Thank you and I always enjoy reading yours! You always have very meaningful things to say. I’ve read the story on Phil & family and I’ll definitely follow their story and send thoughts and prayers that way! Thankful you all got out mostly intact! Interesting what a small world it can be and TRULY if there’s ever anything I can do to help someone out or trying to be – I’m fairly near Gold in So Cal – I’d love to help tangibly in ANY way I can! Just say the word!

Thanks you for your kind words, Jenyfurrrr. I sometimes tell people that I am rich man in every way but money. That is mostly true.

At seventeen I got sucked in to Scientology. I walked out the door at nineteen. When I first walked in the door I think men had circled the moon but none had landed on it. Richard Nixon was president. I was a kid in high school. On today’s instalment of Tony Ortega there is an article on Phil and his wife Willie. Wille was actually my course supervisor when I blew two years later.

Phil and Willie spent all that time in Scientology but still have one another, children who have disconnected and grandchildren. They are among the more fortunate ones. I could have ended up going that route. Phil and I actually have mutual friends that have nothing to do with Scientology– it is just one of those coincidences, both of us being from Toronto.

I remember others who stayed in twenty years and more. One dear friend is in the Freezone to this day. I consider myself lucky for finding the good people whom I did and retaining them as dear friends and life partners. I will be going out for supper tonight with a friend tonight whom I have known for 44 years. All that could have been lost to a lifetime of slavery in the service of L.Ron.

I don’t believe that I have infinite lives but I can say that I have made the most of this one.

Good luck to you and I look forward to reading your future posts.

PS – Happy Belated Birthday to your littlest one! Hope it was an incredible day!
And thanks for the congrats! Never imagined I’d have 4 children but in so thankful I have my “little big family!”

I’m so sorry I didn’t see this until now! How beautiful!!! She was surrounded by love and family of all kinds! That IS a beautiful passing!
Yes you definitely have a bit of Studs Terkel in you – she sounds like an incredible lady that lived an incredible life!
A friend lost his spouse and told me, “The heart is a muscle for a reason… I was given the gift of an incredible love that stretched, strengthened and grew me in ways I’d never imagined and my heart is bigger and stronger for that love now!” He went on to marry one of my best friends and they celebrate his late wife through an annual run in her name to raise funds for cancer research annually. She left letters for her children for birthdays and certain life milestones that they pass to the kids at the right time and I’m always amazed and impressed at how they honor her memory and yet my friend feels she too has found the love of her life in him and he, in her. Just beautiful & I’ve always been in awe of him – you remind me of him often in your posts!!!

Jenna’s shown on the bedroom set of Dharma and Greg.

Thanks for the late note, Gus. I saw that many times. It was the norm. Many Catholics were so good to us that I could hardly believe it.

The Jews have a scale of charity. Now, I am far from being a Talmudic scholar but I think the highest form of charity to the Jews was when the giver didn’t know who was receiving his largesse and the benefactor didn’t know who was giving him what was needed. Scientologists are against charity because it is downstat. That is how the operated when I was involved. When they started doing charity it could be described as doing as little as possible and always to take someone in or to gain good publicity. That hasn’t worked.

There are many differences between Catholics and Scientology, but I think one of the biggest is that Catholics just help. They don’t do it for photo ops, pats on the back, plaques on the wall, or for Scientology’s Holy Grail (besides money), PR. They just help, because that’s what they do.

Yes, I agree completely Chuck and always appreciate your insight 🙂

I was taught that too. One of the things that bothered me the most.

I think that’s why protestants are generally more successful businessmen. There isn’t any guilt associated with accumulating money.