fortis et liber

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Posts by fortis et liber

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  41

  Tomorrow is a big day for me

  by coffee_black in

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  i will be 60 tomorrow.

  on the one hand, it's just a number.

  on the other hand, it's a big number.... .

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  fortis et liber

  Happy (soon to be) birthday, I hope it's an amazing one!

  ~ Fortis
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  32

  Greetings and best wishes: Introduction of Mediator007

  by mediator007 in

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  2. friends

  [if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>normal</w:view> <w:zoom>0</w:zoom> <w:trackmoves /> <w:trackformatting /> <w:punctuationkerning /> <w:validateagainstschemas /> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:saveifxmlinvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:ignoremixedcontent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext> <w:donotpromoteqf /> <w:lidthemeother>en-us</w:lidthemeother> <w:lidthemeasian>x-none</w:lidthemeasian> <w:lidthemecomplexscript>x-none</w:lidthemecomplexscript> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables /> <w:snaptogridincell /> <w:wraptextwithpunct /> <w:useasianbreakrules /> <w:dontgrowautofit /> <w:splitpgbreakandparamark /> <w:dontvertaligncellwithsp /> <w:dontbreakconstrainedforcedtables /> <w:dontvertalignintxbx /> <w:word11kerningpairs /> <w:cachedcolbalance /> </w:compatibility> <w:browserlevel>microsoftinternetexplorer4</w:browserlevel> <m:mathpr> <m:mathfont m:val="cambria math" /> <m:brkbin m:val="before" /> <m:brkbinsub m:val="&#45;-" /> <m:smallfrac m:val="off" /> <m:dispdef /> <m:lmargin m:val="0" /> <m:rmargin m:val="0" /> <m:defjc m:val="centergroup" /> <m:wrapindent m:val="1440" /> <m:intlim m:val="subsup" /> <m:narylim m:val="undovr" /> </m:mathpr></w:worddocument> </xml><!

  [endif][if gte mso 10]> <style> /* style definitions */ table.msonormaltable {mso-style-name:"table normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"times new roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif].

  i thought i should introduce myself as i have been reading your various threads.

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  fortis et liber

  Welcome M-007, very nice to read about you and I too am glad that you are here.

  In regard to searching for the truth you ask, "Where does one go?" At this point in my spiritual journey I feel no affinity to any organized religion actually, quite the opposite is true, I have a strong aversion to it. And yet, I still feel my 'spiritual' needs can be addressed and met. I see no reason whatsoever to rely on another, imperfect, human being or group of them as the case may to intercede between myself and....God, a higher power, some universal collective, whatever.

  So nice to have 'met' you and I look forward to your posts.

  ~ Fortis
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  21

  How truly happy are you?

  by Freeof1914 in

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  i am just curious to hear of some you who have left the org completely, how happy are you?

  in my situation i feel like i am on a precipice and about to make a leap into the unknown.

  since i have told my family elders and wife that i will mo longer go to the meetings or out on service i feel as if a load has been lifted.

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  fortis et liber

  I am so much happier outside and free of the Borg the two states are almost incomparable.

  That is not to say I don’t have struggles or bad days, or sadness but what I do have is what every single person on this earth should, and that is the right to ‘be.’ To think, to feel, to live my life as I so choose; the Borg will tell you that that kind of ‘selfish’ thinking is the antithesis of what is righteous and good but they’re wrong. Not only are they wrong about that but they use that notion as a scare tactic to foster an ‘us’ and ‘them’ attitude between the ‘righteous’ and ‘unrighteous.’ Bullshit.

  There are good and bad people in the WTS organization and out; the big difference between those two is the ones ‘out’ get to think for themselves.

  I am so happy I left. I have never, ever, for one second regretted my decision to leave. In fact quite the opposite, I wish I realized sooner that the strength I needed to walk away was one I possessed all along.

  ~ Fortis
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  47

  New here...need some support

  by Freeof1914 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  first of all i am happy to be here..this site has been an invaluable tool which helped me get to the point where i am today.

  i was born and raised as a jehovah's witness and i am now 30 yrs old.

  my entire family are die hard witnesses; pioneers, elders, bethel etc.

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  fortis et liber

  Welcome Freeof1914, it's good to see you here hopefully, you find the support you seek.

  I would wholeheartedly agree with the take-it-slow approach. Some decisions aren't so easily reversed. Having said that, if it helps you to know, the right decision *may* be for you to walk away from it all i.e. religion and wife. But, as many on here have already stated, only you should deciede that and, that decision should be a sound one, not made in haste or as a knee-jerk reaction.

