Clara S from Los Angeles with 33 years (Native American)

Clara S from Los Angeles with 33 years (Native American)

How do individuals turn their lives around after addiction? This AA speaker meeting from Sober Cast features Clara S from Los Angeles, sharing her story as an 83-year-old Native American woman with over three decades of continuous sobriety. Recorded in 2008 at the West Portland Group, the talk is aimed at anyone who’s curious about what long-term recovery can look like, especially those who feel they never quite fit in.

You’ll hear Clara describe growing up fearful and shy, finding alcohol for the first time in a smoky jazz club, and how that first dry martini felt like "magic." From singing with jazz greats and living the high life to blackouts, violence, and losing her children to grandparents’ care, she paints a clear picture of how alcoholism took her from glamor to the ghetto, white terry robe and zig-zagged red wig included.

The heart of the episode is Clara’s turning point: a brutal beating, a nun’s blunt question about how her life had fallen apart, and a desperate prayer on a dirty floor – "Oh God, please, if you are there, please don't let me die." That moment leads her to Alcoholics Anonymous, central office, her first shaky meeting, and a sponsor who reads her the AA preamble over the phone.

Clara talks about getting into the Twelve Steps, rebuilding relationships with her children, and making amends, even while walking through her son’s HIV diagnosis and eventual death. She stresses service, sponsorship, and the idea that "you never in your life have to do anything alone again" in AA. The style is raw, funny at times, and deeply honest, with plenty of AA Big Book references and old-school recovery wisdom.

If you’re looking for a long-sober voice that mixes jazz clubs, ghetto survival, family healing and spiritual growth, this meeting might be exactly what you need today. What part of Clara’s journey sounds most like your own?