One Journey (B-31)
  • How Al-Anon Works for Families & Friends of Alcoholics, softcover edition (B-32)

Find these titles and more at al-anon.org/shop.

The right Al-Anon literature for the season you’re in. Wherever you are in your recovery journey, there’s a reading in Al-Anon literature for you

The Right CAL for the Season You’re In

In every season—loss, relationship struggles, or healing old wounds—Conference Approved Literature (CAL) offers members’ experience, strength, and hope.

Facing crisis, grief, or loss

  • Opening Our Hearts, Transforming Our Losses (B-29)
  • …In All Our Affairs: Making Crises Work for You (B-15)

Navigating relationships

  • Discovering Choices (B-30)
  • Intimacy in Alcoholic Relationships (B-33)
  • Healing within Our Alcoholic Relationships (P-95)
  • Living with Sobriety (P-49)

Healing childhood wounds

  • From Survival to Recovery: Growing Up in an Alcoholic Home (B-21)

Find titles that meet you where you are at al-anon.org/shop under “Topics.”

New eBooks are now available from Al-Anon Family Groups, including Lois Remembers and Hope for Today, now on more platforms

The Latest CAL Titles as eBooks

The World Service Office continues to release Conference Approved Literature (CAL) in eBook format each month. New this month:

  • Lois Remembers (eB-7)
  • Hope for Today (eB-27), now on additional platforms

They join a growing shelf of eBooks. Open the list below for every title available now, or visit al-anon.org/shop.

  • Alateen—Hope for Children of Alcoholics (eB-3)
  • The Al-Anon Family Groups – Classic Edition (eB-5)
  • One Day at a Time in Al-Anon (eB-6)
  • Lois Remembers (eB-7)
  • Al-Anon’s Twelve Steps & Twelve Traditions (Revised) (eB-8)
  • Alateen – a day at a time (eB-10)
  • As We Understood… (eB-11)
  • …In All Our Affairs: Making Crises Work for You (eB-15)
  • Courage to Change: One Day at a Time in Al-Anon II (eB-16)
  • From Survival to Recovery (eB-21)
  • How Al-Anon Works for Families & Friends of Alcoholics (eB-22)
  • Courage to Be Me—Living with Alcoholism (eB-23)
  • Paths to Recovery – Al-Anon’s Steps, Traditions, and Concepts (eB-24)
  • Having Had a Spiritual Awakening… (eB-25)
  • Living Today in Alateen (eB-26)
  • Hope for Today (eB-27)
  • Opening Our Hearts, Transforming Our Losses (eB-29)
  • Discovering Choices – Recovery in Relationships (eB-30)
  • Many Voices, One Journey (eB-31)
  • Intimacy in Alcoholic Relationships (eB-33)
  • A Little Time for Myself (eB-34)
  • 2026-2029 Al-Anon/Alateen Service Manual (eP-24/27)
What happened to our group bin? A woman holds a red question mark and shrugs

Where Did the Group Bin Go? Here’s What to Do

When an existing group changes its meeting location, including transitioning from in-person to virtual, it’s important to steward the group bin/box/trunk and its contents:

  • Assign a group member to move and/or archive physical supplies and electronic records.
  • Secure sensitive materials (both printed and electronic) such as business meeting minutes, treasury reports, and items that carry members’ personal information, such as confidential phone lists, to preserve anonymity.
  • Inventory and account for all Conference Approved Literature (CAL), in keeping with Tradition Seven.
  • Ensure newcomers and members can access updated meeting lists, links, locations, and support contacts.

The Group Representative (GR) is ultimately responsible for making sure meeting details are updated throughout the links of service.

Quote graphic with a glowing copyright symbol: Throughout our efforts to share the Al-Anon message, it is important to keep these legal and traditional guideposts in mind. From Share the Message, Protect the Source, The Forum

Inside Al-Anon Family Groups

Three pieces this month. The first is a reminder of how to share Conference Approved Literature responsibly, copyright and all. The second highlights the growing collection of resources on al-anon.org in Spanish and French. The third shows how a writing workshop can become part of Steps Ten, Eleven, and Twelve.

As we gratefully practice Step Twelve and “carry this message to others” through our Conference Approved Literature (CAL), we are encouraged to remember that CAL is protected by copyright. Buying CAL supports Al-Anon world services (Tradition Seven). Throughout our efforts to share the Al-Anon message, it is important to keep these legal and traditional guideposts in mind.

