I think I was about 3 yrs when my Mom started studying. She had been
raised in a protestant religion. She had said several times that all she learned in that religion was hell fire and damnation. She raised us kids as Jw's. My Dad didn't go to church anywhere, so Mom took us to the Hall.
She took us in service every wednesday and saturday when school was out, and we made all the meetings.
My Dad loved to ride horses and we all had a horse, so we would ride together on Sunday afternoons. I loved trail riding and being with my family.
We were never really accepted in any of the clicks at the hall, but I had one friend who would play with me untill we went to school. At school she wanted to be with worldly people. Her mom always bought her christmas presents,I guess it was ok because all of her cousins aunts uncles and other family were in the truth, so they wouldn't say anything to them about Christmas, but my mom would not consider even letting us visit our grandparents on christmas.
One of my first doubts came when the Overseer or whatever ya call him, said in his talk on Sunday morning that it was stupid to ride stinky horses.
I was young but I knew that was not in his talk. And we were the only ones in the congergation who rode horses. Like, are Over jeers supposed to condem people in Sunday morning talks?
Another thing that happened was when we went to an assembly and my sis and I were sitting around the pool. I was ten and my sis was 12. By this time we had another OverProud watching out for the congeration. He Had been to Bethel !! Anyhoo,
It was about 7:30 PM and some of the 13 to 16 yr old boys from our hall got durnk on beer and they were really having a time of it. Loud and cursing!
The OverProud's little sister-in-law was out there too, and she reported them. My sis and I didn't tell anybody.. Not even my mom at the time. BUT guess who they called in for counceling. Me, my sister, and my Mom. They made mom sit on the far side of the hall so she couldn't really hear what they were saying to us. They told us that we should not have been out there in the first place. And I'm like WHAT? We were sitting peacefully around the pool not bothering anybody, but it is okey for the young loud mouth drunks to be out there? It was the same old problem. Those litle drunks had dads and moms who were in the truth. Our Dad wasn't, and besides that he was stupid and rode stinky horses.
As we grew older my mom sorta drifted away from the meetings. No one ever came or called to see why we didn't attend meetings even when we had not been for several years. One year she decided to celebrate Christmas.
A pioneer had moved in just 2 houses from us. She had 3 boys who would ransack and steal everything they could from the neighbors carports while their mom pioneered during the summer. I don't know who reported moms tree, I'm not sure it was those boys, because I really don't think they gave a crap. Well, here comes brother fat and brother thoughtless! They told mom she should write a letter and DA herself. It was 3 days till christmas. Mom told them she would take the tree down christmas day and never put it up again. NOPE NOPE that would't do, take it down now or DA yourself. So Mom wrote a letter and all it said was" I no longer want to be associated with JWs". She was broken hearted.
I have attended the hall a few times since then myself, my last time was in Feb of 2005. I'm not going anyplace where they tell me I shouldn't discuss the bible with my mom or with anyone else I want to talk with about the Bible.
I still love Jehovah and Jesus, And they DID save my purse!
Pslam 50: 13-14 What I want from you is your true thanks. I want your promises fulfulled. I want you to trust me in your times of trouble, so I can rescue you, and you can give me glory. (The Living Bible) I know I know..you guys are not going to like me for quoting a scripture and saying anything about Jehovah or Jesus, but after all those letters you wrote.,, I'm used to it
Loves ya,
Annie