No special talk today...wasted AM. NEXT WEEK!! Yeah!
People You've Met
by watson 15 Replies latest jw friends
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Broken Promises
Watson, as a born-in, I can relate to your situation.
My experience has been that I’ve found people are non-judgmental and very accepting.
ESPECIALLY those I went to school with. I had a best friend from the age of 8, and we went through the whole “sorry I can’t come to your birthday party” thing, and she accepted it, because she was my best friend (and a wonderful loving person).
Then, many years later, after I’d left the witnesses, we became reacquainted again. I explained that I was no longer a JW and she was soooo thrilled. For the first time in over 30 years, we were able to attend each others’ birthdays. It was such a happy and joyful experience.
And, to many people, YOU may be an “interesting person”. While you don’t have to advertise it, you may find ppl will find your JW experience fascinating. You have a very unique story, one which not many people in the general world get to experience.
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144001
I was lucky in some respects. I was a born in but had "worldly friends" on my street and in the neighborhood. I still hang out with several of my "wordly friends" from that time. Having those friends made it much easier to tell the elders to "fuck off" when threatened with disassociation. They never did announce my name. I guess knowing I didn't care took all the fun out of it for them.
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Judge Dread
People don't know you.
You could make up a complete fabrication of your life, and no one would know the difference.
Quit acting like people were in an audience watching your life, and just "live".
Judge Dread
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MMXIV
After the age of 21, when I started to know people in the world, I never told them that I was a JW and more recently that I've left the JW's. I was always embarrassed of it. I was worried that with the truth being such a small world, if I said something to someone in the world, the next thing they'd be telling someone they knew who was a JW. I would just never refer to it and if JW's ever came up in conversation (on the two or three occasions in the last 15 years - cos they're really not a topic people ever talk about) I'd listen to the odd strange stories and not say anything.
I did feel like I was holding something back but also it just wasn't relevant to the conversation or the other person.
In terms of meeting interesting people - I've been lucky enough through hobbies/work to rub shoulders with lots of truly amazing people - I could list 20 or 30 that would be recognised by most on this forum - and the few minutes I may have spent with them were not spent talking about my childhood - know what I mean?
When I had to go for interviews recently - many were quite surprised I had reached the level I had without a degree. I'd always waffled around it in the past but I was honest for the first time and admitted my parents were strongly religious and against higher education so I didn't get the opportunity of university. I got the job, been promoted and no-one has referred to it since.
It's a huge deal that most JW's have/are gone/going through and people you meet will be interested in it, but keep it brief and let them ask the questions.
MMXIV
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Judge Dread
The fake Rockefeller fooled Hollywood.
The people you will be dealing with are dumber than those in Hollywood.
Get on with it!!
Judge Dread