Have you been able to make up for the lost years? (page 3)

blondie

Come on guys!

I went back to school in my 30's. I found I was not alone. There were people there as older adults for a variety of reason.

They didn't take school seriously when they were in. They spent 2 years boozing and cutting classes in college. Now they were married and a parent and wanted to get a better job to support their family.

They didn't go on school because they got married. Now hubby has dumped them and they have to support themselves and the kids because he is not paying child support.

They did go to college but took something safe they weren't really interested in. Now at the age of 50, their interests have changed and they are back in school.

They did get a college scholarship as a football player and played with an NFL team for 2 years until their knee blew out. Unfortunately, they spent all that time in college playing football and not studying. Now they want to lift themselves out of an entry level job to support their family.

They didn't go to school because their family didn't have the money, or they had to get a job right away to help support their family. Now their parents and siblings can go it on their own and they are going to school at the age of 28.

They didn't go on to college because none of their friends did. They just partied hearty with them. Now at the age of 47 after having come clean from drugs and alcohol, they are pursuing their education.

They devoted most of their life to a religious institution. At the age of 58, they decided it was not for them and are back in college to get a counseling degree. Nope, not a JW, a Catholic nun.

This is from a survey I took of my classmates for a project I was working on in college. At first some of these people thought their life was over too and nothing could be gained. But they overcame that feeling, picked themselves up and got back in the game.

Some sayings I put on my refrigerator.

It ain't over till it's over.--Yogi Berra

It's never too late until you're dead.--Malcolm Forbes

mizpah

What a waste of time it is to dwell on the negatives of the past. XJWs are not the only ones to look back with some regrets. People make wrong decisions all the time. Hindsight is always better than foresight. The important thing is not to live in the past. There is nothing we can do to change that. It is the present and the future than we have some control over.

There were some positive things we learned as JWs. We learned public speaking by being on the platform in the service meetings and ministry school. We learned to express ourselves when meeting the public from door to door. We learned the discipline of study.

We can use now use these things to improve our lives.

Carmel

Welcome Woodland! I left the grasp of the JUU cult as a teenager. Lucky for me the brainwashing about not going to college was diluted by my foster parents and lady luck. I got in trouble with some buddies of mine and the parole officer asked me what I would like to do with my life. I told him I wanted to try out for minor league baseball (Seattle Rainiers) or play college basket ball. He got me a tryout as well as an offer for a scholarship at the local Jr. College for basket ball. For some reason, I had a feeling if I took the scholarship I would have twice the chance to succeed and indeed it ended up that way. Once I got into the intellectual atmosphere of college, I couln't turn back in spite of the fact that I lost the bb scholarship due to an injury.

I know the indoctrination of my early years affected my outlook on everything, made me skeptical of everything and everyone, but in a way that was healthy. My professors enjoyed the challenge I represented and it opened a lot of doors.

I can only reinforce what the others have said that learning is a life-long endeavor and you can always benefit from more education regardless of the age. Go for it! You won't regret having the rotten mortar removed from your brick wall of preconceived notions. I only caution you to be aware of how subtle the college environment is. Many will claim that you are getting a fair and balanced education, but ultimately every professor and every educator has his/her subjectivity and it often taints the context of a given subject, especially in the humanities. The hard sciences equally have their prejudices of which you need to be aware of...

best of luck

carmel

DungeonMaster

Re: Have you been able to make up for the lost years?

Hell no! And I want a refund.

sens

no

PurpleV

One thing I realized that the organization doesn't help parents to see, is that it is better for your kids to be in college with kids their own age, than out in the workforce from high school--working with adults who could corrupt young minds before they are prepared for it. That is.....if your kids do not want to pioneer which I'm glad my mom let me have that choice. I did pioneer for a year but went back to working. Not that everybody is bad in the workforce, but I think the association there makes them grow up faster sometimes than what would happen naturally. I know it happened with me at my first job, when I started working right out of high school. People looked out for themselves and didn't care about young, naieve people just starting out

Amen to that. I was a 17 year old born 'n raised jw and pretty hot stuff when I went to work in an office as a secretary after turning down scholarships. I was also totally clueless and way too trusting. They chewed me up and spit me out for breakfast. It was awful.

Have you been able to make up for the lost years?