by purplesofa 47 Replies latest jw friends
Anyone remember which Kingdumb Melody sounds like Queen's "Lazying On A Sunday Afternoon"?
It was song 72 "The Joys and Fruits of Kingdom Service" -- which you can hear here: http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/3997/songbook/song_72.htm Compare to the Queen song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtBBouZzWco
Never heard that Queen's song but that was hilarious! On to subject: I was a born-in so I'm just proud I'm an EX.
It's a little different for me. I was born and raised "in" and I left after 46 years. I knew nothing else. The farther away I get from my witness days the more I can't believe I was ever one, but, it will always in some way define me, like it or not.
changeling :)
In my case, I have emotionally disconnected from my JW days. I can joke and ridicule the JW's along with the best of them.
Purps, as long as they know the person you are now, they cannot (or should not) hold prior religious affiliation against you. After all, you're out. No need to feel embarrassed about what you've renounced.
True, I was born in and had no choice -- until I was older. I made the choice to stay in as an adult for too long, and perhaps I "should have known better". It doesn't matter any more now. No matter how I got out, I'm not going back!
I agree, I'm embarrassed at the actions I took while being a witness. I joined two of the ex-JW groups on Facebook recently, and before I did, I gave thought to my colleagues/classmates/friends who didn't already know, finding out. It does make for interesting stories though. And I always warn people not to take the magazines just to be nice, because they'll write you down as having "placed a magazine" and keep coming back to bug you.
The wave of embarrassment .......and I felt ashamed for having been a witness. I was found door to door. I chose to be a witness!
Same here Purps,
I've been in situations similar to what you described and I just wanted the floor to open up and swallow me....
I never volunteered that I was a JW. Now tho, if it comes up and I feel comfortable enough in the situation, I will talk about it...
Cas
Hey Purps...Sometimes i feel embarrassed that I converted because the Witlesses are such a joke to me now and I'm so far removed from the experience that it's hard for me to understand how it was that I was so completely drawn to them back in the day...but then again, a lot of naive and confused 20-somethings get swept up into controlling religious groups so we really shouldn't be too hard on ourselves.
I had my first opportunity to say I am no longer a JW. It was to an old friend I hadn't seen in twenty plus years. He came over to my house to visitymy husband who had died last year. He was not aware of that fact so he became emotional. Later out of the clear blue he asked if I was still a JW. I don't know what prompted him to ask but I could tell he had been drinking the smell could have knocked me out and it was noon. His grandson had driven him over thank goodness.
I told them I was not a witness anymore. He asked if anyone is calling on me. I said no and do not want anyone to call on me. I told him I felt I was very spiritual and didn't need putting in hours and attending meetings to be able to communicate with God. It felt sooooo good to say it out loud and to someone I knew even if he was drunk.
It felt sooooo good to say it out loud and to someone I knew even if he was drunk.
LOL. (I wonder...will he remember to tell the rest of the family??)
Awwww...((((((Emmylou)))))
Say "hi" to my sister everyone!
At first when I left, I didn't tell people about being a JW. Too much explanation. But now I talk about it quite freely. Also, it's so long ago that it actually seems like it happened to a different person.
