A tale of three sisters.........

Tatiana

It started in 1956. A girl was born. With lovely strawberry blonde, curly hair.

She was loved. Doted on. Pictures were taken. Easter egg hunts. Birthday parties. Lovely photos in Scarbourough, Maine. Christmas gifts. She was so cute, kissing her Christmas stocking. Her father was a Marine. Her grandparents were well-off, and loved her dearly. Her mother was beautiful. Looked a lot like Audrey Hepburn. Life was good. The future looked bright.

1958. Another beautiful daughter, with raven hair. Chubby. Pippy...her nickname from her older sister. Another wonderful Christmas. Uncles, aunts, cousins, all around the tree. 8mm movies. Kissing. Hugging. The red-haired one on a brand new rocking horse. Daddy throwing her into the air. Laughter. Mom holding the raven haired one. Snuggling. Dad and Mom kissing.

One year later......a knock on the door. Mom answered. It was a Jehovah's Witness. She left a magazine. Asked if she could come back. Mom says yes, of course. Next week ok?

Mom starts studying. Two weeks before Christmas Mom says, "Take down the tree." Dad is upset. He loves Christmas. He's bought gifts. Grandmom is coming. Mom tells Dad to take all the gifts back. They are pagan. She tells him to leave the Marines. She doesn't want to be married to a man in the "armed forces". It's against her new religion. They fight. She bundles up the two little girls, and goes out into the snow to a motel. Dad is hurt. Dad is angry. Dad wants his girls back. Dad hates Jehovah's Witnesses. Mom won't come back. Mom gets a bus ticket and takes her two girls to South Carolina. Her parents are there. Her mother is also studying with a sister. She tells her daughter she should leave him.

Dad calls. Begs. Cries. He'll do anything. She can be a witness. Mom says..."Will you leave the Marines?" Dad says that's his life. His future. His career. How will he take care of the two girls? He can't leave.

Divorce. Pain. The two girls are ripped from a loving family. A nice home. They now live in a red-neck town, with no money, and the future looks uncertain. They are told their father left them. That he didn't want them. The red-haired girl is told he wanted Mom to have an abortion.

Mom remarries. He's nice enough, and starts studying too. They decide through scriptural guidance that corporal punishment is the way to go. Spare the rod and spoil the child. The two girls start getting terrible beatings. Bruises, knots. Whelps. Hit with anything Mom could grab. The girls are fully indoctrinated into the truth. Service every Wed., Sat., and Sun. afternoon. Also all holidays. Meetings every Tuesday. Thursday, and Sunday. They have no birthdays, Christmas, Easter egg hunts. They have no friends. They are the only two "witness" girls in town. They dress 'funny".

They don't see their father for 12 years. Meanwhile, he's remarried. And has a daughter. She's lovely. And loved. Many photos of hugging, kissing. Christmas dinners. Easter egg hunts. Life was good. The future looked bright.

Edited by - Tatiana on 22 January 2003 4:59:57

Tatiana

.......the red-haired girl hates beatings. She hides from people. Builds a shell. Goes into the woods to be alone. Becomes so shy and withdrawn, she barely speaks. The raven-haired girl hates getting beaten. She becomes loud. Rebellious. Won't sit still at the meetings. Gets more beatings. Refuses to cry. Gets more beatings. Sets fires. Cuts up small animals. Gets beaten with a metal rod. It breaks. She sets the entire forest on fire. Runs away.

Meanwhile, back in Maine, the other daughter is a cheerleader. And President of her Student Council. She takes tennis lessons. She has braces. She is beautiful. And has never had a hand laid upon her. The red-haired girl gets her tooth knocked out by her Mom, in the front seat of the car. She gets slapped against the dashboard. She bleeds. It never even gets a cap. She wonders how all this happened.

The raven-haired girl starts drinking. She is only 12. She runs away several times. The police bring her home. Mom puts her in reform school. At the elder's advice. The red-haired girl is sick. Now she is really alone.

Years pass......in Maine, the other daughter goes to the prom. She is beautiful in her royal blue dress. Her teeth are absolutely perfect. She is a A student. Has a handsome boyfriend. The red-haired and raven-haired girls are taken out of school. To wait for Armageddon. They go to no prom. They don't cheerlead. They don't play tennis. They don't go to the dentist. They certainly don't have boyfriends. They go in field service. They will be destroyed if they don't.

