Christmas&Thanksgiving-Are you celebrating?

by Vitameatavegamin 44 Replies latest jw friends

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  Yerusalyim

  Blondie,

  I just want to take a second to correct a huge myth about suicide. You said "why so many suidices at that time of year" regarding Christmas. Actually, if the truth be told, the time between Thanksgiving and New Years has the fewest suicides. There are theories as to why. It seems most potential suicides think to themselves "I'm just depressed because of the Holidays/Winter/whatever, it'll get better when spring arrives. That and the fact that people seem to reach out to one another more during the holidays. So guess when we have the most suicides...That's right SPRING time has the highest rate for suicides. When things haven't improved when spring arrives the potential suicide losses hope. Just wanted to dispel a myth.

  YERUSALYIM
  "Vanity! It's my favorite sin!"
  [Al Pacino as Satan, in "DEVIL'S ADVOCATE"]
• 

  Room 215

  Hi all,
  Thanks for your comments. A good chunk of JW holiday policy is their clamoring for attention. They're convinced there's spiritual merit in simply being different for whatever reason, as long as it gets worldly folks to gawk at them and wonder what's behind it all.
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  Vitameatavegamin

  Thanks again to all for you're comments. Keep 'em coming!
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  JBean

  Hi all! Answer to the questions... yes & yes! I've been quietly celebrating for YEARS... without my JW family & friends catching on. I had a husband that wasn't a JW (so it was easy to say I was submitting to his headship!) but am now divorced and since the divorce have had a few non-JW boyfriends. My current boyfriend's family knows of my background and gets a kick out of the fact that I'm more, as they say: "festive", than the rest of them at this time of year. I'm sad that my JW family has never experienced the warmth, light and love of the season. But there's always hope... : ) Side note: it's amazing that non-JW's are so non-judgemental... like my boyfriend's family... they don't care WHAT I call myself, as long as I'm loving, kind and respectful to them and their son.
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  feb1600

  aschen here, at home posting from hubbies computer.

  I've actually celebrated Christmas my whole life. I came close to missing it the two years I was "deep" in study with JWs. The first year, feb1600 was actually called into the back room before he came to visit me at my Grandmothers house. He was amazed at how wonderful it was to sit down and enjoy family. The next year I was still studying and he was less involved with the congregation. We spent Christmas with my family, my Mother even thought it would be best to have him stay over so he could experience Christmas morning at our house. That evening we were snuggling by the tree, kept warm by the lights and fire. Feb1600 (then boyfriend, now hubby) asked me why I would ever want to give this up. He promised me then and there that we would always celebrate Christmas and any other day we wanted. (He actually goes overboard now, he loves to do this with and for our 2 year old) Just had to reply to this one,
  Looking forward to this year,