the_raisin

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Posts by the_raisin

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  48

  what was the reason for canceling the book study in private homes

  by reds in

  1. jw
  2. friends
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  the_raisin

  I agree that the book study was more 'social' than regular meetings. In fact, my kh supported the idea of a small 'party' at individual book studies every three weeks or so. The brothers and sisters would bring homemade goodies, and for the most part us teens loved to use this as an opportunity to gossip and just relax.

  When they first announced the cesation, I honestly believed it was my kh's fault, because the rumor was that the book study wasn't taken seriously and there was too much 'socializing' going on, and I truly believed they KNEW we were gossiping :p .
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  32

  Living With Regret - what do YOU regret about being in the org?

  by babygirl30 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  1. getting baptized at 14 and not knowing what the heck i was 'signing' up for.

  2. dating worthless, lazy, no work ethic, selfish 'brothers' who were supposedly approved all because they were baptized - but in the end - were a waste of my time and younger years in dating.. 3. subjecting my bf (back in the day) who was a non-jw to the whole jw experience!

  i demanded that he study, i demanded that he change his religion in order to be with me, i made him sit with my parents and listened to them berate him (and myself) while they fed him all their haughty beliefs and requirements in order to date their jw daughter.

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  the_raisin

  I regret not going to West Point...

  I applied, was accepted, was ENCOURAGED by the school itself...

  But when the letter came and my mom saw it, she went nuts. She sat me down and gave the whole 'you'll be a murderer, Jehovah won't forgive you, I love you and won't let you do this' speech.

  And now here I am. And out of everything (the hurtful gossip, the bullying, the self-hatred, the abuse by my mother), I truly regret this the most, because it would have given me such a HUGE opportunity that I no longer have.
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  12

  it just blows me away!

  by stillin in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  a friendly group of young people came in the drive yesterday.

  they all got out with smiles and said that they were looking to put canned food into the "food bank," i assumed for people who need to eat.

  i wasn't sure what my wife could part with from the pantry but surely we could gather something for somebody who has much less!

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  the_raisin

  Here's a little gem of a story :

  Back when I was still a teenager and living with my parents, we hit a rough patch economically speaking. My parents were not working, I couldn't work, we had no income coming in, and no food. So my parents decided to be 'screw it, we need HELP' and went to food banks that were held in Catholic churches or other religious affiliations. Thank 'GOD' for their decision, because that food went a long way and kept us fed. They didn't care if were were JWs or what race we were, they saw the need and they gave.

  Well, months later a couple of other JW families from our congregation also went through a rough patch. I remember one of those families had no food whatsoever for their kids or themselves, and it was a very sad situation. We could not give much since we were struggling as well, and my mom finally told them to go and ask for help, go to food banks etc. Their response? A loud NO. They would not accept help because you know, them being from other religions and all that. The other family I believe did end up going after realizing the brothers and sisters who 'loved' them didn't want to give them squat.

  To this day I wonder what was going on in that family's head (the ones who allowed their kids to go to bed hungry instead of going to the food banks). It's sad, but apparently there are JW who are fanatic enough to do such a thing. And the worst part is, the congregation knew of the needs, but most wouldn't help out, because they didn't like them.
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  16

  Another possible reason for smaller mags. . .

  by breakfast of champions in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i was thinking this as i was reading through a foreign language wt yesterday afternoon.

  the wt needs so many translators to translate their crap into 200 or whatever languages.

  can you imagine the mental gymnastics these people need to do in order to translate stuff like the "generation" teaching into another language?

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  the_raisin
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  24

  When did this forum go apostate?

  by B_Deserter in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was curious because i had heard simon was a jw when he started this forum.

  i was looking through the old posts, but couldn't really pinpoint one that was a "turning point" so-to-speak.

  simon must have left the j-dubs at some point.