In general, because copyright protection extends to excerpts of CAL as well as entire books, submission of a “Request Permission to Reprint” form is needed to ensure that the text is reprinted accurately. You can visit al-anon.org/reprint-permission to submit online.

Please note that sharing or posting CAL online, including on any social media or public-facing websites, violates Al-Anon’s copyright.

However, a narrow exception exists in the context of a group meeting. A registered group—which includes a hybrid group or a registered electronic group meeting—has permission to share or display an excerpt of CAL during a meeting under the following conditions:

  • The excerpt should be limited to the content to be discussed in the meeting (typically no more than one page from a daily reader, for example).
  • The excerpt must be accompanied by the following acknowledgment: “From [name of publication], copyright 19/20__, by Al-Anon Family Group Headquarters, Inc. Reprinted for one-time use on [date] by permission of Al-Anon Family Group Headquarters, Inc.”
  • The excerpt must be removed at the end of the meeting by deleting digital images, ending screen sharing, and/or collecting and destroying all copied materials.

Additionally, articles from the “Inside Al-Anon Family Groups” section of The Forum and those marked “Feel Free” may be reprinted in their entirety in service arm newsletters and on service arm websites with the proper credit line.

We each play a part in sharing CAL responsibly. Please reach out to the World Service Office with any questions.

Did you know that al-anon.org offers a growing collection of resources in English, Spanish, and French? Whether you’re looking for Al-Anon Conference Approved Literature (CAL), blogs, service tools, pamphlets, magazines, or online newsletters, the website has you covered.

If you’ve browsed the selected Forum articles posted on al-anon.org, you already know how powerful these stories of experience, strength, and hope can be. For our Spanish- and French-speaking communities, both Al-Anon y Alateen en acción and Le lien are published bimonthly and can be downloaded as full PDFs directly from the website. Both publications have also recently increased their page counts to deliver even more recovery content. Members can submit personal sharings in French or Spanish (along with an English translation) to be considered for various Al-Anon publications.

The Al-Anon Online Bookstore also offers Conference Approved Literature in French and Spanish, including newcomer packets, daily readers, Alateen resources, and service materials.

These multilingual offerings enrich the entire fellowship. When members from different cultures and languages share their experience, strength, and hope, the program gains broader perspectives and a richer pool of wisdom, and becomes a stronger, more globally connected fellowship.

Navigating between languages is easy: use the language selector at the top right corner of any page on al-anon.org to instantly toggle the site—including within the online submission forms—between English, Spanish, and French.

In the meantime, English-speaking groups particularly may wish to explore these resources as a means of welcoming and supporting newcomers who may feel more comfortable reading or sharing in their native language, thereby strengthening unity. Take a few minutes to explore what’s available and consider sharing these tools with others. You might be surprised by how much there is to be shared.

Hosting or attending a writing workshop can feel intimidating. Many members may think, I’m not a writer, or My words aren’t as meaningful as someone else’s. Yet recovery has taught me that willingness matters more than perfection. A writing workshop can become a place where I meet myself honestly and invite my Higher Power into the process.

When I put pen to paper, writing can become a form of prayer and meditation. It gives me a way to practice Step Ten by taking an honest look at myself, Step Eleven by seeking conscious contact with my Higher Power, and Step Twelve by sharing my experience, strength, and hope with others. Just as Al-Anon meets me exactly where I am, writing does too.

Where and When

A writing workshop can happen anywhere Al-Anon recovery is taking place: at a convention, at a fellowship event for your home group, at the Al-Anon Information Service (AIS) office or Literature Distribution Center (LDC), as a part of an Alateen gathering, with a Sponsor or sponsees, or as part of a book study. You can also ask your Area Forum Coordinator or representative to help you host one. I try to remind myself that there is no wrong way to begin, so writing becomes another way for me to contribute to my recovery—one honest word, one sentence, one moment at a time.

How

When facilitating a writing workshop, I try to create an atmosphere of grace and acceptance. Members may write with pen and paper or use laptops, tablets, or phones when participating online. I try to make clear that the writing space is not a grammar class, critique circle, or where we air out our grievances. Instead, it’s an opportunity to focus on ourselves and our recovery.

I “Let It Begin with Me” by reading a few unedited sentences of my own writing. This reminds me that connections are available when I am vulnerable. Just as in my meetings, no one expects perfection from me, only honest sharing.

