also posted on the yuku forum.. i thought it might be amusing to make a list of things i remember when i was a dub that we couldn't have or own or wear.
(some of these things vary by where you live, in other places dubs have them, it just depends).
obviously the list goes on forever, but feel free to add things.
I got in trouble once as a teen because an elder spied a sci-fi book that I was reading and left laying on a table...2250 AD I think it was. Mom and I both got a lecture and then she went through my books and picked out a bunch that I was ordered to take out and burn in our burn-barrel. Some of them went, but I remeber chucking some under a big peony plant and then sneaking out after she was in bed and bringing them back in.
Justification: we know what the future holds...Jah's New Order....
just wanted to introduce myself.
i went to the kh for the first time 2 weeks ago...and will go again tomorrow.
i don't believe anything witnessy...(i was raised in the assembly of god church and now the closest thing i "do" with religion is yoga or sometimes the buddhist temple).... but the man i'm in love with is a df'd jw (we've been together for 6 years).... and he wants to get reinstated just to talk to his family again (i can assure you he does not believe it).... and he wants his family to accept me because we are about to get married... so, i'm going to meetings...its very interesting, but only because it shows me more about how he was raised.
5. he does not believe anything JW
He is going to have to lie like crazy to get reinstated, then. I would think you'd have to get married and then he could try for reinstatement. But he is going to have to do more than just go to the occasional meeting...he's going to have to go to EVERY meeting. He's going to have to meet with the elders repeatedly. He's going to have to profess repentance, remorse and regret (over and over and over). He's going to have to study the Bible with someone.
And then...you'll be back to what I wrote before. If his son is with you and you have birthday cards on a shelf or a Christmas tree or ANYTHING the least bit not allowed the deal will be up. The ex-wife will be asking the son to watch for this stuff and if he sees anything like this it will go to the elders. When I was early in my fade, they "blamed" my husband for some of that stuff (we had a Christmas tree, for instance). BUT that won't work for you. He will be expected to be head of the household and will be responsible for what you do. You will have to keep up this charade for as long as he doesn't want to be disfellowshipped again.
AND it won't just be you...any children you have together will have to live like this as well. The only thing that makes being raised in this religion bearable is if you are a true believer. You will be asking your children to live like this EVEN THOUGH YOU DON'T believe. Are you ready to tell any children you have together that they can't have a birthday party in case their stepbrother (or grandparents-bf's family) catch wind of it?
but but but....humans have only been around for 6000 years.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15540464.
my dad (49) (who was an elder for 10 year and hasnt been to the meetings now since april when i stopped going) sent a message to a younger unbaptised brother (19) in my congregation to see if they would like to get together and jam on their guitars.
the younger brother responded that he would like to but since my dad hasnt been to the meetings in a long time he feels its innapropriate.. needless to say my dad was a little pi**ed but at the same time he cant understand how he is also now being shunned despite the fact that he isnt even disfellowshipped.
why do these people show such conditional love when jesus taught the absolute opposite?.
OK, this seems to work on our desktop.
In 1977 I made the decision to go on to college. My dearest friend in the congregation told me that if I did, she would "mark" me. She wasn't the only one...instant pariah. I hadn't broken a single Biblical rule. I was a very good Witness girl. But I was definitely marked.
I made some really wonderful friends in college and I often thought about the scriptures where Jesus was asked how to identify the true religion and his answer was, basically, "they love one another". (Not going to drag my NWT out to look up the exact wording). I thought that if that was the ultimate benchmark, the Witnesses weren't "it".
my dad (49) (who was an elder for 10 year and hasnt been to the meetings now since april when i stopped going) sent a message to a younger unbaptised brother (19) in my congregation to see if they would like to get together and jam on their guitars.
the younger brother responded that he would like to but since my dad hasnt been to the meetings in a long time he feels its innapropriate.. needless to say my dad was a little pi**ed but at the same time he cant understand how he is also now being shunned despite the fact that he isnt even disfellowshipped.
why do these people show such conditional love when jesus taught the absolute opposite?.
i have deceided that this year i would like (if you will indulge me) lots of different traditions from lots of different countries and cultures.... so what have you got??.
i also want to hear what makes your christmas super special... what do you do to make up for all those lost years.. babysprout really believes in santa... all the kids in her class have been telling her he isn't real.
i mean what is this, a class full of dubbies??
