A young boy comes to the side of a brook and sees an old man bathing in it. The brook is high in the mountains, near the snow line. The boy asks the old man Is the water cold?. The old man does not answer and continues to shower himself with buckets of water.

The boy asks the old man again, Is the water cold?, —Is it very cold, Sir? The old man does not answer, but he does smile and acknowledge that the boy is there.

The old man finally comes out of the brook to dry himself off. The boy asks the old man again, Is the water cold, Sir? . The old man says nothing but takes his bucket over to the brook, fills it with water and douses the boy with the water.

The boy is startled for a moment and then asks the old man, Why did you do that, Sir?. The old man answers. How can I tell you what cold is to you, cold can not be described, it must be experienced.

Many things in life cannot be described to another, they must be experienced. Sobriety is but one more example. Many people have tried to describe sobriety to the newcomer in many different ways but become frustrated when the newcomer does not understand. Sobriety is something that must be experienced.