Ocean Grove Meeting Format
Open with: Serenity Prayer
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
Read: A.R.T.S. Preamble
A.R.T.S. Anonymous is a fellowship of artists who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may recover from their common problem and help others to surrender to their creativity.
The only requirement for membership is a desire to fulfill our creative potential. There are no dues or fees for A.R.T.S. membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. A.R.T.S. is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution; does not wish to engage in any controversy; neither endorses nor opposes any causes. Our primary purpose is to express our creative gifts and help others to achieve artistic freedom.
Read: A.R.T.S. Attitudes
1. We follow the time structure of the meeting, restricting our sharing and feedback to limits determined by the group conscience.
2. We do not name-drop. We are not here to impress, compete or compare. We maintain the tradition of anonymity in all our sharing.
3. In speaking and responding to fellow members, we share our experience, strength and hope. We do not judge, criticize or argue.
4. We foster an attitude of unconditional respect for each individual’s creativity.
Read: A Word About Cross Talk & Feedback
To foster a safe place for self-expression, we offer these guidelines.
During our own shares we keep the focus on our art and our own experience. During the shares of others, we listen quietly. We do not interrupt one another or comment on anything anyone else says or does.
We allow positive reference to the speaker’s qualification, provided it is OK with the person qualifying. During ARTShares and Creative Process Shares, we offer positive feedback, provided it is okay with the member sharing.
Qualifier speaks for 10 to 15 minutes
Sharing: 4 minute shares from the floor
Read: ARTS Closing
In closing, I would like to say that no matter how distanced we fell from our creative sources, no matter how long it has been since we were in touch with our creative spirit, or how feeble may seem our creative impulses, they are reawakening in our Higher Power’s time, through this program and through our actions, no matter how small or how simple, a day at a time. I may not be able to see my own growth, or even to see my creations as beautiful, but I am able to see yours as inspiring and enriching my emotional, spiritual and physical world.
We are not recovering merely to hide our light under a bushel; our creative gifts are a gift. To celebrate them, we humbly apply ourselves, sometimes to the work of art and sometimes to play. May A.R.T.S. Anonymous teach us that our art, celebrated, will benefit and feed our own souls first, and the world’s second, for the world hungers as much for this beauty as for food. We meet here together to feed this deeper hunger.
Close with: Serenity Prayer
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
Read: A.R.T.S. Preamble
A.R.T.S. Anonymous is a fellowship of artists who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may recover from their common problem and help others to surrender to their creativity.
The only requirement for membership is a desire to fulfill our creative potential. There are no dues or fees for A.R.T.S. membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. A.R.T.S. is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution; does not wish to engage in any controversy; neither endorses nor opposes any causes. Our primary purpose is to express our creative gifts and help others to achieve artistic freedom.
Read: A.R.T.S. Attitudes
1. We follow the time structure of the meeting, restricting our sharing and feedback to limits determined by the group conscience.
2. We do not name-drop. We are not here to impress, compete or compare. We maintain the tradition of anonymity in all our sharing.
3. In speaking and responding to fellow members, we share our experience, strength and hope. We do not judge, criticize or argue.
4. We foster an attitude of unconditional respect for each individual’s creativity.
Read: A Word About Cross Talk & Feedback
To foster a safe place for self-expression, we offer these guidelines.
During our own shares we keep the focus on our art and our own experience. During the shares of others, we listen quietly. We do not interrupt one another or comment on anything anyone else says or does.
We allow positive reference to the speaker’s qualification, provided it is OK with the person qualifying. During ARTShares and Creative Process Shares, we offer positive feedback, provided it is okay with the member sharing.
Qualifier speaks for 10 to 15 minutes
Sharing: 4 minute shares from the floor
Read: ARTS Closing
In closing, I would like to say that no matter how distanced we fell from our creative sources, no matter how long it has been since we were in touch with our creative spirit, or how feeble may seem our creative impulses, they are reawakening in our Higher Power’s time, through this program and through our actions, no matter how small or how simple, a day at a time. I may not be able to see my own growth, or even to see my creations as beautiful, but I am able to see yours as inspiring and enriching my emotional, spiritual and physical world.
We are not recovering merely to hide our light under a bushel; our creative gifts are a gift. To celebrate them, we humbly apply ourselves, sometimes to the work of art and sometimes to play. May A.R.T.S. Anonymous teach us that our art, celebrated, will benefit and feed our own souls first, and the world’s second, for the world hungers as much for this beauty as for food. We meet here together to feed this deeper hunger.
Close with: Serenity Prayer
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
