Posts by hartstrings

11

Commencement Exercises ??

by IT Support in

jw
friends

we received the following card in the mail today from a young us friend:

the senior class of xx high school announces the commencement exercise <at time> <at place>... .

she also enclosed in the envelope a couple of pretty photos of herself.

hartstrings

Parents and friends are present and many clap as their child/friend walk across the stage.

I went through my entire school years as a JW and with two other JW's in my class. They graduated early because they hated school. I loved school and wanted to get a couple extra classes under my belt. When commencement day came, my parents refused to attend because it was considered worldly in my congregation. While the other two JW's were invited to participate, they were swayed by the prevailing elder body's attitude. Of course, being that I am very stubborn, I attended and brought my JW boyfriend from another cong and a friend from another cong. I received honors and wasn't about to blow off what little praise I received in my life, especially since college was completely out of the question for a future pioneer. Bleck!!! Fourteen years later, I am especially glad I attended as it was one less thing that the JW's stole away from me, I still remember my boyfriend (20 yrs old) whistling at me as I walked up to get my diploma. He, he...

When I decided to get my college degree at the age of 31 (still a JW in "good standing" but starting to see the light) my parents again freaked out. Why would I want to pursue a "worldly" accomplishment and not just aim toward pioneering again. The funny thing is I have a successful business doing what I love, but I will always regret not going to college if I don't accomplish it. I felt the opportunity was stolen from me. As all my schoolmates were partying the dorms, I was getting married and moving where the need was greater. I will never be someone who parties in the dorm, but I crave learning and plan to do it just for the experience. Does that make sense to anyone but myself??

HS

29

Just got my MFA

by under74 in

jw
friends

yeah....reality still hasn't set in yet but i'm done with grad school.

finished my thesis and my mfa show on thursday.

still tired.

hartstrings

Wow, what an accomplishment!!

Congratulations U74!!

Revel in your success!!!

Tell us about your thesis. I'm a portrait photography artist, so I would love to hear all about it.

HS

54

What were your reasons for not liking the ministry school?

by LongHairGal in

i dropped out years ago because i couldn't stand getting together with sisters i didn't like to do a talk.

i hated it with a passion!!

i do realize that you did learn but what i resented was that the sisters were inflicted on each other in a way that i don't think the brothers were.

hartstrings

How in the heck did they expect us to stick to a time limit, follow an outline, use a householder that required everything written out word for word and make sense all at once. What a joke. I would go from giving a presentation to 500 people as part of my day job to playing "house" on stage at night in order to get my gold star/smiley sticker,

57

How Do YOU Feel Knowing That YOU Were In A Cult?

by minimus in

jw
friends

for years, i refused to think of the witnesses as a "cult".

too harsh and restrictive of a word for me......but there is no denying that we were all in a mind controlling cult.

are you embarrassed or uncomfortable knowing that you belonged to a cult just like the moonies and the branch davidians are/werw a cult?

hartstrings

Sad - for all the tens of thousands of JW's who have sacraficed their lives or lost loved ones because of the lies. Sad that I lost my childhood. Sad that I will never be able to join varsity volleyball or attend my senior prom...Sad that I didn't get to celebrate my birthday and that I missed out on all the really cool presents I would have gotten from my grandma.

Angry - that I wasted my entire 20's going door to door wasting my breath annoying people. Angry that my sisters and parents will continue to shun me and treat me as a the scum on their shoe.

HS

21

was your cong like out of a chapter of Peyton Place?

by littlerockguy in

jw
friends

the first congregation i went to basically was warm and friendly even though i didn't develop very many close friends there but some of the others i went to were rather scandulous in more ways than one.

one that i went to im surprised anybody is still there that has a conscious with all that went on.

was yours like that?

hartstrings

I grew up in the same cong. I remember praying for God's will to be done and the injustice to be brought out. Of course, I thought I was being punished for all the making out I did with the sisters in my hall. We were all 13-15 and would have slumber parties where we would go at it under the covers. Of course, these girls (found out later) were victims of sexual abuse at the hands of their fathers who had privileges in the cong.

The curcuit I lived in as an adult was so rife with political adultry it was a laugh and a half. The money you slid the CO under the table was equal to the amount of "privileges" you got at assemblies, etc. I look back at this and laugh at why I even cared. But I was so torn inside. I couldn't rectify why I could belong to something that proported to be run by God yet was so very, very wrong.

Do you know what made me cry at every assembly, and I kid you not. I would cry when they would have experiences because they would use the same exact politically-connected individuals to tell their experiences on stage. All I could think about was the sweet, dear sisters who humbly trudged away every day (despite old age and failing health) and had faithfully believed and yet nobody acknowledged their contribution because they were too poor to give under the table or didn't have the right husband or father.

I'm feeling sad; off to scrounge up some chocolate...

HS

18

Any experience with spirits?

by hartstrings in

.

have you ever had experience with the supernatural?.

.

hartstrings

This was a sincere question, I'm not trying to make fun of it. I usually don't care for anecdotal proof, but I figured I would ask anyway.

You have to wonder why people are so fascinated with the spirit world. Is it all an urban legend? Are all these people making it up or are they really experiencing the supernatural world in their lives? If it is real, then I am forced to face all that comes with the unknown. I've been so gullible for so long (being in an organization that I truly believed) that I HATE facing this issue and trying to trust again.

I do appreciate all of your sincere honesty and candor.

HS

18

Any experience with spirits?

by hartstrings in

.

have you ever had experience with the supernatural?.

.

hartstrings

I was always trained growing up in the "truth" to believe that if you watch or read material concerning the supernatural you would have basically invited the spirit world into your home. So, as I sit here watching "Medium," I was wondering if I will have new "friends."

HS

18

Any experience with spirits?

by hartstrings in

.

have you ever had experience with the supernatural?.

.

hartstrings

Have you ever had experience with the supernatural?

Thanks,

HS

11

The next stage of the recovery process, farewell friends

by wanderlustguy in

jw
friends

i had to stop back in for a little bit (taking a short break at work) to post something with some actual substance more than my occasional welcomes or one-liners.

not too long ago i posted a pair of angry tirades about how much i hated the organization that i feel was instrumental in taking from us the basic things we all are owed by our families.

i was so angry at them, hate would be an appropriate term for my emotions.

hartstrings

Without using platitudes, I do have to say that we all are going through a sort of grief process. Each stage comes with different decisions and challenges. We give and take from one source and then move on to the next.

I wish you the best in the next stage of your life Donnie. Do you have any idea as to where you are headed? After my anger subsided, I decided to embrace the issues facing the minorities in our society(GLBT, women, race, and children). I wanted to make sure that their voices were heard loud and clear. I was sick of all the judging that took place in the borg and wanted to go in the complete opposite direction by embracing all people regardless of the life they were born into. I hope your path brings you genuine satisfaction.

Take care,

HS

17

Do You Shine on Your Job?

by prophecor in

have you noticed that some people just have that certain star appeal on the job?

some folks have an almost celebrity status while others prefer to stay quietly in the background.

many just are naturally popular where they work.

hartstrings

I own my own art business and love what I do. I belong to many networking groups and love to go out and party. Last night dh and I were at a black tie affair where one of my pieces was auctioned off. I will never go back to working for someone. Owning your own business is a lot of work, but at the end of the day, what you put in is what you get out.

HS