Armageddon doesn't come. The red-haired girl decides to get out. She gets married at 16. To a JW she met at an assembly and knew for 2 months. It's out of the frying pan and into the fire, as he begins to beat her too. She has three children by the age if 19. The raven-haired girl gets married too. To a drug addict who breaks her eardrum by throwing her through a glass door. She's an alcoholic. And does cocaine.

Meanwhile, back in Maine, the other daughter heads off to college. The red-haired girl sees her drive away with her friends. So happy. Starting a new life. What must that feel like, she wonders........

Edited by - Tatiana on 21 January 2003 7:22:39

Jim_TX

April.....

*sigh*

I am soooo sorry. These things seem to happen a lot to folks that get involved with the JWs. It's all part of their de-humanizing process.

But - we can use those experiences to know how NOT to continue with OUR lives.

We can move forward with our lives in the full knowledge that we will NEVER do that again!

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< HUGS >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

It's good to 'see' you again April. Say 'hey' to Randy, for me.

Fond Regards,

Jim TX

Tatiana

.......the red-haired girl and the raven haired girl are now divorced. They each have three children. No education. No self esteem. No idea how to make it in the world. The red-haired girl goes back to school at 19 to get a diploma. She is on welfare. And still trying to be a witness. The raven-haired girl is working on her second marriage at 18. Has had 10 jobs in a year. Waitressing, fast-food, cashier. Drinking on the job is not a good idea. She hates Mom and will not speak to her. She hates Dad for letting Mom take us away. Basically she just hates. And drinks. And gets high.

Other sister is out of college. Dad gets her a job making $45,000 per year. With a company car. She has her own office. She shops at Neiman Marcus. She goes to the Bahamas with Dad. She runs in marathons for good causes. She owns her own home.

Red-haired girl gets a GED, tries to finish college. It's just too hard with three kids and no help. She misses a final because she has no sitter. And one of the babies has pnuemonia. She has to live in a project. Raven-haired girl has a trailer. Her second husband beats her. She runs off drunk and leaves the kids alone. They almost burn down the house. They get put in foster homes. They get molested. They go to court. The first husband gets custody. The one on cocaine. Who broke her eardrum.

She gets divorced for the second time. She's only 25. Red-haired girl still tries to be a witness. Goes to meetings. Gets told her skirt is too short to give her talk. Walks out of the KH. Will she ever learn????

Tatiana

(((((((((Jim)))))))))....how are you? I will say Hi to Randy.

Yes, I know what you say is true. But the thread about JWS stifling your ambitions got me thinking about this. And it's healing to get it out. Even if no one reads it all. Somehow it eases the pain of "what might have been."

I miss you....I will finish this later.....it's also exhausting and draining......

Love....

April

TheOldHippie

So hunting for Easter Eggs brings happiness, and being a Witness brings poor teeth?

Come on, let us try reality for a change .............

think41self

Old Hippie,

Come on! I believe you're capable of at least a little common sense and human compassion.

She was not equating easter egg hunts with happiness...she was equating easter egg hunts with a normal life with parents who were together and loved them. Sounds a little like real life to me.

And being a Witness, and being forced to be different and not go to college or pursue a secular career......not to mention being poor and always waiting for Armageddon to come and God to "fix" everything does bring poor teeth.

Did you go to the dentist when you were a child? I didn't....my parents couldn't afford it. And my Mom knew Jehovah would give us perfect teeth in the new system, so why bother?

Seen any reality yet?

((((((Tatiana)))))

Tracy

Edited by - think41self on 21 January 2003 8:17:50

Yerusalyim

((((((((((((Tatiana)))))))))))

outnfree

OldHippie -- You are beyond cruel. I cannot believe it. (OH, and btw -- Easter Egg Hunts are delightful for children and their onlooking, loving parents who made the time to cook and color and hid the eggs well -- but not too well -- as an expression of love for their little ones. You may not know this if you were brought up a JW.)

(((((((((((((April))))))))))))))

There is hardly a poster here who wouldn't be interested in what you have to say. The story is a classic contrast essay made all the more poignant because we "know" one of the characters. I'm so sorry you're not the Neiman-Marcus shopping success story, but you ARE one helluva human being!

Love and more hugs,

out

wheelwithinwheel

what happened to the three sisters since 1981?

A tale of three sisters.........

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