Hi from another kid

Wow, this site has been such an amazing place. Thank you all so much for the posts and for stories and insight into the questions and feelings I've carried around for years. My family joined scn when I was very young and tho I'm hardly a kid anymore, I lived my childhood more or less in the church.

I still feel like a kid, I guess. It's kinda weird, 'cause you're treated like an adult at such a young age, and then as you grow up, it seems to go retrograde - I think I was more mature then than I am now in some ways.

My family joined the SO and I lived in a nursery-like place across the street. The place got busted for not being licensed properly and over night we were all moved to a ranch in Mexico to avoid an incident. It was handled so hastily that it felt like being kidnapped. I had no idea where I was going and didn't get to say goodbye to my family. I was 7. I had a little girl I was in charge of. She was 3 or 4. I didn't see my parents for the entire time I was there, somewhere between 3-6 months. It felt like an eternity. Every time a car would drive up the long drive way, we'd all scamper off to our hiding spots until they told us it was safe to come out. We'd all hope against hope that it was our parents, only to be disappointed again and again. I grew to hate this one kid whose family came all the time. It seemed very unfair. When my parents finally came they took me back with them.

When I was about 8 or 9 (10 tops) I was pushed to join the SO. I had done all the checks and steps and had the contract in front of me, pen in hand, but thought better of it at the last minute. I figured I could always join later, but I couldn't un-join later.

My family is split apart - some in forever, some out, some gone. I'd love to say all the things on my mind, but don't want to cause problems for the people I love that are in.

It's taken years to be able to ask the questions I've had - to even acknowledge that they were valid questions, and to be willing to consider an answer that was different from what I'd been surrounded with my whole life.

It has been very helpful to hear about your journeys and ideas, and about what life's like inside the SO, so thank you for sharing. You're reaching more people than you know, and that group will continue to grow.

[Grundy]

Welcome to the site.

I remember hearing about the mexico thing .... I don't remember what year it was though.

[Tru2form]

[James McGuigan]

[James McGuigan]

Thanks for your thoughts. Very interesting...

The church has been responsible for more pain in my life than I can talk about, but because of my family I can't say that I hope for its demise. I hope for its improvement. I hope that whatever the leadership is or becomes, that there is a realization that the church needs to be altered. When Ron was around he could write new policies to address a changing world. It wasn't static then, and it can't exist if it is static. The policies that currently exist are inadequate to ensure the survival of the group. Human rights abuses and child labor law violations need to stop. Fair game attacks will not stand up to the light of law. Families need to be allowed to stay in communication with each other regardless of their standings within the church. Sea Org members should be free to leave AT WILL.

Regardless of whether what Ron intended was good or bad, I know for sure that the people working inside the church believe whole-heartedly in the good that they are trying to achieve.

[James McGuigan]

For personal experience, and also with events in my since leaving the Church and since leaving home, I have found that sometimes you let yourself get into a situation, slowly by slowly, until one day you finally realise that you are just not that happy with it, and it was not what you signed up for in the first place.

However there is often no easy way out. The cost of simply carrying on and putting up with all the little things is far easier than facing up to it directly. Sometimes the only way out is to quite literally turn your whole life upside down. That shit that was hanging from the ceiling and stinking the place up is now going to have to hit the fan. Its often a long and depressing job having to clean it all up and put your life back in order the way you actually want it, without compromise, but in the end, if the process doesn't kill you, it will be for the best in the long run.

I have gone through some tough time myself (even posted part of life story to the main page). The end result has been that I've been thrown in the deep end on more than one occasion, often without a safety net. When faced with the choice of sink or swim, I've always managed to find a way. Its not given me the luxury of being lazy, its forced me to confront my fears and constantly push myself beyond my comfort zones.

At times it is stressful, even to the point of depression once or twice and then almost burnout, but even then I didn't have the luxury of simply giving up. Sink or swim, so I just have to keep swimming and pushing myself, to keep going.

I have followed the of Scientology and emerged out the other end alot stronger, alot more capable and competent, I have learnt a huge amount about myself, and life the universe and everything in the process, and I am still learning.

Slowly I start to see some of the patterns in my life that started in Scientology and I have allowed to repeat outside of it. We all fall in the same trap of repeating those patterns of behaviour that lead us into our messed up situations. But the first step in the process is become aware of them, and to take a good honest look at them, and simply choose to change those patterns.

The universe often manifests what you need, even if it is not always what you want, and especially if what you need is a good kick up the ass. But put it this way, if I had to do it all again, I still wouldn't choose the easy way out. If it was not for everything that has happened in the past, I wouldn't be who I am now today.

Hi all

noSOat10, I am interested in knowing what the timeframe was that you were sent to the Ranch in Mexico. I too spent some time on a SO ranch, which was just north of Ensenada, in the early 70's. Just wondering if this was the same ranch. Sure sounds like it by your description.

Thanks

I know you may have been too young at the time, but if you know where the SO ranch is in Mexico, I've been trying to find it on a map.

Rod

I'm not as young as my handle might lead you to believe. Perhaps I should have gone with that 60's kid instead. Anyhow, the ranch is just north of Ensenada on Highway 1, the Roserita-Ensenada highway at El Tigre. In fact, we use to call the place Rancho El Tigre. It's official adddres is; El Tigre, carretera Tijuana-Ensenada Km. 89 s/n. The easiest way to spot it on Google Maps/Earth is to follow Highway 1 north out of Ensenada. It branches into Highways 1 and 1D (1D being the coastal highway). Follow Hwy 1 away from the coast for a few miles and you will see circular vineyards and tent style cabanas just to the west of the highway. The main ranch house is just s bit north of these fields and cabanas.

The place was recently purchased by a group which is turning it into a winery/resort. That area has a number of wineries, and has become a bit of a tourist destination for the wine and cheese crowd. The name of the place is Cuatro Cuatro's. Their web site lays out their plans for development of the property. From the aerial photos It looks like the main ranch house may have already been leveled and rebuilt.

I was there from the time it opened as a SO facility in 1971 through late 1972. My father and aunt were dispatched (much to their surprise, having just arrived from Seattle) from California down to the Ranch with an initial group of kids the Sea Org needed a place to house. We spent a great deal of time reclaiming the place from the elements and critters, it appeared to me like it had sat vacant for years before we got there. Were you there at that time?

Thank you. I suspect there are other SO bases in Mexico. I've been mapping current and former Scientology locations. Here's the link that you can open in Google Earth in case you're interested, it updates automatically when changes are made.

https://sites.google.com/site/whereissc ... tology.kml

I'm adding links to videos from people who were at the various locations. I need to work on European missions next I think.