Suraj: thanks for the kind words. It's hard to wrap my mind around the whole shunning business. I see it now for the cruel behaviour that it actually is.
As to being afraid of apostates--yes I was too. Watchtower loves to villify innocent human beings whose only fault has been the ability to think for themselves.
I remember as a child my father would say that the biggest apostate/enemy the watchtower ever had was Ray Franz, who had single handledly tried to take over the watchtower. Imagine that. I remember how fearful I was about that. Years later, when I had opportunities to correspond with Ray and speak to him personally, I realized what a slanderous thing this was.
I believe that in the last couple of years there is a change in the hearts of many innocent sincere jw when it comes to the shunning practice. Deep down inside many know that this is very inhumane and they are "bucking the trend" and doing what is right just like your family is doing to you. I hope that you can enjoy some great times with them.