damselfly

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Posts by damselfly

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  12

  Not recongnizing family

  by damselfly in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have been out if the jw's since i was 18 and i moved clear across the country.

  i moved back into my hometown around 3 years later, and promptly got kicked when i was down by the jc ( who lied about their reasoning.. but that is a different thread entirely!!!!).

  so needless to say i no longer have a family of any kind.last night i was in the grocery store and noticed that a woman was passing by with her cart and sort of half smiling / half sad looking at me.

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  damselfly

  Sorry about that, Damselfly. These people are so blind that you may just be setting yourself up for more heartbreak by trying to get through to them...I wish you well though. Maybe you family will be more reasonable than mine...

  It used to really upset me when I saw family members after I was D/F but after so many years the pain just isn't there anymore. The only one that still hurts is my grandmother because everytime she sees me she breaks down in tears.I tend to switch directions because I can't stand to see her cry. As for my mom, believe it or not she will talk to me in public ( although she is constantly looking to see if other JW's are around) and she calls me probably about 5-6 times per year just to chat. We always avoid talking about religion specificaly but I am up to date on most of the latest JW gossip.
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  35

  "College, oh no!" PT 1-New guy here

  by theundecided2004 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hello everyone, i have been keeping up with posts on this board for about four years now, been a member for about one year but have never had the courage to make my first post.

  so now i'm going to make that first step to get rid of that fear i had of betraying myself, and vent my experiences and frustrations with this faith.

  i think this board will be a good way for me to make acquaintances of people with similar feelings that i have regarding the jehovah's witnesses, as well as a good outlet for my frustrations as a jw, and get some advice as to maybe getting a reasonable exit strategy in the near future.

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  damselfly

  Welcome aboard! I am new myself but have been made to feel welcome by everyone who responds.

  Please feel free to share whatever is on your mind

  Damselfly
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  30

  Weird Field Service Experiences

  by PaulJ in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  did anyone have any really weird calls?

  i remember one when i was aux pioneering- some guy said he belived in 'the book of the yellow man' which he said was based on the belief that aliens came to earth in a hot air balloon and created mankind... or something like that.

  he was an odd chap.

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  damselfly

  When I was still quite young, maybe 9 or 10, I was allowed to sleep over at my cousin's house on a friday night with the condition that I would have to go out in the service with them the next morning. Being a lovely warm summer evening we camped out on the lawn in our tent and sleeping bags. We went to the store and purchased penny candy, stayed up really late giggling and telling scary stories, decided which boys in the hall were the cutest and in general had a great time. Morning came really early and my cousin and I got "assigned" to work with 2 elderly sisters in the hall. We spent all of the very, very hot morning going door to door with them. We did not get a coffee break, no water was offered dispite the extreme heat. Nearing the last call of the seemingly 'morning that would not end,' we all stopped at one of the sister's return visits. As we were all STANDING in the overheated kitchen I started to not feel so good. The next thing I know I am hitting the floor in a dead faint!

  Magazines placed = 0

  Money spent on penny candy = $0.75

  Look on householder's face as a wee Damselfly hit the floor? = priceless
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  12

  Are emails from JW's who know you've left cries for help?

  by kwintestal in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as a jw, i always wondered why someone would leave 'the truth'.

  obviously though as they were df'd or had da'd themselves you couldn't just go up to them and ask what the deal was.

  yesterday we got an email from a friend of mrs. kwin who moved 3 hours away last fall, basically saying "i missed not seeing you at the assembly.

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  damselfly

  When I first left the JW's I had a huge flurry of phone calls, letters etc from "concerned" family members and friends. Not one of them was a cry for help, they were all a guilt trip of some form in an attempt to change my mind.

  I wish I had been brave enough to speak my mind about the real reasons why I left. I say write her back with a brief explanation for your decision and tell her that you and Mrs. Kwin will be open to more discussion when/if she wants.

  I'm assuming you can't be that concerned about the elders finding out about your reasons for leaving as you were quite vocal in the press lately? The friend needs to remember that she was the one that initiated contact not the other way around I'm sure she will think twice about sharing the information

  Damselfly
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  12

  Not recongnizing family

  by damselfly in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have been out if the jw's since i was 18 and i moved clear across the country.

  i moved back into my hometown around 3 years later, and promptly got kicked when i was down by the jc ( who lied about their reasoning.. but that is a different thread entirely!!!!).

  so needless to say i no longer have a family of any kind.last night i was in the grocery store and noticed that a woman was passing by with her cart and sort of half smiling / half sad looking at me.