My son keeps bees (2 hives). I showed him that we could set a family up with a beehive in his name for one of his gifts. His response, "Are you CRAZY! I want stuff." Sigh...sometimes my kids are wonderful human beings. Sometimes they're just teenagers.
Jewel-who might ask for this for Christmas myself, instead.
i homeschool my son, he has just been accepted into the local community college in the dual-enrollment program.
he scored higher than average for english and slightly above average on math.
i don't homeschool because of the 'worldly' kids at the school.
We homeschooled...our oldest went to Kindergarten and two months of first grade-the younger two were homeschooled all the way through.
Now: Oldest daughter is an honor student working toward her BS in law enforcement. She also has a full-time, management job in retail. Middle daughter is a senior (also honor student) at a private university working on a double major in Environmental Biology and Chemistry. She is president of the science department's Web of Life club. My youngest (son) is a sophomore (also straight A's) working on a double major in Physics and Engineering. He also assistant-teaches a chilren's karate class and just earned his black belt.
Our biggest equipment investment was a telescope (binocular). I always said the sciences were easy to teach...they're all around us, all the time.
Socialization: Kids do need to be socialized and I've seen homeschoolers make mistakes here. Should they treat everyone respectfully? Yes. Should they expect everyone to treat them respectfully? No. Should you try to teat others fairly? Yes. Is life always fair? No. Should you be responsible and accept responsibility for your behavior? Yes. Will trying to do the right thing always be rewarded? Not always, but in the long run it will make your life easier and more successful.
We had tons of fun and learned a lot of things together. I wouldn't change that history with my kids for the world.
Or...It's my husband's bumper sticker. Worked for our first Christmas tree 27 years ago!
Hey, I like that. Suppose if I drove around with that on my bumper I'd be moved from d'assoc. to d'fellowshipped after all these years?
i have deceided that this year i would like (if you will indulge me) lots of different traditions from lots of different countries and cultures.... so what have you got??.
i also want to hear what makes your christmas super special... what do you do to make up for all those lost years.. babysprout really believes in santa... all the kids in her class have been telling her he isn't real.
i mean what is this, a class full of dubbies??
I made an advent tree out of 3/4 in plywood...simple pine tree shape about 2 ft high. We stained the top part green and the trunk brown. I pounded in 25 brads scattered across the tree part with one at the top. We put it up on December 1 and hang a little ornament everday until Christmas Day when a shiny brass snowflake gets hung on the top one. My kids loved this when they were little and kept scrupulous track of whose turn it was to put on the day's ornament. They still make sure we get it out.
We fill the stockings on Christmas Eve, but we don't open any stocking stuff until New Years morning. There is a TON of stuff for Christmas morning so holding off on the stocking things stretches things out a bit and made New Year's fun for them even when they were too young to make it to midnight.
We found a tiny song sparrow nest and put a glittery bird ornament in it, a glass pickle and a walnut that we decorated with glitter. Each of the kids hangs one of these on the tree at the very end and the rest of us look for it...there are traditional stories associated with each of these.
My husband reads Clement Moore's "Night Before Christmas" every Christmas Eve. Last year they were 22, 20 and 18 and when I asked, they said they still wanted Dad to do it. This year my oldest will have her own place and I'm giving her a copy of the book as a housewarming present.
Everybody gets new jammies on Chrismas Eve. They get wrapped an put under the tree early in the season so there are presents under the tree for decoration. Each child had a Christmas collection from the time they were little, too. The girls get a new piece for their Christmas villlages and my son collects nutcrackers so he gets one of those. They go under the tree and are opened on Christmas Eve, too.
We put the tree up and decorate it the day after Thanksgiving.
We make it a point to watch Christmas Vacation and Love Actually sometime during the season...a little non-traditional!
