Does anyone now celebrate...

Hannah

Does anyone who was raised a JW and is now DF'd of DA'd celebrate all the holidays? I do, and for the first time in my entire life I'm actually having a blast and so are my children. At least my youngest child doesn't have to suffer the segregation all JW children surrender to due to the freakin' mind controlling GB and all there so called "God channeled" rules.

mardavi

I am just now starting to cell It took me 10 years to get to this point.

katiekitten

Yes I do em all. I feel good that my daughter can be normal and its no big deal.

I remember as a kid thinking "I wish I was just normal".

Gopher

When I was a JW child, when it came time for a holiday celebration in class, I (and maybe 2 other JW's from other classes) were excused to go to the school library or else go home. I received Valentine's day cards at my desk, but couldn't give any.

The WT teachings are designed to build an artificial wall between JW's (and even JW children) and the outside world, with the reasoning that "these days were FORMERLY non-Christian holidays".

Since then, I don't have a very strong feeling, pro or con about the holidays, since I have no early 'happy memories' associated with them.

However, I do enjoy sharing in the joy it brings to children (including my own daughter) who are not subject to the holiday-phobia inflicted on me when I was much younger.

EDITED TO ADD: It took a while to overcome the strange feeling of saying 'happy birthday' or 'merry Christmas'. It's all good now.

fullofdoubtnow

I've been out just over a year, and am going to celebrate in style this Christmas and New Year. I used to celebrate pre jw, not being raised in it, but had kind of lost the art after 25 years.

btw welcome to the forum.

hambeak

No not really It just me and my partner but we try to get in the spirit of things

katiekitten

I received Valentine's day cards at my desk, but couldn't give any.

Valentines was the only one I really badly wanted to celebrate. You lucky thing, I never got a single valentines card and im sure that was nothing to do with me being a dub!

When I got married I wanted my husband to send me one because I figured it didnt really mean anything wrong and as we were married it was just a bit of fun between us, but he never would.

A few years ago after I left both my hubby and the JWs I made a man buy me a bunch of flowers for valentines. We had gone to lunch and it happened to be valentines day and i said "I am NOT going back to the office empty handed so you are going to have to buy me these flowers"!

zeroday

I celebrate the holidays, vote, give blood, fly the flag proudly.

AK - Jeff

Yep!!!

And this year - since I am now officially Da'd, I have no worries about who might see what - though I didn't worry too much last year either to be honest.

My g-kids deserve to understand normalcy - and they will.

Jeff

moggy lover

Yes, I do as well, especially Christmas. Because it is a family oriented celebration I now feel so much closer to them than before. Seeing all of us together, along with the grand nieces and nephews and all the crazy antics we get into makes it seem so..... well....human.

Cheers

Does anyone now celebrate...

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