One Woman, A Man and the Weekend

1998

I lived with a man whom I had dated for five years. He was indecisive about marriage and then a cousin encouraged him to attend this "weekend"--to clear his mind. His cousin had previously attended the [Sterling] "weekend" and had made dramatic changes in his life and business upon his return.

My boyfriend had second thoughts about going--because his cousin seemed so determined in convincing him that this would help him. His cousin also attended Sterling's weekly meetings an hour away from his home. The behavior of his cousin put my companion on guard and he was reluctant to go. He nevertheless went because of such pressure.

Four days later when my boyfriend returned--he was not the same person. I was so frightened by this person--whose behavior was so odd and whose eyes looked glazed over. His demeanor was different and when I questioned him about the weekend--of course he could not tell me anything. His only comments were--he saw things he had never seen in his entire life. And that at one point in the weekend he was scared. My companion never was one to scare easily.

He told me that I should attend the "women's weekend", but I refused after reading Justin Sterling's book What Men Really Want. I knew the bottom line was totally submissive women. Twenty-four hours after my boyfriend returned from the weekend--I moved out of our apartment. After living with this man and knowing him for five years--he had become a complete stranger to me within the few days we spent apart.