Hi Flipper, my story is not exciting, it seems very average for someone brought up as a JW. The following is a brief outline:
About me, I am in my 50's, my parents got the "truth" when I was 3, we were in British Columbia, my parents moved from there to Perth Ontario in 1958 to be where the need was great. They built quite a little congregation and my Dad was a very zealous Overseer but he was mean to me and it left a bad taste for religion in my mouth because I associated the bible and the religion with how he treated me. I urged to get baptized at 15, I didn't want too, I didn't think I was ready. My Dad kept at me and said that a daughter of a Congregation Servant has to show a good example. I was taken out of school in grade 10 at 16 and forced to become a regular pioneeer. I hated it, but I was afraid of my Dad. We moved to Brockville when I was 16. I pioneered there, then we moved to Ingleside, near Cornwall. My parents wouldn't let me have any friends, not even JW's, I sat at home with them or went from door to door and hated my life. I got fat . The minute I turned 18 I left home, I borrowed some money from a kindly sister in the Cornwall congregation, got on a train and moved to Hamilton. I started dating a Armenian brother there, got engaged right away and he started planning my life, he was a total control freak, It was worse than being with my parents. So I took off to Florida. My parents searched for me and brought me back to Brockville to stay with some witnesses, I didn't want anything to do with the Religion so purposely Got DF. My parents disowned me, they were special Pioneers at the time, I was friendless and got involved with a guy in Brockville who helped me as I was so emotionally distraught. I thought it was the truth, I was so messed up and had nightmares constantly, thought I was going to die at Armageddon. I felt that way until this year actually. I moved to Montreal for awhile with my boyfriend after I was DF. My parents decided to talk to me in 1974 because my Dad left the religion, he was stumbled when he saw how money talked and the favoritism of those with it. I decided to go back at the age of 28 because I feared it was the truth and that my little babies would die at Armageddon. I tried to stay in but it was difficult with the babies and a unbelieving husband. I didn't find many in the congregations at that time to be too supportive or Kind. Only the so called spiritually weaker ones were nice to me. My Mom stayed faithful in the religion, she was really into it, she passed away in Oct 2006. I had difficulty being alone with her because she would always start preaching doom and gloom to me. It was so depressing, especially when I still was afraid it was the truth. Now I can talk about it and say I don't agree with it because I won't hurt her feelings now and she won't disown me. I am not DF or DA officially at this time. I just don't have anything to do with it and I am so happy to have the internet and to discover that I am NOT alone.
