Our Stories and Why They Matter (page 6)

Black Sheep

Some of you guys can be so vicious...

It makes me wonder if some of these turkeys are working for Brooklyn.

I wrote my story early on in my exit from the JW's. It was at the time, a way for me to understand where I was and helped to reinforce where I wanted to be. I think writing your story helps you to understand yourself, if it helps others along the way that's a bonus.

I posted on this board because I felt there would be people who understand. Generally that has been the case with only one exception - but then you always get at least one jerk in a community.

acolytes

Part of being an adult and civilised person is excepting people have different views, to disagree is fair enough , but when peopople insult people that just makes people angry.

One of the reasons I stopped reading watchtower literature was by name calling it oftern insulted and offencded many simply for not having a watchtower mentality. Shame because some of the life stories were worth a read.

Acolytes

Heaven

I agree with you Farkel -- our stories are important. They can help heal, educate, and give something of ourselves to those around us.

My grandfather said he was going to write his story but he never did. I wish he had. I would have had so much more to carry with me as would the rest of the family, including those yet to be born. We only have so much time in this life and we are not always able to tell our stories orally. When we write them down, they are now physically available for all to read, for all time. A piece of us that can carry on when we have long left this Earthly life.

I am so very sorry to hear you have emphysema. My Mom had COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), which includes emphysema. It is not a nice way to live. When you can't breathe, nothing else matters. My Mom passed away almost 9 years ago. I miss her, specifically the Mom I had before the Borg messed with her. But even though she had the JW mentality, she wasn't like your Mom. I am sorry your Mom's heart is all twisted up. Sometimes I think that there are people like her in this life to remind the rest of us how NOT to be.

I do hope you will write your story before you take your leave of us. And if you're up to it, I'd love to read your "Genital Times" too.

Thank you for sharing your stories with us.

wobble

You must write it dear Farkel, even if you do not want it posted on JWN just yet, leave it safely with trustedfriends, tell them when to post it.

2034? It would probably coincide with another failed WT prediction then !

As you rightly said, our story is in our cranium, unless we write it down. I had to arrange the funeral of my dear old aunt (93) last year, my niece had persuaded her to write her story down , it made a good reference work so that the eulogy was full and meaningful.

I am sure there are many more years left in you though, as only the good die young, and you, being such a wicked bugger, will live to be 107 at least , despite the old wheezy lungs !

carla

Farkel, I am so sorry to hear of your health issues and hope you continue to write for a long time to come.

I am eternally grateful for all your stories! They do matter and they educate the rest of us about the real life of jw's. As as a non jw who didn't know much about them when all this started in my home I immersed myself in all things jw just to learn how my life and that of my kids would change when my jw joined the cult. I was heartbroken and scared silly. It made me sick. The stories are all heartbreaking to me and some just piss me off!

After all this time and all the reasearch the stories still touch me the most. So much so that they often move me to go deliver my anti witness literature! Yes, I know it is terribly ineffecient but sometimes you just need to do something tangible to fight back. I know I will never reach my jw with doctrine, stories, anything at all for that matter, but if I can, maybe I can stop some other person from ever joining in the first place. I don't go delivering on a regular basis, just when the mood strikes. Though I have been thinking about the April issue and doing some delivering then.

You know what is maddening? when I repeat some ex jw story to my jw and he claims they are made up, on the internet (gasp!) or just apostate lies blah, blah......yet jw's believe every wt/awake story or that from the platform at a convention or at the kh! aaagh! just hitting my head against the wall there!

I wish all of you would write more stories and get them out there on the internet in places other than just the ex jw boards or ex jw sites so they would reach more people. But I also understand how very painful writing your stories can be and for some it may be better to leave the past details in the locked compartments of your mind for the time being.

For those who can write their stories and for those who answer our questions over and over again, my thanks.

AndersonsInfo

Personal stories of the lives of those who experienced the Witness religion like we did are so important to me that I put a link to JW stories on my new Watchtower Documents website. http://www.watchtowerdocuments.com/jw-stories.html (There's some research findings there too.)

