In my late teens I thought there was some enjoyment in smoking and drinking. Some of my friends seemed to be having fun doing both; so I decided to join them. I found it harder and harder to refuse a cigarette, and by the time I went to college, smoking had become a habit.
During my first semester I began to attend the meetings of the Christian Science organization. Each time I was asked to become a member of it, I had to refuse. Down deep I really wanted to be a member of both The Mother Church and the organization, but I knew that before I could join either one I would need to stop smoking and drinking.
I went home one weekend for a visit. While there, I picked up Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy one morning, and when I opened it, my eyes rested on the following lines for the first time (pp. 60, 61): "Higher enjoyments alone can satisfy the cravings of immortal man. We cannot circumscribe happiness within the limits of personal sense. The senses confer no real enjoyment." I accepted the truth of this, and from then on I did not smoke or drink. That summer I joined The Mother Church and a branch church, and when I returned to college in the fall I became a member of the organization.
