It was my first time to attend ESL. I was nominated from my region to attend as I serve as the FD chair in Egypt. I enjoyed a lot attending all the workshops and the meetings. It’s always good to hear from addicts from different backgrounds, countries, and cultures and share solutions and best practices. We are currently preparing for our 2nd Egyptian Learning Day and we will take into consideration a lot of what I saw in Wroclaw. One of the other benefits is that I’m now exposed to many people and joined many groups on social media by friends I met at ESL. I shared a lot of what I saw with my friends in service in Egypt.
I need to mention as well that the hosting team from Poland was super helpful. We used some of the materials that I got from ESL in our local FD sub-committee in Egypt. It was translated and presented in Arabic. I even suggested in my report to my region, that for the next ESL, Egypt must send 2 members, and not only one, as I see that event as very beneficial. I want to thank the EDM FD team and anyone who helped at this event, and I wish I can participate once again in the coming one.

Aly, Cairo


Inspired after attending the first ESL in Berlin, I’ve decided to go to Wroclaw no matter what. On the first morning, I had a surprise when met members from Estonia and Latvia, who needed an interpreter and this predetermined my service commitment for the following three days. Regards hearing the report on the presentation at the European Parliament, I was profoundly impressed with the level of PI work. The workshops reminded me as well to treat everybody with love because I often forget about this. I found the experience of different countries to be amazing. It’s a great thing that the work is done in groups and in an interactive manner. I made new friends and met the old ones, I’ve got experience and I’ve managed to be in service. I love NA.

Alexander, Ukraine

We are still a bit overwhelmed by the outcome of the ESL. It was an amazing experience and it most definitely met our expectations on FD work, in an broader way. But how it actually turned out totally blew our minds! There were 162 registered participants from 30 countries and 27 regions/communities. We held 12 different workshops, had 3 Speaker Meetings, and skyped into the Northern Californian Convention. The turnout at the workshops was great, all members participated and stayed all through the days. The buzz during workshops was great and the atmosphere was so inspiring.

ESL

I have just experienced a mind-blowing three days in Berlin! First, I would like to thank the coordinators, as this has taken five years to organize. There were 31 countries and 28 regions/communities involved. There were three members from the World Service Conference involved throughout the weekend. There was so much experience, strength, and hope through all the different people doing service in NA. I was involved in fellowship development with the United Kingdom, and FDUK delivered a workshop on distance sponsorship.

FDUK started this in the UK and we thought it would be useful for other NA communities that are developing, and for areas without a lot of local sponsorship experience. There were workshops on building better home groups, the Service System Proposals, H&I, NA’s Twelve Concepts, our World Services, and the list goes on. I have not been to an event where I felt such friendliness, powerful passion, and commitment. The unity was breathtaking. This event makes service attractive, and I believe we will all take our ESL ESH back to our countries!

Ade O, Weymouth Dorset, UK
 (NA WAY July 2015)

Learning about Learning Days

In 2013 our public relations team had a dream to hold a learning days event in Egypt. We dedicated money to it in our budget, but we couldn’t do it because we didn’t know how to go about it. We needed to learn how to plan and host it, and we also realized that an event like this needs more collaboration,

not just the PR team’s efforts. Just after being elected as PR committee chair, I heard about the European Service Learning Days in Berlin and I was lucky to join that great event. I went to Berlin and I was looking forward to fulfilling our dream of learning how to develop learning days in Egypt. What I found out was that the event was simple, and I found the beauty of its simplicity. What really touched me was the love and how we are really close to each other even though we don’t speak the same language. We shared our thoughts and we understood each other regardless of the language barrier. Although I was a thousand miles away from my home, I felt at home. I went back to Egypt carrying the dream

on my shoulder. We had a fruitful discussion, and shared what was learned at ESL, and we are planning to have Egypt Learning Days soon.

Ahmed E, Cairo, Egypt
 (NA WAY July 2015)

ESL great opportunity as a starting point

Hi, my name is Attila and I am a recovering addict, and a member of the Hungarian NA community. In my country, the NA program has been available since 1996, but our community grows slowly – there are 38 meetings per week for the moment. We face serious challenges when looking for committed and

experienced members for doing service.
We need and want to get better at doing service – so the ESL in Berlin seemed like a great opportunity as a starting point. Four trusted servants were chosen by our Regional Service Committee (including me) to take part in the learning days in Berlin. What we experienced there was a miracle. We could spend three fabulous days in a cheerful and loving atmosphere – doing workshops, one after the other, talking about service, and listening to impressive sharings about service while feeling great. We really wanted to share these amazing impressions and experiences with our friends in the fellowship at home. The greatest thing was that our community need and our desire to pass on what we got, to let others feel how wonderful service might be, coincided.
Traveling home from Berlin, on board the train we practically formed the first Hungarian Fellowship Development Committee. We turned up at the subsequent RSC and talked about our plans – and received enthusiastic support from the delegates and servants there. We, the members of the Hungarian FD team are still enthusiastic about our job and grateful for the opportunity to serve and live clean.

Attila, Hungary


Fortified NA unity 

It was just three weeks before the First European Service Learning Days when the RSC said I should go to Berlin, and I whispered, “I’m afraid; I dare not.” I was thinking that so many demands and expectations would be put on my four-year recovery amongst all those “service giants” in NA. Then,

when I entered the event venue, immediately all was right. My heart and mind filled up with fellowship and unity. My sense of belonging has never been stronger in my recovery, and my loving Higher Power showed me every minute how NA works when one addict is helping another. It was two-and-a-half days of receiving and sharing with so much vitality! Sure, I picked up a treasure chest of knowledge and experience: how to work the Traditions, group support, H&I and PR, consensual decision making, and more. But most of all, I got connected. I brought home with me hugs from recovering addicts worldwide. It was humbling yet overwhelming, and I found a fortified awareness of NA unity in loving service for NA-Netherlands

Thon H, The Hague, Netherlands
 (NA WAY July 2015)
Regional Service Committee.