Reading the recent posts about medical emergancies made me think of this.
We would always hear how the society put so much care into the planning of the conventions, but I remember showing up on a Friday morning and there was no room prepared for nursing moms or diaper changing.After asking around I was finally pointed to a dark storage room at the end of a hallway. There were stacks of boxes sitting around & a few folding chairs leaning against a wall. The whole place was covered in dead cockroaches & rat poop and smelled of rodent urine. The second day the brothers had finished adding speakers so we would not miss any of the "food". But it had not been cleaned. We got a few extra chairs brought in , but no table to change our babies diapers on.3rd day it was still not cleaned and I recieved increasing dirty looks each time I passed the "room" all the elders hung out in & complained.
I also was refused one year to sit in the handicapped area. The stairs going down to the seats were very narrow , steap & with too low a railing. I was quite far along in my pregnacy and attempted to sit up top in the reserved area.The brother in charge had me in tears when I was not allowed to sit there. The area was not full & did not fill up all morning. I walked around the hallways or sat in the nursing mothers room that morning till lunch when I got a ride back to my hotel. I did not return the rest of the weekend.
These fine witnesses , really made me a firm believer in the headship arrangement and how wonderful it was to be cared for as the weaker vessel! NOT!!! Anyone else have any stories?
Blithe
