2583AD (oops!: CE)
Dear Diary,
I've been keeping my head low for a few years now. My investments are paying off and I'm able to provide my mother and myself a decent lifestyle. In my more cynical moments I feel that after 500 years of doing without for the sake of the WBTS, we could probably do with a break. However, due to the various anti-ageing, age-regression and energising treatments Mom and I have been receiving, we are more capable than ever of putting in the hours the Society requires. Sometimes it is even relaxing to pretend to be poor and none too bright and peddle the ideas of a group of people who last had an original thought over 300 years ago - kind of like being on autopilot. The current light on ageing treatments is that it is okay to preserve your current biological age, even if that is 80 or higher, but age regression therapy is not allowed. Therefore Mother could be in trouble if anyone knew. Fortunately it is possible to mask the therapy. Even though Mom is now of a biological age around the mid-twenties, a holoprojection of her aged face and body appears to all the right people (those we program into the system), so she appears to be of the correct age. Again, she is blissfully unaware of either the fact that she's received the treatment (she just feels very well these days - "Praise Adonai", she says), or that people are seeing her any way other than how they used to - the AWs are happy to see her hobbling about and struggling to get through life and staying in her place.
A strange twist to an old entry. The WBTS have realised the huge braindrain which the anti-intelligence chip implant rule has caused is affecting its ability to govern Adonai's People effectively. Although still strongly against the implants in all but exceptional circumstances (reminds me of the attitude towards higher education in the early 21st century), there is something akin to an amnesty going on: all those displaying signs of above average AW intelligence are being promoted into positions of responsibility (while of course being drilled with the necessity of not doing anything with that intelligence other than WBTS administrative work). In a few short years I've gone from nobody to elder to PO of my local KH. This puts me in somewhat of a quandary. Having discovered the joy of having a secret part of my life which is my own, I now find myself not only required to give more of it to a system I feel already has more than its fair share of it, but to demand the same sacrifice of others less fortunate than myself. It is a burden I do not wish to take on, but Fredbert has counselled me to stick with it for the time being - he feels something big is on the horizon. He is now a CO, and has been hearing rumours from New Brooklyn Heights. I will persevere for now; I've learned to trust Fredbert's instincts over the years.
Mom will be along with my cocoa soon, so I'd better sign off.
Goodnight Diary!