  If it helps you to know, I did walk away from it all: spouse and religion but I did so because my relationship was *not* based on love and respect it was, for all intents and purposes, an arranged marriage. My parents strongly encouraged the relationship about a month or two after I was served a straighten-up-and-act-right-or-get-out (i.e. be shunned) ultimatum. I felt absolutely trapped (the story of my life) and I dutifully went along with it. *This* (getting married, producing more drones) was what we were supposed to do and I, just, did. I learned to love my spouse to the degre that I was capable of loving someone in that circumstance. In other words, if I had been allowed to develop as a normal child into a normal young adult [read: with autonomy] I never would have dated much less marry him. I knew this deep down inside, in a place where I knew many personal truths I was way too scared to acknowledge. I was, by all accounts, a very good wife. On the surface, all looked perfect. Inside, I was dying.

  When I left the religion it was very natural for me to walk away from my spouse. He was part and parcel of every single mindless, spineless and dumb act I performed under the auspices of the borg. I.have.never.looked.back. I am so much happier now with myself and in my relationship which is based on him loving me, as in, the *me* that I really am not some trumped-up version of the woman I pretended to be.

  Take your time. Get to know yourself. Search your heart for the answer, it will come.

  ~ Fortis
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  19

  Wacky Witness Parent Rules

  by breakfast of champions in

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  here's one of my favorites:.

  my mother used to make me turn sesame street off when "the count" came on because count dracula was a real person who was under satan's influence and drank blood.. what completely whacked out rules did your parents make for you growing up?.

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  fortis et liber

  Um, let's see... here's a ridiculous one: I remember as a teenager my sister-in-law snatching a fashion magazine out of my hand so that she could censor it first. She briskly flipped through page after page dramatically ripping out any salacious material, all under the watchful eye and nodding approval of my santimonious mother.
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  118

  What does your user name mean????

  by karter in

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  anything ???.

  .

  karter ...i race go-karts.

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  fortis et liber

  Strong & Free
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  5

  Aspirations

  by MrFreeze in

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  have you ever aspired to anything?

  when you were young did you say "this is where i want to end up" and work towards it?

  did you just decide to live by the seat of your pants?

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  fortis et liber

  My childhood experience was much like gettingafirmhold’s, I too was a born in and was taught to be entirely selfless, to cultivate a mind that would quickly and effectively snuff out each and every notion of ‘self’. That is to say that who I really was as an individual entity was summarily lost to the collective needs of the whole, the Borg. I do remember, quite distinctly, always being curious about the world in general, how it works and how we, as a species relate to it; of course, I was never allowed to follow any of these notions through to developing some sort of personal goals or ambitions from them but, the seeds of ….something were there, deep within me.

  I left at the age of 27 and almost immediately turned my attention to getting an education, my lack of a having a well rounded one always troubled me. In the beginning, I began by taking night courses (I was employed full-time) at our state school supplemented by various courses at the community college, all general education subjects, all in preparation for some form of serious academic study. It was during this time period that I solidified my curiosities about our human, physical interaction with our surrounding, built environment—coupled with an almost overwhelming desire to actually make a tangible contribution to society (as opposed to my previous supposed vocation of ‘making converts’ to the Borg)—into a career path, I wanted to become an architect.

  It was a long, long arduous road. As I mentioned, I left in ’97 and have been working either directly on my degrees or in some form, in preparation (intellectually/financially) of them and just this past December (2010) I got my Masters.

  What helped me realize this goal was actually taking the time (it felt so selfish, at first) to assess who I was as an individual, separate and apart from the Borg. As I discovered myself, I discovered my desires; the ambition and drive to pursue my dreams naturally followed.

  ~ Fortis
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  26

  Ultimately, Are You Happy That The "Truth" Is Nonexistent?

  by minimus in

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  unless you're still searching for "the truth", are you happy to know this "truth" is not even out there?.

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  fortis et liber

  that's how we know that 5 loaves and 7 fishes will never equal 5,019 meals.

  nicolaou, come to think of it, upon further reflection, perhaps you were being ironical all along; time for me to go outside for a walk !!

  ~ Fortis
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  26

  Ultimately, Are You Happy That The "Truth" Is Nonexistent?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  unless you're still searching for "the truth", are you happy to know this "truth" is not even out there?.

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  fortis et liber

  nicolaou, I certainly cannot speak for blondie but, since I wrote she "took the thoughts right out of my head" I will further explain in light of your comment.

  I was thinking of the 'truth' in an existential way i.e. 'truth' being what is authentic and right for each separate, self-determining individual. A personal truth, a guiding principle by which one lives their life compared with the absolute 'truths' found in, for instance, mathematics which, as you pointed out are absolute -- they are not the same.

  The Witlesses claim to have “the truth” i.e. that collection of guiding principles by which one should live their life. Which, when you think of it, it is really quite remarkable that the Dubs refer to it as "the truth" at all seeing as none of their theories (theorems) prove true in the least, how ironic.

  ~ Fortis
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  32

  What's The Longest You've Been In A Relationship?

  by minimus in

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  and if you were dating someone "seriously", how long did that last?.

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  fortis et liber

  To date, my longest, "serious" dating relationship lasted, seven years.

  ~ Fortis