Fall Letter from the Chair of the FA World Service Board

Customarily the World Service Chair writes a letter to the fellowship each fall. This is what is in my heart.

Dear Fellows,

What I have learned over these past six or seven months is how little I know.

In learning more about my own unconscious participation in racism, I realized a lot about myself, and also about this fellowship. A quote I recently heard and really loved was that we had to shut off a piece of our humanity in order to be racists. I not only did that with racism issues but with people having different beliefs than mine in this program. In addition to racism, there are other long-standing and painful divisions amongst us that are having harmful effects on our members and I would like to address these in this letter.

What we really all need is a change in attitude. We need to be more kind, more loving, more accepting of each and every one of us in FA. Call on everyone, welcome everyone, be respectful to everyone. I personally want to be a part of the solution today, to change the atmosphere of this fellowship to one of tolerance of each other as fellow human beings. I hope you will all join me in holding ourselves accountable and graciously calling out any unacceptable behaviors.

Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous is a microcosm of this big world we live in and we as recovering food addicts have a special gift that God has given us. We can remember what it was like to be a newcomer walking into these doors, we can relate and we can help them with our experience, strength and hope.

We need to stop squabbling over who is right and practice patience for each one of us regardless of what food plan they follow, what meetings they go to or what AWOL they attend. Let’s just live and let live and change our world around us from within, not let people places and things affect the changes that God wants to make within us.

We get to not eat one day at a time and be better people for it! Let’s rise to that occasion and have that paradigm shift in our thinking that is so necessary right now.

We have all been through a lot these past six months. Let’s be the glue that keeps us together rather than warring factions focusing on the differences.

We have talked about unity for many years. Let’s just make a decision to really practice love and tolerance now — for good! It makes our FA fellowship stronger. We need each other!

Thanks for listening. I hope you all have wonderful and safe holidays!

Peace,

Bonnie H