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• 

  damselfly

  I have been out if the JW's since I was 18 and I moved clear across the country. I moved back into my hometown around 3 years later, and promptly got kicked when I was down by the JC ( who lied about their reasoning.. but that is a different thread entirely!!!!)

  So needless to say I no longer have a family of any kind.Last night I was in the grocery store and noticed that a woman was passing by with her cart and sort of half smiling / half sad looking at me. I gave her a smile back and continued on my way. It wasn't until I was in the next aisle over that I realized it was my cousin!!! I can't believe I didn't know who she was.We grew up together ( next door!!!) and she is my age so we were in a lot of the same classes in school as well. I looked for her in the store but she had vanished. At least I know what she looks like now, next time I see her I'll say hello and see if she's willing to have a conversation.
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  14

  i have lots of thoughts.ooohhh god

  by tsunami_rid3r in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  where to begin.

  yes, i wanted to meet new girls because i never hang out with any of the girls that are in my phone anymore and my friends are busy with their stuff like hanging out with their friends or hanging out with their chick friends.

  why i never hang out with the girls i knew?

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  damselfly

  Tsunami, it breaks my heart to read your posts sometimes. Please just hang in there. When I was 17 & 18 I had a lot of the same thoughts going thru my mind and speaking from my personal experience the more I thought about them the worse I got.It wasn't until I left home that I was able to start to put things into perspective. Things will get better once you get to college and put a little distance between your old life and your new life.

  Damselfly
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  16

  Kinesiology - what is the current stand? (Any elders?)

  by ithinkisee in

  1. watchtower
  2. medical

  i don't feel like pretending i have genuine concern to go to a local elder and ask ... so i ask you .... what is the deal with kinesiology as far as jws?

  the 94 wt where they talk about it sounds generally like the answer is no.

  everything i read about the origins are traced back to some chiropractor who supposedly had occult origins ... .

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  damselfly

  Nevertheless, is what they do still based on a belief in forces within each human that can be tested or seen only by certain people claiming special powers?As a bodyworker I use a combination of energy techniques in my sessions. Sometimes it's Reiki, sometimes Therapeutic Touch, I do not claim to have 'special powers' nor does anyone I personally know or know of who does bodywork of any kind. This includes; Massage Therapists, Kinesiologists, Chiropractors, Osteopaths, Physiotherapists, Nurses who perform therapeutic touch etc. I believe that everyone has the ability to feel/sense the body's energy fields and yes they do exist. This is a great example of the organization with their heads in the sand regarding the "unknown".
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  34

  What have you gained?

  by bagpuss in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  its two years since i last attended a meeting or thought of myself as a jw.

  despite the prophesys of doom and gloom for those who leave the org i have gained lots and lost nothing.. i have much more time to spend with my husband which has led to our relationship improving fantastically.. i have a better relationship with my children who stopped going to meetings when they were teenagers.. i have become much closer to my family (i've just returned from yorkshire from my great nephews 1st birthday party.

  my confidence has grown dramatically as i no longer view myself as worthless.. the guilt of not doing enough has gone.. i now have real friends.. the list goes on, but i really would like to hear what you've gained or hope to gain by leaving the borg.

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  damselfly

  Self respect

  True love for myself and for others

  Inner peace
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  3

  What do you wish you had prior to your exit?

  by kwintestal in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  one of the reasons that i stayed a jw for as long as i did was because i didn't know where to start my research about the wt.

  i was scared of the stigma that jw's gave internet sites, so i avoided them for months after my departure, only visiting upon the advice of relatives.

  i was in my mid-twenties, and had grown up being told my whole life that i was in "the truth".. it was books that got me out, reading apocolypse delayed, coc, and gentile times made up my mind.

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  damselfly

  I think that what would have helped me was 'accidental' news stories, either in print or television. I remember as a teenager if a specific news-magazine( ie Dateline) was going to be shown we would be counseled at the KH to avoid it. However if during the nightly news broadcast a story re JW's was shown you would watch it not knowing if it was going to be negative or not. The same goes for articles in the newspapers or magazines. I feel that most JW's are very wary of viewing/reading anything that will appear to be obviously against the organization as most of the documentarys are, but I think that they would feel 'safe' watching the local newscaster talk about the religion, or read an editorial/news story in their local paper.

  I don't know if this story has been linked on this site but here it is anyway!

  www.thecoast.ca/issues/250903/feature.html
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  14

  Lets give a big welcome to damselfly!

  by kwintestal in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  welcome!!!

  kwin

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  damselfly

  Stop it ........... you're making me blush

  Well ok you all continue if you like.