Posts by Sentinel

60

Walmart or Target?

by Stefanie in

jw
friends

.

which do you prefer?.

Story caused me to cry tears of joy

by Robdar in

jw
friends

proof that animals are sentient, intelligent beings:

by bilen mesfin, associated press writer .

woodside, calif. - when koko the gorilla used the american sign language gesture for pain and pointed to her mouth, 12 specialists, including three dentists, sprang into action.

Sentinel

Robdar, what a great story. Thanks for sharing.

/<

40

In memorial of my cat...

by Tashawaa in

jw
friends

i lost someone very special to me.

my cat.. she was 12 years old.

she was the friendliest, most loving, cat i had ever owned.

Sentinel

As a fellow "cat-lover", I am saddened by your loss.

Our cat "June" is only two. She is a black and white "Tuxedo" short hair domestic. Your cat lived a long a full life--so sad that it fell and was severely injured.

In time perhaps you would consider sharing your home with another feline. The shelters are full of many who need good homes.

/<

36

Two Elders Stopped By

by rocketman in

two elders approached me yesterday afternoon while i was doing a bit of work on my car.

unsuccessful at reaching me in my home (mostly because i don't answer the doorbell when they come) they saw me outside and decided to stop to talk.

the conversation did not go especially well.

Sentinel

Hi Rocketman,

I enjoyed the comments in your post, and I think since you were rathered "cornered" in your own domane, you had no choice but to let them ramble on.

Sometimes, I have wondered if perhaps the questions they pose to those who have da'd are questions they really think about among themselves. For instance, they are very curious about your time and what you do with it. Their lives are filled to the brim with meetings, assemblies, studies, service, responsibilities to family and congregation...and they know inside that they carry guilt around because no matter what they manage to do, it still isn't enough. I mean, where exactly does god fit into all of this rigidity? They have to take a pompace stand, because they know nothing else. Being outside of rules and regulations and living life day to day "normally" is a concept that frightens them. They are naturally inquisitive as to how we manage--and yet, for the most part retain all the power and contol that we allow them.

(I don't believe that Jesus wore a suit when he taught us by example to have love and compassion for EVERYONE.)

/<

84

Chilling experience

by TallTexan in

o.k....most people that know me know me to be a rational and logical person not prone to hype or the sensational.

nor am i infatuated with the supernatural as many jw's/ex-jw's are/were.

with that said, let me relate what happened to me at work last night.. on saturday night, we had four bad burns come in.

Sentinel

What a lovely encounter. Something enormously special and unusual happened to you and I would never question the validity. I am not a gullible person. I've had my own experiences along the way. I think it was kind of you to share your experience with the forum. Soul's do connect, and obviously the soul of the small child, leaving her human shell was an awesome new reality. She wanted you to "catch a glimpse--to understand that in death, there is another door to go through". Death is not the end. Death ends pain. You were kind to her and she gave you a gift. The gift was that you now have had your own experience with something that humans find difficult to accept because of the way we have been taught through the years. We have been taught to label and fear those things we don't understand. We were taught to deny what our own eyes have seen. Now you have seen for yourself and therefore you cannot deny.

It didn't give me goose bumps or chills or anything at all, except a great feeling of peace and love coming from her to you. Has anything else unusual happened in your life since this occuredt? This may be a marked event of great change in your life.

/<

17

This is your subconscious speaking...

by seattleniceguy in

jw
friends

many of us have had the experience of our subconscious trying to send us messages.

sometimes we refuse to listen and it has to resort to more forceful measures, even making us physically ill. for example, while in the final throes of my witness-ism, i found that i would get horribly painful sore throats within seconds of repressing a thought about something that challenged my faith in a way i could not legitimately dispute.

it was as though my brain was saying, "you need to think about this, now," and then punishing me for refusing to do so.. i was wondering if anyone has experiences like this.

Sentinel

I totally agree that the subconscious is very powerful. If we don't "listen" to the nudges, it will do whatever it must to make us "stop" and "think".

There were two periods of time where I was absolutely grounded, in that I was always like the Energizer Bunny, going, going, going. I pushed the things that bothered me back, back down inside. Then boom, I wasn't going anymore. I was home in bed for eight days at a time. Trips to the doctor proved nothing conclusive. Yet, I had horrid headaches, body aches, and slept all the time. I had vivid dreams and day and night-mares. I had visions and unusual experiences. I couldn't stay awake. Couldn't concentrate on anything around me in the real world--no reading, no TV. There was no way I could go to work, and my kind doctor gave me a slip that simply said "exhaustion" for the reason of my abscense. I didn't know what was happening, but in the sleep state, let's just say that I was being taught. I was made to listen. It was a cram course and I was the student and I couldn't get away. I had to complete the course. After two major events like this in one year, I began to re-evaluate my life on a grand scale. I made so many changes from the inside out. Then I had my epiphany.

