does anyone remember being a child as a JW and not having holiday?

by franklin J 39 Replies latest jw friends

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  High Castle

  Another adult that had a childhood devoid of holidays checking in. I share the rest of the list of experiences, short of baptism. [Has anyone compiled the full list?] My stepfather converted when I was 5; by the time I was 15 I had finished the "fade-out" that so many do - increasingly it appears.

  The question that I want to ask is what shall we call our selves? 'Adult Children of Witnesses' has a therapeutic sound to it. 'Child Soldiers of Jehovah' has a nice twisted tabloid sound to it. What ever we do call ourselves, there is large, and growing group of us adults out there who share common experiences.

  PS. Inside that group there is that subset of us truly warped 'pre -'75ers'. We are not so bad when you get to know us - as long as we are on our 'meds'.
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  sidney

  I hated going into the school library when assembly was on as I could hear what was going on and it sounded good fun. So when I was nine I told my teacher that I could go in to assembly, which he seemed shocked at, so I told him I wasn't a witness anymore! Nearly a whole year past, I really enjoyed assembly, learnt some hymms! Parents evening arrived and my parents came home very cross, when my teacher said " how are you finding life now that you are no longer Jehovahs witnesses!!!" Needless to say I was back in the School Library again and had to pray to Jehovah for forgiveness for being a bad witness!

  Now I have my daughter at school, and she is no different than any of the other children, I would hate for her to go through school as I did, being teased and bullied. She is a happy well adjusted child, what I should have been. Sidney
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  High Castle

  Being herded into the library...it's coming back. Ironically I liked the library. I was free to read or doodle to my heart's content."Don't toss me into the brier patch..."! School spirit - fugedaboutit. Some of us, besides being little witnessess in training also disliked school. I always hoped that among the buildings portrayed going up in flames in our books would be my school.
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  Fe2O3Girl

  Not having birthday and Christmas celebrations really did not bother me, but I was a JW kid that actually did get wrapped presents at other times.
  

  Growing up in the UK, all that fevered patriotism wasn't a problem. I did stand outside school assemblies, and have to walk in at the end with 500 kids staring to hear the announcements. I did get called names, all kids get called names - fat kids, thin kids, ginger kids, short kids and JW kids. In my case, kid with a different accent, kid with an amusing surname, in my teens, kid with the largest breasts in school and in addition a kid with a weird religion. Being C-of-E would not have made my school life one long breeze.

  We don't make such a big organised fuss over Valentines and Halloween here, and we don't have Thanksgiving.
  
  It's different things that I regret. Not being able to go to school discos, not being able to have a boyfriend, that I could introduce to my parents, and see after school. Subtle parts of growing up. Joining Brownies or Girl guides. Other people have those memories, and I can't get it back. I did not want that stuff at the time though.
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  Undecided

  It wasn't that bad for me. My parents had the principal come over to the house and explained all about the flag salute and other things we didn't do. I don't think Christmas was mentioned. We always enjoyed it at school, I even got the Christmas tree form our woods one year. We would even draw names sometimes at school back in the mid 40s. We enjoyed the parties while at school. I hated going out to the homes in service when someone I knew in school lived there. I didn't like standing on the street with the mags. but it wasn't that bad. I think I had a great childhood though and remember the good times I had more than any little embarrasments about the "truth" I had. I think it may have been good for me to be able to take a stand on something my family believed. I think it was latter in life that the "truth" took away so much of my time that I could have enjoyed better. I really don't regret any of my life that I spent in my youth though.

  Ken P.
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  Flowerpetal

  I'm sorry that some of you didn't get any intervention by your parents. In high school, in the '60's, when I was a freshman, and because so many witnesses had attended that school in the past, our principal made an announcement at the first assembly, that any who are JWs should wait outside of the auditorium until the flag salute and the National Anthem was finished. The next year the asst. principal became our new principal, and the guidance couselor became the AP. She was unfamiliar with witnesses staying outside the auditorium until the ceremonies were over...so she had a meeting with us telling us that we need something written down on "church" stationery by our "minister" as to why we refused to do these things. I guess she thought we were being rebellious. So when I got hom, told my mom, called our PO and told him what the AP wanted, he said they didn't do things like that and that my mom would have to go down and explain things to the AP. All the other JW mothers did the same thing...and you know the AP was as sweet as pie with them, but treated us like trash.

  In elementary school, (the '50's) we had a very strict principal. She demanded that all the school learn the 23 Psalm, the Preamble to the Constitution, Psalm 100. and a lengthy part of the Declaration of Independence which had to be recited at each assembly. I saw no problem with conforming to her request, as the scriptures were from the Bible so I dutifully memorized them, as well as the Preamble, and other things. And in class (7th and 8th grade) we were required to memorize the Gettysburg Address. All those things were no biggy to me....Maybe it was the times I grew up in. <shrug>

  I was never told I was a servant of Jehovah as a kid by my mom, although she would always express hope that I would be one some day...
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  Flowerpetal

  I forgot to mention the holidays while in grammar school. Well being the only child, I guess I was a little spoiled--so one year I wanted to be in the Christmas pageant and I cried and carried on, and my mom allowed it, even though she was a witness. Maybe my "unbelieving" dad had a part in talking her into it--but I was an angel. But that was 3rd grade....and I think that was the year I had a make-shift costume for Halloween during school hours. But later on, I stopped insisting on practicing these holidays and my mom would come to the school to explain to the teacher as to why.

  Being with my classmates, which a lot were Catholic, we would have discussions on what we were
  "allowed" to do and not "allowed" to do, and since they used the word "allowed" first, and would say something was against their religion, then I would use the same words and explain to them what I was and wasn't allowed to do because of my religion. They didn't seem to have a problem with that as it was understood that religions "allow" and "disallow" certain things. Again, I believe it was the times I grew up in. I guess there was more control on society, in general.
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  PurpleV

  I think I was just 4-5yrs old... when the boom fell and SANTA got BAD !!! and BIRTHDAYS got gone..and all that was left in our house and at school ..was pain, violence and the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society.

  Well if that doesn't just pretty much say it all. Wow.
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  invictus

  I can only relate how our children reacted when we told them ,about 8 months ago , that they can sing national anthem, sing happy birthday song to their classmates,celebrate holidays - our kids had their eyes opened wide and the middle one just asked :" you mean we are going to be normal kids?" ,and then they all started jumping and hugging each other.

  My husband and I just looked each other - no words- what else to say but -glad we are out!

  invictus
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  xjw_b12

  Shotgun :

  Then in high school a fellow dub introduced me to pot...that's a another topic.

  That was you !