I'm not so good with this kind of thing, but it sounds like you were really close and it must be hard. and I'll echo what others have said.

To put it in other words. I've lost family before but this is just one I was dreading. He's lived so long that I figured he'd just be here forever. I'm doing alright though. This type of stuff is weird for me because I don't show the emotion publicly much but yeah it sucks.

This is an experience I need to talk about because it still terrifies me to my core that this type of thing exists and I'm still not able to process it. Basically, as I'm sure its been discussed, I went to a few meetings last week thinking they were some form of self help seminars. Well, they were. Up until I realized what was really going on.

The first meeting I went to, the room was filled with probably 200-300 people. All being displayed as these self made millionaires. All the men are in suits and all the women are in dresses. Before i knew it, the seminar began and I witnessed every single person in the room get up and start cheering for the guy walking into the stage. It was almost like a concert of sorts but it was just one guy who supposedly retired at 30 and is also a self made millionaire. He spoke for about 4 hours and this was already around 8pm. Obviously they want to do things like this at night since humans have a harder time being skeptical when you're exhausted from working all day. I was skeptical of this at first because from the get go, it sounded like a cult. The person I was with was very good at dodging the questions I had for her. But...I still gave it a shot. And yeah admittedly he was good at speaking but...I mean that's the whole point right? To get you to believe he's right.

The second night was another seminar but it was for new people so obviously I went. Same thing. Just a bunch of people talking about the money they have. But this is where it gets ****ed up. When that seminar was done we got back into the car and I asked her about the ranks like diamond emerald etc. I said that again sounds to me like cult practices but she says it's not like that at all. Except it is. So I asked again, is this a cult? Still a no. I then started getting more and more skeptical especially when she mentioned that they asked her for 2 grand a while ago. I was under the impression this was free but hey, nope.

She then started to tell me that when you are in this business, you cannot be seen in public with other people that are not in your specific ranking in the business. Their reasoning is you can't surround yourself with people that aren't successful. The real reasoning is it's a ****ing cult. I then told her that this sounds controlling and that you can't live your life the way you want. They basically tell you to strip everything bad that you do and surround yourself with these people are are "successful"

First off, not a single time did I see any sort of proof with these claims of them being millionaires.

After this point, I was mentally freaking out because while this was happening, my grandpa also passed away the same week so it was a lot of take in. I could already feel this organization convincing me of other things. I was honestly almost convinced that the friends i have now are not the friends I want. They call it "association". Basically they want you to only associate yourself with people that will better your life. They want you to be a winner not a loser. Yeah **** that. I don't believe that for a second but that made me believe it with their energy and demeanor. That's what they do though. They push you down so they can build you back up.

When I confronted her about it and told her I wont be going to these meetings anymore, her responses were filled with links provided by the people in "this business." That's how they speak about themselves. Nothingspecific. Just "the business".

I have a strong feeling that if I had kept going to those meetings. I would've been stuck. I came home the 2nd night, told my mom about it, and I was already seeing myself being convinced that these people knew what they were talking about. I was played, taken advantage of, and my life could have been strained for years potentially. But i got out before that could happen.

Now, with that and with my grandpa passing, its led me to a crossroads. All of this has taught me that I need to make a big change. I need to better myself and help other people.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flirty_Fishing

Cults often use female members to attract men.

The part of that story that bothers me is you going back the second time. I’m not like a cult expert or anything but I’ve been fascinated with them and I’ve read, watched documentaries, and listened to podcasts - one thing that struck me is that the recruitment process varies a lot from cult to cult. Almost anyone, if they catch you with the right method and time and place, can get snagged up in a cult. It’s a nefarious problem that everyone has to be on guard because they’re sneaky bastards.

I’d still probably try to at least get a blow job out of it though. I’d tell her directly that I would show up again tomorrow if she sucked my dick then ghost the bitch.

Did she/they know about your grandfather? Could've been another recruiting tactic if they saved the sales pitch for when you were having a difficult time.

Good on you for being able to spot what you were getting into because like OH says, even the smartest among us can get roped in. Don't let it make you paranoid about your other relationships though.

My mother's side of the family is Mormon (she isn't anymore), but whenever I meet up with that side of the family it always seems like there's some flirty fishing going on with a "friend of the family" joining the gathering and attaching herself to me.

As someone who has been a part of a cult before:

Don't.

Appreciate the support y'all. Yeah it was a close call. Its terrifying once you realize what is happening. I'm glad i got out before it got bad.

And OH, honestly, I just wanted to hangout with her again. Otherwise I wouldn't have gone again.

Sounds like a really weird and terrifying experience, can't imagine being in that situation myself. Great that you got out of it though, any kind of cult can't be anything but a bad thing.

It would be hilarious if you showed up and just bluntly referred to it as a cult meeting. Be a real obnoxious ******* about the fact that it is a cult.

Agreed.