…your one wild and precious life?

It may be February, but it’s never to soon to think about warmer days, as depicted by Mary Oliver’s poem below.

Maybe those of you who are “breaking rules” because you are having doubts about a certain “school”, or “study”, or whatever its calling itself now, will be free of it by May.

I raise my coffee mug to the possibility of your cult-free summer and potential freedom of mind:

THE SUMMER DAY,  by Mary Oliver

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean–
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down–
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?

No More Secrets …

Hey, I’m on t.v.! Yay!

This video, comes from the Cable t.v. show, The Song. Songwriter & hostess, Mary Wheelan, interviewed me & Doug Kwartler, the producer of Cult Confessions, the CD. It is the sound track to my story, which is becoming Cult Confessions, The Presentation/one-woman show.

When I left “school” in 2011, I continued to obey “rules” and keep secrets at first; like a good cult cog, I didn’t Google the group or talk about my experience. But the memories constantly looped through my mind. I felt crazy and alone. I broke the “No Internet Research” rule to save my sanity. Various websites and blogs unearthed “school’s” clever insincerity and three things unfolded: 1) my ability to write returned. 2) my mind started reintegrating as uncovering “school’s” not-so-evolved past shed new light on my present-day experience. 3) my cult story wrote itself.

In 2012, I posted this blog, kicking off my personal policy: No More Secrets – cult secrets are a social cancer spreading isolation, depression and tension, damaging relationships and infecting psychology with skewed thinking. Releasing secrets has proven exponentially healing. If it were up to me, all ex-cult members would reclaim their voices, power and lives by speaking out. But victim blame and shame is so prevalent that very few do. Cults continue on luring in people who happens to be vulnerable for whatever reason. They damage and isolate members; the damage ripples out to friends, families, colleagues, jobs, courtrooms, etc.

Speaking out — exposing cults and their secrets — not only heals individuals, it is a public service. And speaking of speaking out, on this blog I’ve never tried to hide my identity; anyone who shared the classroom with me will be able to identify me through the story I’ve told, because it’s true; but I’ve never revealed my identity, either.

The time has come for me to take that risk, because I plan on expanding the public service; I’m trotting Cult Confessions out beyond the virtual world. I’ve piloted this presentation at various private events and — in the spirit of edu-tain-ment, public service and good old fashioned American Freedom of Speech — it’s time to widen the audience with whom I share my cautionary cult tale.

More to come

 

 

 

 

Attn. “School” Alumni, Circa 1985 …

A member from the 1985, “school”, in NY which was located on the corner of Franklin & Broadway, is seeking to connect with fellow classmates.

Please ignore that picture of The Haddock, I assumed this former “student” was a Boston person. Turns out he’s a NY person. (Oops, my bad).

If you’re open to it, email me at GSR@cultconfessions.com; I’ll put you in touch via email.

Despite my mistake, this post about, “Somerville school” circa 1980, is still an entertaining read …  The “Secret” East Somerville “School”.