First-hand accounts of the Scientology Experience
Chris Lyman's Story
From 8226@tccn.com (Chris Lyman) Fri Apr 7 11:12:36 BST 1995
Back in 1977, I was just a poor college kid, working part-time at an
ice cream parlor to pay the rent. It was at that shop that I met a
special Somebody who could have been the love of my life. She was
cute. Heck, she was beyond cute; she looked like Carly Simon. Not
only that, she was a talented artist, bright, lively, a lot of fun.
And sexy. (!)
Yes folks, I was smitten. Chances are, I'd still be smitten, except
for one thing: she was a recent convert to Scientology.
Now back in the 70s, folks tended to be non-judgmental, and I was no
exception. "Scientology, eh? Please tell me more."
She would have loved to spill the beans, but she knew that the proper
way to get me interested was to bring me to one of those introductory
lectures and let the experts work me, er, explain it to me.
I went, and at first, I wasn't too disappointed. The lecture was
about the dynamics of interpersonal communication. It made sense,
even though it used concepts and vocabulary I hadn't seen before.
Then came the personality profile. This was a quiz to identify one's
strengths and weaknesses. I obligingly filled out a form, which was
then analyzed by a consultant. It turned out that I was "nervous",
and if I didn't get some Scientology right away, I'd get worse. This
consultant worked me pretty hard, continually pointing at spikes and
valleys in my profile and asking for that $250 (I think; it was 19
years ago, remember) to enroll in the communications course.
Finally it occurred to me that I'd seen these tactics before. A
salesman for a health club had once used the same pitch to sell me
a membership. That did it. I got up from the table saying that
I was too tired to make such an important decision (which was the
truth) and that I wanted to sleep on it. After one more iteration
of peaks and valleys and a prediction that I would get worse, the
consultant shook my hand and invited me to peruse the bookstore.
"What the heck," I thought. As I wandered around, I eavesdropped
on conversations that scientologists were having. I had never
heard such a rapid-fire patter of acronyms and (to my ears)
neologisms. It all seemed more and more unreal.
What clinched it was, I bought a book, took it home and read it.
Ostensibly, it was about dealing with emotional ups and downs. In
reality, it was a shill for the all-important communications course.
As I recall, the message was: "The world is full of suppressive
people. Sign up for a communications course if you want to find
out how to deal with these people." I knew right then that I
would be wasting my time pursuing this dreck.
The last days of my relationship with my otherwise delightful Carly
Simon look-alike were not happy ones. She went on and on, saying
things like "We're gonna clear this planet" and "L. Ron can walk
on water" to my increasing distress. The straw that broke the
camel's back was her saying "I can't do my art until I've had more
auditing." I reminded her of all the great art that had been
created by unhappy people: Van Gogh, Beethoven, etc. She would
have none of it. She wanted to be "clear" before starting another
project.
So... we went our separate ways. I hope she doesn't think of me
as an SP, and that whatever she's doing, she's found meaning and
fulfillment. And I hope to God that the Co$ hasn't tarnished
her bright spirit.
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