I also put a sub-title to the stories page on the home page and named it "Exclusive Autobiographies" and that's where Farkel's story will be linked from, that is when he finishes writing it! (Thank you, Farkel, for the honor of posting your story on the WT Documents website when you finish it.)http://www.watchtowerdocuments.com/index.html

Every once in a while there's a story so well told that it deserves lots and lots of kudos and plugs. Here's that story which is the first one linked from "Exclusive Autobiographies": http://www.watchtowerdocuments.com/stories/alan-miller.html

Alan's story is one of those stories that once you start reading, you can't stop. I read all 124 pages in one sitting and so did my husband, Joe. Then I sent it to a few other people to read before it was put on the WT Documents website. The consensus was the same as ours. "Wow, what a read!" (I think I'll start a thread to point the way to Alan Miller's story so more people will know about it.)

While I'm pointing out good stories to read on the WT Documents website, how about reading the Langbroek Family Story, about a family who lives in Australia. An interesting part of this story is that Anne Langbroek was a pioneer in the same congregation as my husband in the Bronx when he was in Bethel in the late 1950s. Anne went to Gilead and Joe went to West Palm Beach, Florida to marry me. His path and Anne never crossed again until last year when a letter arrived at our house from Australia. How Anne and her husband ended up in Australia and out of the Witness religion makes for good reading too, but wait till you read about the lives of their two kids, now well-known personalities: One is a radio host; the other a dentist-politician.

http://www.watchtowerdocuments.com/stories/langbroek-family.html

And to top it all off, read the Mary Woodard story: http://www.watchtowerdocuments.com/stories/mary-woodard.html

First you'll find the text of a letter that took the community by storm in 1990. Even though it was penned in 1989, it became so widespread it inspired the October 8, 1991 Awake! article "Healing the Wounds of Child Abuse." Mary is no longer a JW and the perspective given in the text is from before her leaving the Witness religion. Then Mary chronicled for me her departure titled: "A Meeting in Bethel to Exiting the Organization." This is the true story of went on inside Bethel's Writing Dept. after the Awake! editor and a staff writer heard Mary's story.

So if it's a snowy and nasty day where you are, and you've read just about everything on JWN, just relax and start reading some pretty interesting narrative, starting off with the Alan Miller story.

http://www.watchtowerdocuments.com/stories/alan-miller.html

Barbara

OUTLAW

I don't give a shit what you think about me you clueless twit. Make your argument.

I will be there, and if I disagree with it, we can play......Farkel

I rest my case......BTW, Farkel dear:Posting Guidelines

To ensure all users feel safe and keen to participate, please avoid:

Insulting, threatening or provoking language

Inciting hatred on the basis of race, religion, gender, nationality or sexuality or other personal characteristic.

Swearing, using hate-speech or making obscene or vulgar comments......BrokenPromises

You did`nt show the Guidline Against making an Accurate Observation..

Because..

There isn`t one..

.......................... ...OUTLAW

AGuest

I don't know what "Jesus" Christ knows, dear Daddy-O (as always, peace to you!), but certainly my Lord (Jah eShua) knows... and so I've no doubt that help (in the form of whatever meds you need) is on the way. (And for those who will ask... and you know who you are... why doesn't my Lord just remove dear Farkel's illness... my response to you would be that (1) I am not sure he's been asked to do so, and if he has (2) it would som measure of faith in his ability to do so, which I can't answer for).

BUT... I know dear Farkel and to say that his prayers are never answered would be... ummmmm... incorrect.

Check your PM, dear one, if you haven't already and, as always, the greatest of love and peace to you!

Your servant, friend, and a slave of Christ,

SA

Quentin

Farkel, Farkel, albuterol, that's all? I have COPD ( like the idiot I am still smoke.) But, you should be using oxeyen as well,( about 2%) it would be helpfull. I sleep hooked up to oxegen. Also you should have your heart checked, sounds like you may have an Afib condition, waffirin helps with that. Maybe youv'e done all that so, aplogize if I overstepped with comments. Belive me know what it's like being unable to breath, ask Terry, he can tell you about what he saw after I walked up some steps.

Always enjoy your stories, comments. Keep going as long as you can. Not much of a writer myself, maybe I should go on a speaking tour, heh, heh, heh. Best to you.

Our Stories and Why They Matter