Posts by Cicatrix

31

What do you miss from yesteryear?

by greendawn in

jw
friends

i met a childhood friend recently and he told me with nostalgia that he recalled the childhood days as being very pleasant.

i told him they would be since we were living under the protection of our parents who took care of all our needs and we had no worries about anything.

it would be like paradise.

Cicatrix

Playing games like "Red Rover," and "Hide and Seek" (great fun if it's dark out ).

Telling scary ghost stories and actually getting scared

Chewing a big wad of bubble gum in the outfield while playing softball

Fishing, rafting, and catching baby catfish on our old bayou

The big house I grew up in, and my yellow bedroom with the crazy orange shag carpet

Going for rides in the car to look for deer, then stopping at the store to get cherry marshmallows and Mountain Dew on the way home

Feeding the ducks at the park with my grandparents

Going to the elementary school with my grandpa and playing with the toys in the kindergarten class while he took care of his janitorial duties

Hearing my mother call us in for dinner while I was hard at play, and realizing I was famished (food just doesn't taste as good as I remember it tasting then)

The thrill of finally diving off the train trestle into the river after chickening out all summer

BMX racing

collecting model horses

petting a horse and savoring the horsey smell on my hands for hours afterward (I was kind of a horse nut, lol)

sledding for hours with all of the neighbor kids on the old log rollway behind our house

big snowstorms that got us snow days

13

Like Craig's List ... Only Worse

by Shepherd Book in

i am currently making a concerted effort to rid myself of all unnecessary/unwanted possessions.

included in this purge are: .

Cicatrix

I burned mine. Not so environmentally friendly, but made a nice fall bonfireThe kids had a blast hauling it all out from the house. Hadn't seen them that happy in a long time.

91

Do you suffer INTELLECTUAL STARVATION?

by Terry in

jw
friends

symptoms of intellectual starvation:.

1.purposelessness, time-wasting, apathy, cynical desuetude.. 2.aimless hobbies that run out the clock.

3.fluff reading.

Cicatrix

Well, I guess I have to answer yes by your definition

I just graduated from nursing school first in my class, and then realized that it's NOT what I really want to do with my life.I wanted to write and create art (both of which I'm not half bad at), but listened to a bunch of intellectuals who told me I could never be financially stable if I did so, and went to nursing school instead.

I've raised some pretty great kids, but one does have a tattoo and all of them have a penchant for learning about life the hard way instead of just taking my word for everything (but then I DID teach them to think for themselves and they are young and inexperienced, so I guess a visit to the school of hard knocks is bound to happen to them from time to time).Funny thing is, despite the body art and the occasional civil disobedience, everyone else thinks they are intelligent, wonderful young adults.

I just spent a week not too long ago with a bunch of multi-degreed intellectuals, and was disdainfully called a Bohemian serf because I was doing someone a favor by cleaning her house and weeding out her garden (which I LOVE to do).I just smiled and said "Thank you." I AM part Bohemian after all, and my ancestors WERE hard working serfs.Funny thing is, so is the person who made that comment.

Lately, I have an odd penchant for collecting religious icons and Mary statues. I've never been Catholic, don't want to become Catholic, and frankly, am not even religious anymore. So why I like my odd new hobby is beyond me.

Hmm, looks like I'm on the border of intellectual anorexia.

286

WHAT do YOU know about JESUS... and His teachings?

by hibiscusfire in

i am interested to know what you know about jesus and what you really think of his teachings.. the bible says there is only one way to heaven.. jesus said: "i am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the father but by me.

" (john 14:6) .

the lord jesus was crucified and shed his precious blood to wipe away our sins (revelation 1:5).

Cicatrix

LMAO-guess I won't be dating Jesus. I scored in the lowest percentile possible on the quiz.

4

Humanist Groups

by bavman in

has anyone ever met up with any?

my own experience with them locally was not so exciting.

this was an atheist/agnostic meetup group.

Cicatrix

Humanist is a pretty broad category. There are humanists of many religious persuasions, as well as humanists with no religious persuasions.

