Posts by happy1975

19

0-16. My Story.

by serotonin_wraith in

i was raised from the womb until the age of 16 as a jw, i was never really a part of it.

i never got baptized, by the end i hated everything about it.

the worst part was not being able to voice any opinions i had on the religion, not unless i wanted them to fall on deaf ears and be considered immoral.

happy1975

Hi SW,

Thanks for sharing your story. Kudos on getting out when you did, it took me until almost 30 to do what you did at 16.

-Happy

13

Stress and witoid life

by sinis in

funny how witnoids used to preach that they currently lived in "spiritual paradise".

yea!

if you realy stop and think about it, witnoids are under more pressure and stress (dealing with real life and witnoid life) than those who are "worldly".

The stress is what finally got me out. I was so sick of the pressure of never feeling like I was doing enough - study, field service, personal study. Oh, and I also DREADED Tuesdays, Thursdays because those were my meeting nights. There's nothing quite like rushing home from work, wolfing down some food, running through the shower, getting dressed up and then sitting around for two hours getting told that you're not doing QUITE enough....

30

you call it cognitive dissonance. i call it pain

by coolhandluke in

jw
friends

when i was growing up i never watched cartoons.

i didn't play with other kids who were not of the same faith.

i didn't curse.

happy1975

WOW

Incredibly well said. Thank you.

-happy

53

thinking positively - what is the best thing that happened to you or ...

by Crumpet in

jw
friends

.

that you accomplished in the last 24 hours?.

i ask becase i just keep reading lots of gripey posts (with good reason for sure, but i wanted to hear positive stuff no matter how mediocre or ordinary it might sound).. so tell me what was your highspot?

happy1975

I cuddled in bed this morning with my 9 month old baby girl...

-happy

11

The Watchtower Game!

by Confession in

jw
friends

during the nineties, there was a big mexican family that attended our congregation.

while they were not financially well off, they often enjoyed having the friends over for gatherings in their large home.

did it have something to do with the way sister oliveros actually said the word broom-ho?

happy1975

Confession,

Great observation about how that stupid game (I say "stupid" because I too would have been the last participant to figure it out) relates to being trapped in the Org.

Stupid Org....

-happy

20

"Normal"...oh you mean like you?

by wanderlustguy in

jw
friends

funny, the longer i go on, especially with the "new eyes", normal becomes fiction.

there is no real normal, but there is acceptable and unacceptable.

hurting others, that would be unacceptable.. next week i'll be going home, as in home where i grew up and learned the truth and learned what it means to judge, criticise, back stabb, lie, cheat, and cover over things when i'm too weak to face them for what they are.

happy1975

Wander,

Your story sounds so familiar. I still live in the area that I grew up in and I run into old "friends" a few times a year. Last week I ran into one of my former best friends at the grocery store (remind me not to shop at THAT store anymore!) and she was all "hey, it's SO GREAT to see you!!!" (I'm a fader). I had to walk away from our brief conversation reminding myself over and over again that I like myself so much better now and that I'm so much happier. She probably thinks my life is a total train wreck since I left (since that's one of the tools that is used to keep people in), but actually the opposite is true.

Ugh, it's such a struggle, I feel ya.

BTW, I love your avatar.

-Happy

13

My Personal Ad - Update 11/4 see end of post

by Cygnus in

jw
friends

sorry i had to start a new topic but the board's software is not allowing me any replies and with all the newer people here they might want to get to know a little about me.. i was raised in a jw household that wasn't terribly strict, but strict enough where i had no worldly friends and wouldn't even consider college or extracurricular school activities.

baptized at 17. that and getting married just after turning 20 stunted me emotionally and i'm still recovering, though i think i'm doing an okay job.. started working in my father's business and pretty much took it over when he retired and moved to florida in 1995.. quit associating with jws in 1997 at age 25. jw wife left me on the advice of the elders, but she came back 5 months later.. grew my hair very long and pierced my ear.. in spring of 2000 two elders came to my house under the pretense of inviting me to the memorial.

" they then informed me that the real reason they were there was to serve me notice that a judicial hearing was being scheduled and i was asked several times to either attend or put something in writing that i was no longer one of jehovah's witnesses.. i chose to attend the hearing.

happy1975

Hi Cygnus,

It's nice to meet you. Thanks for the history. I would like to agree with the other ladies that the second picture (sans mullet) is a definite improvement!!