It truly is a miracle, and this is the way I view it. I finally opened up the channel of communication with my creators, and I opened my heart and mind once again to many posibilities. I had been spiritually dormant, riding on the waves of simply existing since my exit from organized religion of the JW variety.

My life has truly changed.

/<

4

How to deal with divorce/court issues

by Purza in

here it is after midnight and i cannot sleep.

my boyfriend (of 2 years) is still hashing out custody issues in court with his ex.

bf does not have an attorney.

Sentinel

Yes, Purza, I do understand completely. I am married to a man who's wife left him with three small boys twenty some years ago. He could get "nothing" from her. Won't go into it, but the court ordered her to pay, but she just never did, and the court kept forgiving her. This was when the DCSE wasn't yet in operation.

Then, when the boys became teens, they naturally thought the grass was greener, and went to live with mom (at her constant invitation) She didn't want them when they were small and bothersome, but now the support laws had really changed. She racked my husband through the coals. Things were very unfair. They didn't include her new husbands income in the mix, BUT THEY INCLUDED MINE. We went through years and years of heartache and abuse emotionally and financially from this new set up for child support. They even had labeled my husband as the "absentee parent--as if he was the one who left "her"!! We couldn't buy a home, and ended up moving from a single family rental, to a TH rental, to an apartment rental. She was bleeding us dry.

It was very difficult for me, always trying to "be helpful". My husband tried it with an attorney, and then without. I also worked in the court, and legal documents were things I saw all the time. I typed many an order, etc. We finally did get a sort of justice, when the boys turned 18 and refused to come home and live with us. They liked all the freedom they had been enjoying. So the judge saw through many things and finally released us from paying any more.

This is a definite strain on a relationship. It is a great emotional strain and a financial burden--for support, attorneys, etc. I'd like to say that it will all just go away, but you know it won't. Be prepared for a bumpy ride.

I should have learned to detach myself from the issues that my husband faced. But like you, I dove right in headfirst. This is truly your mate's "situation", and the only thing you can do is just love him and be there for him. Don't wear yourself out over all of it. I learned a very long time ago, that there are ALWAYS two sides to every story--and sometimes even four or five (or more), depending on where the information comes from.

/<

50

Brits call 'em Monkey Nuts....what are they?????

by little witch in

jw
friends

(taken from a question overheard on hollywood squares)

ok non brits, what is your guess????

i shall enquire the answer from a brit shortly.

Sentinel

Are they perhaps the same as the American "Mountain Oysters"?

/<

13

How many CDs do you own?

by Nosferatu in

.

i started buying cds back in 1991. i haven't counted them lately, but i believe my collection is hovering somewhere around 500. how many do you own (not including burned ones)?.

i've also got about 100 (prerecorded) cassettes, about 150 lps, and 100 (pre-recorded) 8-tracks.

Sentinel

Probably close to four hundred music CD's. Last year we decided to transfer cassettes onto the computer, and then transfer them from the computer onto disc. We ended up with fifty new CD's. (There is a program that does this.) Takes a long time for the transfer of the cassette tapes; but once on the computer, putting them to disc is a snap.

With Directv, we now have music channels to listen to, and we especially enjoy the Soundscapes. I'm certain that our CD's will eventually be replaced with even smaller digital storage availability. Something is always happening in technology along these lines. I have a bunch of VHS movies that I've gradually been trying to replace with the DVD's. There is certainly a lot of money that has gone into this. I suppose by the time we get a good DVD collection, it will move in yet another direction. (The problem remains of what to do with the "old" VHS tapes, some of which are still in their original wrappings.)

/<

15

my last contact with my mom

by doogie in

jw
friends

i wrote an email to my mom last friday.

it didn?t go so hot.

my girlfriend had sent her a pretty harsh letter criticizing my family sharing her opinion about the religion about 2 weeks ago and she had never gotten a response (which kind of surprised me, actually.

Sentinel

(((Doogie)))

For your own balance and well-being, you have to learn to "let go". She is doing the only thing she knows how to do, and that is to manipulate you through "love blackmail". You are each on your own path, and she has chosen her path for now, and you have chosen yours. I know you only want her love and respect, but she cannot give this to you, because of her indoctrination. Perhaps someday she will come to see that.

You have such empathy for your mom, but don't let it destroy you. She is asking you to deny your own heart. Wouldn't the supreme being "know" you were denying your heart? Of course. But there are only two sides to the coin for her and others like her. She sees only the black and white of the JW rules and regulations, and she lives in fear and guilt that she will be found unworthy. What a frightening way to have to live one's life, especially among our own dear family.

If you continue to be excessively depressed, then by all means, seek out a counselor who is very knowledgeable about cults, especially JW's. We are fortunate, that today, there is help for those of us who bear extremely sad and uncontrollable emotional situations. Sometimes we just need some help.

Hope you and yours are able to build a good life together and get this "monkey off your back". Life is beautiful and meant to be lived honestly.

Karen