I share a simple prompt and allow members time to write if they connect with it; I can offer others if they don’t. If Alateens attend, I find that shorter expressions, such as quick thoughts or reflections, work well. I like to think of the writing time as similar to the moment in a meeting before someone speaks, waiting for sharing to surface naturally with patience and care.

When members are ready, they may read exactly what they wrote. We listen without criticism, advice, or correction. We share what touches us and what we identify with, and I often discover that the experiences I thought were uniquely mine are often shared by others.

More Than Writing

What happens on the page can support my work in Steps Ten and Eleven. Writing can help me notice where I have grown, where I may need to clean things up, what fears need to be surrendered, or where gratitude is quietly waiting to be acknowledged. Sometimes I discover answers I wasn’t looking for; other times, I simply become more aware of my need to trust my Higher Power.

Carrying the Message

Step Twelve reminds me that I keep recovery when I share it with others. After writing, I may share my reflections with my Sponsor, discuss an insight with my home group, or submit my sharing to The Forum. Each choice is recovery, and each choice carries the message and may help reach someone else who needs to know they are not alone.

Finding Inspiration

Conference Approved Literature (CAL) offers many opportunities for reflection. The questions in Paths to Recovery (B-24) and A Little Time for Myself (B-34), among others, are helpful. Prompts can also come from Al-Anon slogans, a topic from a recent meeting, a Legacy that resonates with you, or the warm words from your Sponsor. You can also browse previous issues of The Forum or posts from the Member Blog for inspiration. Use CAL and Al-Anon posts as examples of how to apply the program tools and principles and for connection and reassurance that there are many ways to experience recovery. With an open mind, I often find that the next thing I need to write about is the next thing I need to learn.

Sharing Your Writing

If you choose to submit your writing to The Forum, follow The Forum Writing Guidelines (F-1) and consider asking your Forum Coordinator or local representative for support. When your words are ready, visit al-anon.org/sharing to submit to The Forum.

The World Service Office edits for grammar, punctuation, and clarity. Your recovery experience remains your own. Our honest, personal, recovery-shaped voices can become exactly the message someone else needs to hear. In sharing, I keep recovery alive for myself and offer hope to someone who may need it today.

By Elizabeth M-R., Magazine Editor

“Inside Al-Anon Family Groups” presents news, policy, and commentary from volunteers, staff, and readers sharing experience through service. Reprinted with permission of Al-Anon Family Group Headquarters, Inc., Virginia Beach, VA.

Sharings from The Forum

Three members this month on a call to the police that ended in understanding laughter, a phone contact that was easy to misread, and a shipping box that turned into a God box.

I still remember sharing at my local newcomers meeting less than six months into my recovery. My spouse was in the habit of drinking and driving, which both frightened and angered me. One night, I called the local police to report her, certain I could protect her as well as others on the road.

The officer on the line asked me questions: Had I seen her drinking before getting into the car? Did I know how much she had consumed? Did I know where she was headed? I answered no to each question, but I pleaded with the officer to watch for our family car. I provided the make, model, license plate number, and a description of my wife.

After listening, the officer asked, “Ma’am, have you ever been to Al-Anon?”

“Yes,” I replied. “I just started attending a newcomers meeting.”

“That’s great,” he said kindly. “Just keep going back, okay?”

A few days later, I shared that story at my meeting. When I finished, the room filled with understanding laughter. I knew no one was laughing at me, but I could not figure out why they were so amused by my story. With a sheepish smile I said, “I don’t know why this is so funny. My wife is still drinking and driving.”

All they said was, “Keep Coming Back!” And I did.

Years into my recovery, I still reflect on the laughter my share evoked. No one told me how to get my wife to stop driving while intoxicated, and no one told me I was wrong for calling the police. Instead, they encouraged me to keep attending meetings and offered something more powerful than advice: compassion. Now, when a newcomer’s share makes me smile, I hold a special place in my heart for them and for the newcomer I once was, just beginning to see life through the lens of Al-Anon. I try to remember that my most important response is compassion and encouragement to “Keep Coming Back.”

By Lauren J., California

One day, as usual, my son didn’t call me back. I understood why. We had been estranged ever since I left his alcoholic father. While I know I didn’t cause, could not control or cure his father’s alcoholism, I did contribute to the disease by hiding the dysfunction in our family.

“Daddy’s fine, just sleepy,” I would say when he passed out. I hid the arguments, the drunkenness, and my tears from my children and everyone else. I had that phony, “Everything’s fine, I’ve got this” stiff upper lip as I pretended my life was on track. Meanwhile, my beloved struggled with the disease and its consequences.

