i am already thinking of ideas.
my sister had an online relationship with a man from holland (they are now married in the us) anyhow, they would send eachother packages and the coolest things he would send was different foods from there... cookies the us doesn't have, chocolate spread for toast.... this is my first gift exchange since i was a kid, so anyone have some ideas?
( is this kosher to ask?
This is so exciting!!!
I collect ornaments whenever I travel so anything that represents the area and culture you live in and that looks handcrafted would be perfect. Love the color pink and blue. Just started surfing so anything surf related would also be fun.
FreeChick
hope this hasnt been posted already, if it has someone tell me as i dont want to step on anyones toes !!.
well christimas will soon be here !!.
gadget did a great job of organising the forum gift exchange the last couple of years so i thought i would give him a break and volunteer to organise it this year.. for those that are new basically what it involves is that those who want to join in will post to this thread and then pm me their name and address.
Still taking names?
Thank you for organizing this!!! It's a fabulous idea...
i was just watching the news about an organization called bundles of love that puts together kits for new parents that can't afford to get things for their newborns.
it was a touching piece.
one of the volunteers talked about why she decided to help out and the first thing that came to my mind was how ashamed i am of how as part of jw i would have instinctively found someway to discredit her kindess as just another worldly person walking blindly through satan's world.
I know how you feel. My mom was living with a sister after she left my abusive elder father of 24 years. Anyway, my mom paid rent to this sister, etc. but then she got sick. The elders came and told my mom that the sister didn't want her to live there anymore, even though she was still able to pay rent and utilities, and they handed my mom a list of homeless shelters they felt she should check out.
And we were always told how horrible the world is, but they pushed my mom to these very charities.
FreeChick
it was on the history of the morman religion.
one of the docs i work for is morman.
i always try to find something to chitchat with the docs with, so i asked him about his religion.
I'm sorry you are having a rough day today. I had that exact realization a couple of months ago and it was quite devastating. I'm still angry about it, but trying very hard to get a support group around me so that I can starting doing some of the things that I missed out on.
I hope you can find some peace soon.
FreeChick
i'm sure this question has been asked before .
i've come a long way in my thinking.
a very long way!
I appreciate the comment that a couple people made about being more honest now then when a witness. I hadn't though of that, but it's so true. No more half-truths to the JW's or non-JW's. No more lying to myself. I was born and raised a JW and always lived in fear. I didn't think I would ever leave, but always wanted to. I hated going to meetings, service and assemblies.
I always get the answer from my elder father that I had the choice to not become a witness. True, no gun was pointed at me. But, when threatened that I would lose my family, be kicked out of the house, or hear things like those kids are getting baptized what's your problem. Oh and one time in my senior year of school (age 18) I finally just left the house and went to a dance at school. Came home and the entire living room was full of open magazine volumes and I had to sit down for a couple of hours to hear how bad I had been. Yea, I had a choice...not!
FreeChick
ok, i'm writing this thru tears as i just found out in the last 5 minutes.
my dad died in august, and they had been together just 1 or 2 weeks over 70 years married!
i didn't expect her to last without him, and visa versa.. i just tried to call my sister, and no answer there.
Brenda,
I'm so very sorry for your loss and the pain you are going through. (((hug)))
FreeChick
many of us were victims of various kinds of abuse: physical, emotional, sexual and definitely spiritual abuses.
many people have created an atmosphere where it is finally safe for us to tell our stories.
we do this for a variety of reasons.
Lady Lee,
Thank you for this thread it is extremely well written. I have been thinking many of the points you brought up. I feel so much better today after finding this site and reading other's comments and knowing that we aren't alone in our pain.
FreeChick.
prior to the donation arrangement, what was their mode of operation.
since my girlfirend emphatically denies that they have ever sold their publication and are not door to door saleman, im wondering how this was done?.
if a pioneer was at you door trying to give you a magazine, did he ask for money?.
I remember when I was really young we asked for a .10 contribution to pay for the printing costs for the awake and then it went up at some point but I can't remember to how much. But we asked for specific contributions for everything. There were set prices, but then we had to pay at the book counter to get them to place in service. There used to be a little chart with the items and their corresponding prices or "contributions" it was printed up and by the the monthly time cards and invitations. Actually we were encouraged to never give away the literature unless we felt someone was truly interested.
I think it was in the late 80's that they went to donations. It was weird to go and get the magazines and not pay after all those years.
jw theology suggests that the work of gathering in the "144,000" has all but ended , particularly since 1935 , and that the number will inevitably diminish to nil.
indeed , some jws maintain that all the anointed will have died and resurrected before armageddon arrives.
the watchtower claims that the fact (?
I haven't thought about all this in years. Isn't armegedon (can't even spell it anymore) supposed to come once all the anointed have passed away or something like that?
They are going to have to spin out quite a story in a couple of years about why they are still here. (eye roll)
FreeChick
>>she was by herself which i thought was kind of strange.
don't they have to go in groups of 2?.
during these hit-n-run tract campaigns they often go to doors by themselves.
I'm on the "Do Not Call" list! woohoo
Every couple of years they come around and I have to get them to put me back on the list.