Happy

33

Lurker comes out of hiding : )

by happy1975 in

jw
friends

i've been lurking for months, reading your posts nearly every day.

i finally decided to come out of hiding because i need help.

i post on another board that has nothing whatsoever to do with religion and i saw this post-.

happy1975

Thank you all so much for your thoughtful responses. I e-mailed back to her and I feel good about what I was able to say (with your help). You guys rock - but I already knew that!

-Happy

33

Lurker comes out of hiding : )

by happy1975 in

jw
friends

i've been lurking for months, reading your posts nearly every day.

i finally decided to come out of hiding because i need help.

i post on another board that has nothing whatsoever to do with religion and i saw this post-.

happy1975

daystar-

My story is actually pretty boring. I was just sick and tired of feeling that NOTHING I ever did was good enough. Being a perfectionist by nature anyway just made it totally unbearable. I faded and got some therapy and I'm feeling a lot better now. I didn't find this site until I was about a year into my fade. Let's just say it made me feel a whole lot better to find that I wasn't the only one who was driven into a depression. Finding the truth about the truth in all of the posts and links here just sealed the deal for me. Bottom line - I feel like I wasted a lot of years of my life.

candidlynuts-

that statement jumped right out at me too!! I feel like saying - so you'll be fine that you won't be allowed to talk to your kids if they choose another path when they're old enough to decide for themselves? Makes me sick to think about.

Dave-

Thanks. I'm going to take a look at your link and see if there's anything that I feel comfortable with.

Defd-

I know I'm new and all, but shouldn't you be out somewhere banging on doors insead of associating with a bunch of apostates? Just asking : )

-happy

33

Lurker comes out of hiding : )

by happy1975 in

jw
friends

i've been lurking for months, reading your posts nearly every day.

i finally decided to come out of hiding because i need help.

i post on another board that has nothing whatsoever to do with religion and i saw this post-.

happy1975

Hi everyone,

I've been lurking for months, reading your posts nearly every day. I finally decided to come out of hiding because I need help. I post on another board that has nothing whatsoever to do with religion and I saw this post-

Well I'm proud to admit that I study the Bible with Jehovah's Witnesses and recently became active in their congregation. My husband also -- he's a little ahead when it comes to priveleges, like he is allowed to preach from house to house, I still have to go through some questions and see if I qualify, I'm sure I do but waiting for the right moment to ask about doing so. We want our children to grow up devoted in this faith as well

I suddenly felt obligated to warn her, so I sent her a PM that said something like - Hi, I was raised a JW and it is not what it seems. PLEASE investigate further before you commit. I also sent her a link to this site.

She responded with the following e-mail today-

May I ask respectfully, how many years were you in the truth? Why do you think the lifestyle that this religion brings is not what it seems? All we try to do is imitate Jesus, God's Only Begotten Son the very BEST we can. I wouldn't of been offended if you referred it to me (which obviously I know it was meant for me and not the kids since they can't even read and of course I will not allow anyone misguide them).

It cheers me up that you did say you were raise as a Jehovah's Witness. Is it okay to ask what happened that you are now against them? Are your family still Witnesses?

I promise I will not criticize your responses, and will respect your decision to avoid "us". But I ask you politely that you respect ours as well . My kids are GREATLY blessed and I can explain why if you allow first. And they will definitely grow up with the best morals and the best future hope this world can Never offer, of course if they choose to, once they're old enough to make their own decisions. By then they'll know the consequences of departing from the truth which will keep me in peace of mind that I accomplished what God expects from his loyal servants.

If you wish not to respond to this e-mail, well, I just hope that someday you'll realize that being raised as a Jehovah's Witness is a true privilege/real blessing -- I would of loved to grow up steady in this path. At least I found it now. Better than never .

Before I look into that link you offered, I will verify with an elder of the congregation that it is a website from TRUE Jehovah's Witnesses. There are a lot of apostates that like to mislead people especially through the creation of websites that call themselves what they in reality are not. It's one of the Devil's tricky snares to blind us so we can be destroyed along with him in the future sooooo close by.

That is why I'm interested that you answer what happened that you gave up? If you were a fellow sister, and simply discouraged, I would love to be of spiritual support

My problem is that I have NO IDEA how to respond to her, but I want to say something because I wish someone had warned my mother about what she was getting us into back when I was just a baby. I want to say the right thing so that I don't scare her off. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Sorry this post is so long!

-Happy