Bleeding Deacons

A.A. has a name for this, and it's unkind on purpose (A.A. Comes of Age). The bleeding deacon is "one who remains convinced that the group cannot get along without him, who constantly connives for re-election to office, and who continues to be consumed with self-pity." Picture how that actually looks on a Tuesday, because it isn't dramatic. It's a man who takes the secretary job again because nobody else volunteered — and who mentioned, twice, in the week before, how much work it is and how nobody appreciates it. He is not lying. It is a lot of work, and nobody does appreciate it. Both things can be true while the group slowly loses the ability to function without him. Then Bill does the thing that makes this Tradition survivable: "Nearly every old-timer in our society has gone through this process in some degree. I have myself." Not a warning about somebody else. A warning about the ordinary drift of anyone who serves long enough — including the man writing it.