I can so relate to this. My hall also had three big familes running it. I was never accepted, but I always thought it was just me, because I'm a person that doesn't fit in easily anywhere. I always wondered why no one ever took me under their wing to work with me, but always made snide remarks about me not doing enough.
Before I came on this board, I had no concept of converted versus born-in. Now I see they are two different worlds.
Great post, wildfell. I also think it might be more to do with turf than religion. The elders in my hall had been there a million years. I wonder if it might have been different in a hall where all the elders were fairly new to the area. And yes, you have no one. Your worldly family is gone and you have no family on the inside. I didn't even have a spouse to come in with me.
In a dozen years, two of the elders never even spoke to me; would turn and go the other way every time I approached them to say hello.
I've been sitting here thinking of all the people I knew - and you know, most of the converted were always on the fringes. Only if you were a somebody in the world were you fawned over. I really think most of those people are gone now....faded away. I always worried when we would lose another one, because they always seemed to be the nice people.