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  the_raisin

  Whoa, I actually just found out this forum was once por-JW. Mind boggling!
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  30

  What percentage of young ones are leaving the JW's???

  by karter in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  in my area atleast 50% if not more..

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  the_raisin

  Well, thankfully my siblings are not JWs anymore. They are thinking for themselves again!!! And I do know a lot of younguns who left the Org (funny thing is, before I left I made friends with younger kids. Those same kids, who at one point would tell me of the dreams to go to Bethel and become Elders and what not... well, they are rockers with actual bands who make good music/ going to college and no longer attending meetings/ seem pretty well-adjusted and nice kids who deny ignorance... and a couple potheads, but that wasn't my doing!). SO form my experience, quite a chunk have opened their eyes. Which happys me.
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  9

  I am a Cynic. Yep.

  by AK - Jeff in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i opened my fb mail, and this is what i found:.

  jeff - wow - such cynicism!

  am ex jw too - 45 years - been free 12 years now.

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  the_raisin

  My cousin calls me a cynic- he says I have always been one, since we were kids, always telling me annecdotes about stuff I would say. It shocks me actually, I never thought myself one until he pointed it out.

  But I like it. I'm not delusional, I am a realist. I understand certain things, but at the same time, I won't get depressed. Maybe a little snarky :D
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  19

  Did therapy help you?

  by gutted in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i am considering going to a therapist.

  even though i believe i have gotten better and made some progress (it has been roughly a year since i stopped attending meetings, doing anything jw-wise), i still have a lot of negative self-talk which is hard to overcome, especially during off days like today.. i find the hardest things for me is low self-esteem and social interactions/anxiety.

  i'm sure some of you can sympathsize, and though i am not fully blaming my issues soley to my jw upbring (born-in) i know it compounded those issues.. .

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  the_raisin

  No, but it did made my mom cheat on my dad- with the family therapist :p.

  Seriously, that did happen (I'm sure it's still going on- my mom's a cold hearted bitch who didn't want to leave my dad who spoils her), but before that dick, we had other therapists. And they did help. A LOT. I don't like taking medication, but luckily, just being able to pour my heart out helps in a big way.

  I'm sure it would help you, and trust me, it is a decision that will change your outlook toward certain things :)> Hoping the best for you!
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  29

  How do you tell a co-worker NICELY that they have a B.O. problem? (please read)

  by Joliette in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  during a potluck for the hotel where i work, two housekeepers got into a fight because of some petty stuff thats been going on (so ready to quit but havent been job hunting like i should).

  anywho, the head housekeepers starts bitching at the housekeeping supervisor and then bust out the other lead housekeeper, saying that she smells like a bag of onions!

  i did not attend (i work third shift, and only attended event at work the first year that the hotel opened (2008).

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  the_raisin

  Agree with Mamalove- it's the hardest thing to do, to tell a woman! I'd be mortified!!!Well, in my family we use a lotof garlic and onions, and I LOVE onions, so my siblings did always complain about my reeking when we were younger. Nowadays, I stay away from the tastiness :D.
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  15

  Facebook May Defeat Disfellowshipping

  by metatron in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i noticed an ex-witness sister on facebook - smiling, looking happy, expressing nice thoughts for any to read -and she is disfellowshipped!.

  in her extended family, more and more kids and grandkids are leaving the "truth" - and "friending" her!

  it might even be that she now is part of the majority of the extended family.

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  the_raisin

  Well, back when I was still in, Myspace was a big thing, and every time we had the local needs speech, they ould mention how 'evil' Myspace was, and warned everyone to stay away from it. The few who were caught with accounts would receive a speech.

  Now, with Facebook, I notice most JW kids from my old congregation have acocunts there. Even the mostn 'spiritual'. And some of them have my siblings as friends, and they're considered 'apostates' in a manner of speaking. Also, they ALL have worldy friends. SO in that view, yeah, the Org is going to be in trouble in a couple of years if this trend reaches all young people.

  But that's a good thing :D