Do you remember giving talks? (page 3)

HappyDad

It was the sisters I felt bad for. They were paired up by the third party.......the TMS overseer. And it had to be very trying if you were paired up with a brain dead sister or her kid or someone you didn't like. I'm sure you were most likely to cancel for one reason or another and I couldn't blame you. Looking back, it was all BS.

As a person, I'm what you would call a "humble" man. I don't like putting myself on a shelf and prefer to be an indian instead of a chief. Giving talks was an ego boost for me though! The "friends" would tell me that I was a good speaker and they could learn from me. In 1986 I was "promoted" to elder. That was after a few years of prodding by the other elders to increase my FS time. They said I needed to improve because the cong. needed me to "reach out".....that I could be a real asset. So I did! Some of my time was fudged as most of everyone's was, but once appointed an elder, they started to schedule me at other KH's for the Sunday talk and I loved it. My ego was boosted when comments would come back that I was really a good speaker.

I eventually was "promoted" to Theocratic Ministry School Overseer. Probably because no-one else wanted it. I tried to do the best I could in the interest of what was right. When it was time to make the schedule, I would consult with my wife who was very attuned to the personalities of the cong. If two sisters were not getting along, they would not be assigned together. As far as I was concerned, it would only make for more problems (for me-because it was a given that one or the other would cancel at the last minute) and then I would most likely have to ad-lib that particular talk because no other sisters would want to do it.

Then there was the problem of assigning brothers to a particular talk. In my opinion, it was never appropriate to give a detailled talk on subjects that were about sex. When a subject like that was to talked on, (like masturbation) I would only give it to an older one.....someone mature and not to Brother Jack Off or Brother Humph Itoer who once was DF'd for immorality. Sometimes a talk like this was for the sisters and before I would schedule it, I would call the sister to see if she was comfortable with the theme and also ask her advice on who she would like for a householder on this one. It usually worked out because I put effort into the schedule.

Giving talks at another KH was fun but many times disheartening. I could probably count on one hand the KH's that seemed friendly. The majority were just like the majority of all of Jehovah's Witnesses........unfriendly and unhappy! It is a UNIVERSAL truth.............JW's are not a happy people in their private lives. To the public, yes!..........because the brainwashing makes them blind to what they really feel.

Anyhow.......it only took about 5 years as an elder to open my eyes to a lot of BS. Because I was a "good guy" and a "good elder"..... that young and old alike......... brothers and sisters....would come to for comfort in their problems, some of the other "shi&heads"....Oops........I mean "shepherds" (especially the power hungry PO who is still PO and two of his kiss a$$ cronies.....one who is now PO of the cong. that meets in the same KH ) didn't like my attitude and told me that I was not doing a good ~~policing~~ shepherding job. They broke me ! My ego (which was only a private thing and never public) and my attitude of helping and giving was now changed. Emotionally, I became a different person. My very being was affected by the things that took place and I resigned as an elder in 1991 for the final time. (I tried to resign in 1990 but they talked me out of it.......another story)

Today.......giving a public talk is something I really don't want to do, but I have done it on a couple of occasions. It has been a real privilege for me to give my testimony at a couple of churches on how I was a captive slave of a high control religion (can you say cult?) and how I learned that that is what it is.....and of now being a Christian, and how it all came about.

Do I remember giving talks? I sure do.

Sorry if I have made a rant here, but this topic struck a chord with me.

HappyDad

klydia

Wow, what an amazing set of replies! Thank you all for sharing (not that it was just for me, of course...)! I completely forgot that they used to notice your gestures. What a great memory! I now remember marking my index cards as to where I would "gesture" and then awkwardly waving my hand in the air. It must have looked ridiculous. And, of course, there were those sisters that would never get together to practice with you. But I also remember being paired with an elders wife and really thinking that this was my big chance to impress them. Plus, I knew that everyone would really be watching. I love that the sisters couldn't dare to "teach" men (egads! a woman has nothing to teach a man!) so we had to pretend to be teaching each other. What idiocy. How sad that they have an accepted list of situations now. I remember my first talk in 1982 (I was eight) and I was at an ice cream parlor with an older sister. As if poor Witness kids don't have enough pain in their lives, they can't even pretend to be eating ice cream on stage anymore!

klydia

By the way, my boyfriend and I are currently losing it over "beast fed." Would that make the UN the Wild Breast?

sass_my_frass

I was pretty good. I resented having to use a householder because they always wanted a script and I preferred to ad lib from a few lines of notes. I got to the point where I'd just deliver a talk like a guy, but only talking to them, with them nodding and smiling. One bro told me off for that, he said that he wanted more interaction from the householder, and I explained that I'm better off practising talking off the top of my head, since we're practising going out on the preach, than memorising our lines.

moshe

I probably haven't given a talk of any sort since about 1986. I was an elder and had the Ministry School as my position back in the 70's. I too, have wiped almost all those memories clean. I was a good speaker and was able to fill in for a missing speaker on a Sunday morning without a hitch. Every so often we had a kid who balked at giving talks and missed his assignments. I hated those slackers, but now I can see they were the independent thinkers and had already decided to leave the KH as soon as they were adults.

free2beme

Told you the week of talk, the number of talk, and what you were working on. Depending off you were a man or woman. As woman always knew which number talk they were doing.

cyberdyne systems 101

Yeah I do, its something i never liked doing but felt obligated to continue, when in reality I so wanted to give it up. I think the school overseer can make a big difference on one's attitude towards it. In my old cong there was one overseer that pretty much praised you for doing the talk, but another almost seemed to want to find something to pull you up on. It was during the reign of this particular elder that I became more critical of giving talks, I at first would disagree with his council as his oppinion, and before long would just agree with everything but do nothing about what he'd said. Also at the time when the bible or watchtower reading came in without introduction or conclusion, I got talk no.4 constantly. The subjects were, as has been mentioned pretty embarrasing or obscure at times and made me very uncomfortable to both research and give. I certainly think my mind was begining to think and reason at that time, and soon I had walked away from the JW's and felt relief about giving up doing talks.

CS 101

Amber Rose

I gave a talk this week.

dannyboy

The skills I learned and honed giving talks in the TMS, service meetings, Public Talks, and at conventions are one of the only *useful legacies* I have left from my years as a Witness.

This is not much to show for so many many years, though.

----Dan

Andy C

I remember one time a sister fainted. She was standing, Wasen't too funny, :(

Do you remember giving talks?

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