Right, Left And Centre: the Politics of Some Canadians by Dave Jaffe. Chapter 30, Part Two.

           The Saviour and His Disciple by Dave Jaffe. Part Two


     Gerry Coser was poring over Arthur Janov's 'The Primal Scream'  as fall and winter stripped the branches of trees outside his rooming house bare of leaves. A few weeks later in early 1976 he followed Henry Afflick into a padded room on Vancouver's east side and then closed the door behind them. "Feel Gerry," Henry urged him. "Just feel your sadness and feel your anger." As the winter rains poured down from Vancouver's grey skies, Gerry went back and forth to that padded room in east Vancouver. He screamed and cried and beat the green padded walls with his fists.
     And soon his sadness started to fade and his anger began to melt away. He started to read psychology books and realized that he had been a bad man who'd abused many women. At the time, many people in the media made fun of primal therapy. Yet Gerry disdn't mind this as the therapy was curing him. Nothing else mattered.
    Henry had other surprises in store for Gerry. He told Gerry how to apply for welfare. Once Gerry got on the welfare rolls his money worries lifted a little. Henry also taught Gerry how to write news stories. "Nobody's going to read this," Henry told him after Gerry showed Henry something he'd written for a local paper. "Go to a library and take out a book on journalism. Teach yourself how to write like a reporter does. Then you'll have a skill to sell."
    So off Gerry went to the local library and borrowed books on journalism. Soon Gerry taught himself how to write a news story and then feature articles. Yet Gerry had another problem. He needed to buy some clothes. "Never buy second hand clothes," his salesman father had told him years ago. Yet Henry told him differently. "Go to the Salvation Army store on Fourth Avenue," he said. "You can get clothes there far cheaper than you'll pay in a regular clothing place."
    So off Gerry went to the Sally Ann and sure enough Henry was right again. At the Sally Ann he found cheap clothes that were still in good condition. Once again Henry had solved another one of Gerry's problems.
     Yet there was a problem that came up between Henry and Gerry. It was called 'politics' and soon it drove the two of them apart.