I attended a group for awhile at a UU church comprised of mainly atheist/agnostic humanists, before I got involved with nursing school. It was interesting. There was not a whole lot of negative talk and NO discussion of sci fi at all (although I like sci fi myself, and wouldn't mind an occasional discussion of it personally). This group is an action group that plans and implements ways to better their community. They discuss world affairs, they bring in outside speakers with humanist views and with views that differ from their own.Not that it's always sweetness and light with them, lol. They definitely have their own opinions, and debate can get spicy at times.But I have a tendency to enjoy listening to debate, since the WTS forbids it and I was unable to for so many years. I'm not good at participating in debate yet, but enjoy watching others be able to defend their position;)

I had a humanist college instructor a few years back. She is the one who started my education on spiritual abuse. She picked up on some things I said in class and helped me clarify some things. She was what you'd call a positive person, too.

10

My Kentucky road trip yesterday

by Junction-Guy in

jw
friends

well this was probably one of the few free days i will have for the next 3 months, so yesterday i was bored and decided to drive up to kentucky for the day.. .

i only live about 60 miles from the border, so it wasnt that far.. .

i left yesterday morning around 8 am, i traveled up i-75 to jellico tennessee, i got off the exit and on the side road.

Cicatrix

I don't live in Kentucky.I'm a Hoosier now.

I passed through a few years back on the way to Florida. I wish there would have been time to stay and explore! My daughter is a HUGE horse fan. It's our dream to one day attend the Kentucky derby-hats, mint juleps, and all;) I also want to visit the caves in the worst way. I was supposed to go see the caves for a graduation trip, but my grandma died that week:(

I'm actually not a huge tourist trap fan myself. I love out of the way places and back roads (country girl who used to live in the middle of national forest here). I just don't know where that would be in Kentucky, lol.

37

What Positive Things Have You Achieved Since Leaving?

by sweet pea in

purps' wonderful thread about love made me wonder about something else.

what have you achieved/become since leaving the organisation that proves there is a happy, successful life outside being a jehovah's witness?

for me, although it's only been a very short time, too short to achieve much, i count becoming: non-judgemental of my fellow man; a mum that can give her kids all the room to grow and blossom without fear of 'sinning' or being kicked out for bad behaviour; a person that can feel comfortable worshipping in a church or not, depending on whatever i feel like doing; someone who can love and give freely and celebrate life in all it's glory (i just love birthdays!

Cicatrix

I am learning to think in shades of gray

I have come to understand the family dysfunction that got me involved with the JWs in the first place

I am figuring out how to be more assertive, and that I don't have to say, do, or be what others expect

I am really enjoying being a mom now

I graduated from nursing school-whoohooo

40

The warm and fuzzy, snuggly, cuddly thread.

by nicolaou in

jw
friends

okay i felt a bit sick typing out that title but having been a wee bit 'prickly' in my last few threads i thought i might try this on for size - not sure how well it's going to suit me.. what makes you feel content?

at peace and restful?.

i just spent the last couple of hours reading in my recliner.

Cicatrix

My grandson LOVES to wrap his little arms around my neck and place his cheek next to mine, while saying "I love you Bammaw." I don't think there is anything that melts my heart more than that!

10

My Kentucky road trip yesterday

by Junction-Guy in

jw
friends

well this was probably one of the few free days i will have for the next 3 months, so yesterday i was bored and decided to drive up to kentucky for the day.. .

i only live about 60 miles from the border, so it wasnt that far.. .

i left yesterday morning around 8 am, i traveled up i-75 to jellico tennessee, i got off the exit and on the side road.

Cicatrix

Wow, sounds like you had a great day! Kentucky is absolutely beautiful.

My son and I were talking the other day and came up with a list of things we want to do. We've lived here four years, and haven't been anywhere really. So since I'm not working right now because I'm studying for my nursing boards, we are going to start doing things together on the weekends.

11

Interesting blog from an NICU nurse on JW patients and blood.

by nicolaou in

Cicatrix

Dear Dobbie,

I'm not here to shout at you. You were a member of a cult and highly indoctrinated to believe that the decisions of a group of men in Brooklyn superseded the law, and that they were speaking for God. You were in a horrible situation-damned if you did and damned if you didn't.

Newborns actually have a very tiny blood volume in comparison to adults. It's somewhere around 80 to 90 milliliters, which is in the area of 6 tablespoons of blood!That one little teaspoon mattered VERY much.Isn't it sad that a group of men who have decided to interpret a biblical passage in a way that allows an ADULT to have certain blood fractions, would deny a tiny infant a lifesaving teaspoon of blood???

THAT is the real issue, Dobbie. THEY are the ones who should feel guilty!!

You just go hug your precious son, and if you can, teach him how cults operate, so he never has to be in that hellish position you were in.