It is a wonderful thing not to be stuck going out in field service. Always hated it. Always felt those who said they LOVED it were liars.
CJ
I am finally getting my weekends back!
by iclone 21 Replies latest jw experiences
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DesirousOfChange
For the first time in my life I am really enjoying my weekends-especially Saturday. Now I go to the gym to work out, I go cycling with my kids or its breakfast with just me and my favourite girl. I feel as close as I ever have to her and it is largely in part to the advice I have read on this forum to replace the time that I would have normally spent wasted at the KH or in service and have some quality face time with her. This past Saturday was no exception; I got up early and cleaned all the windows and screens on our house then we went for a great breakfast and I said to my wife; “isn’t it wonderful to take a break and enjoy our Saturdays? She heartily agreed and said “I know that for the most part that the ministry is a waste of time but I go for the association”. I reassured her that if it association you crave then are much better ways of accomplishing that. I know it is going to be a long process but I know I can help her to “see what I see”. Even the small things like getting your weekends back and enjoying your spare time doing what you actually enjoy!!
There's a chink in the armor. Blinders coming off. ALOT of that kind of thing happening right now -- overlap, etc etc
DOC
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ranmac
This is one of my favorite posts.
I cant imagine how much better my childhood would have been if our family had spent saturday mornings relaxing, having breakfast together and maybe making plans to do something fun. All I remember is anxiety and drudgery. I can still hear my dads foot steps coming up the stairs to wake us up for service and me praying for an aneurysm.
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WTWizard
I used to do mid-week field circus, and it was a drudgery. The pride and self-righteousness of putting in 20+ hours a month in field circus was soon replaced with the drudgery of losing more time doing something that was the deadest of works possible. My day was chopped up into little tiny pieces, and they wanted the nice big fat blocks to be used for field circus or boasting session attendance. And nothing to show for it.
And I also hated it when someone showed up. Inevitably, I would see that fxxxing van parked out of the group, running and with people still in. I would be there at around 8:50 AM, and would get in. Those pests would always sit in that damn van until 9:00, and then show up. And it was always the same 10 or so people, most of them pious-sneers. Some would show up at 9:20 AM--tired, obviously dragging themselves out, and spoil my hopes of no one showing up.
Accomplishing something worthwhile is better. It is still work, but having clean screens is better than having nothing to show for your morning. Or, having a hall full of Halloween or Christmas decorations, using the time I otherwise would have wasted at the boasting session and field circus as my time budget (and getting quite a bit done). Fixing things that are busted is another way to wisely spend the time. Or, you can assemble good music, watch a good movie, play a good game, or even watch TV. As for the amount of time and energy the hounders and pious-sneers waste, one could move anywhere in the world for less than what they waste in the course of the year.
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serenitynow!
It seems like such a simple thing, but being able to sleep in & relax on the weekends after working all week is heaven! It was terrible as a kid going to doors & have someone answer & you could smell the bacon and hear the Looney Tunes! You're outside in the cold, maybe you grabbed a handful of granola on the way out of the house, no bacon for you! Sometimes now, I'll have breakfast in bed while I watch a Looney Tunes dvd. Better late than never.
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rocketman
I feel that time has actually slowed down considerably since I stopped running around like a chicken with my head cut off, trying to meet the demands of the jw schedule. My weekends have filled in nicely with activities that I used to have to cram into Saturday afternoons because I usually went out in service both weekend mornings. Plus there were the meetings. So a typically "zealous" jw weekend is really just one afternoon. When I was an elder, I was lucky to have even that.
I look forward to my weekends, during which I can now enjoy going to the gym, watching sports, and traveling about an hour to visit my child. My weekends aren't the stress-filled marathons they used to be.
One elder once asked me "since you no longer attend meetings, what do you do with your time?" What he failed to understand is that now I finally have some time.
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cantleave
I could have written that OP, it's my story!!!
When we stopped having the FS meeting at our house, having weekends to ourselves was so wierd, but we soon got used to it.
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MrFreeze
Field service and meetings are such a waste of time.
I also find it ironic that you are using your new found freedom to... wash windows?
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breakfast of champions
Yeah, it is amazing how the fact that witnesses are SOOOOOO tired and stressed is always blamed on bad 'ol Satan and his Awfully Wicked System of Things.
I challenge anyone to use their weekends to sleep in and rest and not find themselves in FAR BETTER spirits and health than dragging your ass out in FS.Glad you're enjoying your new found time.
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Quendi
For me, it's not just Saturdays that I enjoy more but Sundays as well. I have always viewed living in Colorado as a privilege, and with free weekends I can take more advantage of it. On Saturday I can go for a nice walk or a drive up in our magnificent high country. On Sunday, I go to church in the morning, and then can relax for the rest of the day. But if I don't want to go to church for any reason, I don't feel at all guilty. The church service lasts a little more than an hour, gives me a great spiritual boost, makes me feel refreshed, and actually enhances my life in many little ways. I certainly didn't feel that way about attending the meetings at the Kingdom Hall, especially the weeknight ones. Thanks for sharing your experience, iclone. I rejoice that you and your family are living life again.
Quendi