It was a typical fall morning in Southern California. Sunny and comfortably chilly, a few cirrus clouds high above a light layer of smog. I was on my way to visit Marty at “Casablanca.”

Once we were at 34,000 feet, I thought about what I wanted to address with Marty. Let’s see… I was not ill, and haven’t been for years. I felt I was doing fairly well, my business was going well, my family was doing fine. I was fine. I did have a couple of concerns, but they were not major. So why was I going to see him? I concluded I didn’t fully know, but somehow I knew I should.

At the curbside, he approached me from behind and the large black cowboy hat he wore threw me off a bit. “This is Texas” – I thought. As soon as we greeted each other it started; a free flowing torrent of exchanging experiences, ideas, viewpoints, opinions, data and stories, that continued through dinner with his wife Monique, who by the way, is the most gracious host and excellent cook, and culminated by the side of a fire out on the deck.

My accommodations were the entire lower level of the house and included a kitchen, and a living room. There was also a 5‐shelf cabinet filled with books as varied in subject as items in a flea market. As I was taking it all in I thought these were the best accommodations I’ve ever had in connection with an auditing cycle. I was happy to be there.

The next morning I cooked breakfast for a very appreciative Marty, who exalted the qualities of my omelet. Soon after we were starting the first session, and a wave of by‐passed charge rose to the surface as soon as I picked up the cans. That’s when it hit me how bad I needed a session.

During the ensuing four days at Casablanca a transformation developed. Session after session, the effects of the Black Dianetics and Reverse Scientology disguised as “Standard Tech” I had so faithfully paid for and devoted myself to receive, were being located, inspected and as‐ised, leaving in its wake a full and deep understanding. Gone were the counter‐survival computations adopted while “going up the Bridge to OT.”

And in its place I regained my full self‐determinism and clarity of mind to effectively be able to postulate the future. Gone were the accumulated evaluations and invalidations received as part and parcel of every interaction with the church. And in its place I found a peace and inner happiness that evidently is native in me. Gone were the multitude of instances in which I had to choose to either “go up the Bridge to OT” or agree to something I knew was a basic violation of my own integrity.

And in its place… I found myself again. One of the greatest sessions was the one where I located the first time I chose to violate my integrity and agreed with some worthless arbitrary order from the church, again, in order to “go up the Bridge to OT.” This led to all kinds of realizations about how I must never invalidate my own knowingness, must never deny myself, must never sell my soul, must never compromise with my own reality, must never…
Ron knew about this all along. In the lecture “Statics and Motions and Axioms 1‐14, “ of 9 October 1951, he says:

There is almost no limit to what a human being can do as long as he doesn’t have this variety of stuff thrown at him in the guise of Affinity, Communication and Reality. People are postulating new realities for him. And every time he accepts one of these new realities, he’s sort of sunk.
But he’s all right up until the moment–he can have any god’s quantity of engrams or anything else–he’s perfectly all right until he accepts one of these postulates that is handed to him, and adopts it to himself and by his own self-determinism says, “Well, from here on that’s the way it is.” That’s a little boy suddenly saying to Mama, “Uh, I give up. I… I’ll mind, I’ll mind.” He goes out of valence, he ceases to be alive. He’s hit a static. He goes out of valence (and you can watch this either in yourself or in preclears) and his reality goes boom! Perceptics shut off.

For four days, four magic, memorable days, I lived life in a way never before
experienced. The alternating of amazing sessions with life‐changing realizations, with an intense and free communication exchange and plenty of laughter with Marty out of session, has truly given me a renewed purpose, a new viewpoint, a new attitude, a new me.

Four days were enough to repair the ravages of seven years of other‐determined actions while in the church. And there is not even the slightest scar left as a reminder of the atrocities.

Marty Rathbun is the best auditor I’ve ever had, and I have had many. His
comprehensive understanding of the fundamentals and basics of auditing, his natural TRs, his impeccable auditing comm cycle, and his ability to observe the Pc are such that one cannot help but get powerful results from the properly and standardly applied Tech he delivers. It is easily observable that he just loves auditing people with a passion! “Your win is my win,” he’d say often.

Marty also has another great ability. He listens. And thus he learns. He learns because he can comfortably be there and examine other viewpoints without prejudice. He has vast knowledge so he naturally imparts wisdom, but doesn’t overpower one’s own wisdom, opinion or viewpoint. He is always learning from others, and so he continues to grow.

I am back. I am better than back. Because as Marty skillfully worked with me, I began to regain OT abilities I had gained during OT VII and VIII, that I actually didn’t know I had.

So Marty, my hat is off to you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!

And davey, next time you feel a pressure on your right side, or a nagging headache, you may just want to wonder, “Is that Garcia stretching?”
I am closer to you than you may know…

Luis Garcia