I do not live with my parents, but being as extremely dependent as I was a few years ago, I bought a house 1 block away. I have a very weird relationship with my parents and siblings. They are all baptized, and they are on the fence when it comes to shunning me. I know that they are torn, but they will not fully compromise. It is confusing and frustrating for me because I never know how they are going to be. They don't hesitate to call when they need me and, although I try to keep it to a minimum, I call them when I need them as well. For example, my mother called me to ask if I could go to the home of my youngest sister (who has two children - one who is currently suffering with asthma) to teach her how to use the nebulizer (asthma treatment) for my nephew. Of course, I'm going to go. Until recently, I have always depended on my mother to assist me with child care for my son. I recently enrolled him in a boys and girls club with a stellar afterschool program (they pick the children up from school, do homework, and have activities). So I no longer need her, except occasionally when I have to work late and need her to pick my son up from the aftercare program. Now that she doesn't keep my son after school, she doesn't have many opportunities to "witness" to him. Thankfully.
We don't engage in meaningful conversations, but we do speak when necessary. It seems that they try to find reasons to call or speak to me. The weird part is that whenever their conscience starts to eat at them, they shut down and shun me as they should as good JWs. I was at my parents house the other day to pick up something for my son and my mother had twisted her ankle. They were trying to remember if they had crutches in the house. I remembered that there was a walker in the basement, so I joked that she could use that. They laughed and carried on a brief conversation about what I had just said as though I wasn't in the room. It's weird. But no matter how you spin it, in order for me to have a "normal" relationship with my family, it would have to be on their terms. That's the painful part. I love them regardless of anything else and nothing could change how I feel for or behave towards them.
Will they respect my wishes not to study with my son? I believe so. Will they respect my wishes not to discuss any topics of religion with him? I doubt it. Can I separate him from the organization without severing his relationship with my family? It's hard to tell since they always send mixed messages (talking sometimes and ignoring me other times). It's just a matter of mustering up the courage to say those things to them.