When my son stopped speaking to me, I cried every day. After seven months, during my Thursday morning Al-Anon meeting, I threw my hands up in the air in front of everyone and surrendered my relationship with my son over to my Higher Power. I am learning to accept people as they are, especially when separation hurts this much.

You won’t believe this. He called me a few hours later!

My son and I began to make progress. Recently, when I realized he hadn’t returned a phone call, I asked him about it. “Mom, I did call you back,” he said and sent a screenshot as proof. To my shock, he had listed me in his phone as “ICE MOM.” I immediately assumed it meant the coldest mom on the planet. I felt like I had been stabbed in the heart, believing that my own son, whom I love so much, viewed me as so cold and unfeeling. I started crying right there on Main Street. Later, I called my Sponsor in tears.

“Let’s look that up,” she said.

“Please, let’s just move on to Step work,” I replied, not wanting to prolong my pain or waste our time. But she persisted. First, she found that ICE could stand for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

“Well, that’s not it,” I chimed in, rolling my eyes.

“Let’s look again,” she insisted. Turns out it’s also the street name for crystal methamphetamine. That didn’t fit either. “How about this,” she went on, “ICE: In Case of Emergency contact.”

Clearly, that was it. I burst into tears again, realizing how wrong I had been. I was embarrassed. I laughed and cried simultaneously. I could see how out of control my Al-Anon brain had been, constructing all these scenarios and assumptions about how my son felt, when all along, I was simply his emergency contact. I will never forget that lesson.

These days, I try to quiet the noise in my Al-Anon brain. Someone once said at a meeting that the Al-Anon mind “is a dangerous neighborhood.” I understand that now. I talk things over with an Al-Anon friend or my Sponsor. What I know for certain is this: I matter deeply to my son. I am his emergency contact.

By Cynthia G., California

I heard about the concept of a “God Box” early in my Al-Anon program and thought it sounded ridiculous. Members explained that it was a place to put my fears, worries, and situations I kept obsessing over as a tangible reminder to stop carrying them myself and turn them over to my Higher Power. Eventually, I reached my bottom and decided to try it. It worked. I was able to turn things over, at least for the night, and finally get some good sleep.

Over time, the program has become my way of life. Today, my life is good and full of serenity. Each morning, I make a gratitude list as I drink my coffee. “Thanks, God,” comes naturally from my lips throughout the day.

But this summer has been different. My elderly mother, who is deeply affected by the family disease, fell and broke several bones. After surgery, she was diagnosed with dementia, and her decades of distorted thinking were finally recognized by professionals.

During post-surgical rehabilitation, she needed a wheelchair, so I ordered one. When it arrived, it was too small, and the shipping box was damaged. I needed a new box to return it. A friend offered one, and although it was too big, I decided to make it work.

After a full workday, I went down to the garage and began packing the wheelchair. The box was so large that the wheelchair fit in it without being folded. I filled up the empty space with packing peanuts and empty shipping boxes and sealed it with a full roll of duct tape. Friends had plenty to say when I posted a picture, and we all laughed.

I didn’t see it yet, but my God box moment was coming.

The next morning, I woke up with clarity. With coffee, some music, a serrated knife, and a willingness to try again, I broke down the box, cleaned up the mess, and started over. This time, I folded the wheelchair and resized the box. The process felt simple and manageable. I sealed it, added the label, and handed it off to the shipping carrier when they arrived.

The following morning, I woke up thinking about that oversized box, and suddenly it clicked. God box. An overstuffed, unnecessarily large God box. The image made me smile. It reminded me how often I overpack my worries when all I really need to do is turn them over.

By Carol F., Connecticut

Reprinted with permission of The Forum, Al-Anon Family Group Headquarters, Inc., Virginia Beach, VA.

New topic for the Member Blog: What role has CAL played in your recovery?

What Role Has CAL Played in Your Recovery?

October’s blog topic asks: “How has Conference Approved Literature (CAL) supported your growth? Which book, pamphlet, or daily reader do you always have on hand? Do different books support different aspects of your personal recovery, service work, and sponsoring journey?”

You are also welcome to share on one or more of our Legacies. This month features Step Ten, Tradition Ten, and Concept Ten.

Share at al-anon.org/member-blog. Sharings on the Member Blog may be used in future Al-Anon publications, and new topics are added each month.