Jw upbringing and retarded social growth.

by AK - Jeff 68 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Switch

  My life started out much like yours Jeff. For a few years, I didn't even feel like I fit in the cong. when my mom started studying. Everyone else had their whole family at the meetings, but for us it was just me and my mom. We weren't invited to all the get-togethers cuz the brothers didn't want to stir up trouble in our divided household. I eventually became buddies with another girl in the same situation. We got along but were pretty much opposite personalities.

  I'd say the majority of kids raised in the truth have the same battle. I don't think if I was raised a Witness that I would have the wall-flower personality that I do. The fear of appearing different or drawing attention to yourself makes you hide in the shadows. How could it not? We all went through the most formative years of our life trying to please everyone else instead of figuring out what we actually like for ourself.
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  Sirona
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  diamondblue1974

  AKJ - whilst we all have our own story yours reminded me very much of my own in part and was a fabulous reminder to be thankful for the friends I have made since and my escape from such a socially destructive cult.

  Great post!

  Gary

  PS: I forgot to log out of Sirona's log in sorry for the blank message above.
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  Katt

  Yes Mulan how did you escape under the circunstances that affected all of us, how could you be popular when we were forbidden to associate with classmates?
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  Fadeout

  My mom had to throw out her records, especially Led Zeppelin, as well as any jewelry with a cross... never mind that it's gold.

  Yeah growing up a good JW will screw you socially, now I'm still not too smooth but at least I've grown to the point where I don't care, which ironically, makes me seem a little smoother.
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  OBVES

  For years I used to be a catholic and now looking back at my life at how I was living a life like most regular kids live I see I have wasted all these years ! The best way of life for kids is to be close to God of the Bible combined with the reasonable understanding of the Bible.

  I would be rather retarded as a Jehovah's Witness child than to grow like many kids do - the wordly way and be lost in the final account when the time comes to give an account of our lives.

  If you know my posts very well I am not from the Jehovah Witness Orgnization and yet I am defending them and if I were to choose from two kids : one not from Jehovah Witness organization and the other regular wordly child I would choose the first one without a shadow of a doubt .
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  Tyrone van leyen

  Ya that figures Obves. You have the same mentality. You pull numbers out of your ass at random, like the watchtower, ignoring as the watchtower does, the scriptures that says no man knows the day or the hour.

  You beleive you have special knowledge. So do the witnesses. You overlook all injustices. So do the witnesses. Your insensitvity is the same too. You come on a anti witness theology board and give the witnesses a pat on the back, on a thread in which qualified born-ins relate their experiences. No regard for lost childhood, or injustice. Many witnesses are the same. They just can't see what they did wrong.

  Your stubborness is the same to. You continue to preach on a board where nobody at all listens. The witnesses knock on doors and nobody listens.

  What are you saying ? You don't beleive us when we tell you, we have been socially retarded in our development, or you think we have the mental problem and wer'e just making it up cause wer'e angry?

  You above all ,should understand what it is to be a social misfit, but you are proud of it. So are the witnesses.

  If anyone thought you actually had something intelligent to say, we actually might consider it a slap in the face. As it is, you are not even on the radar.

  Your strong desire for a better world, your idealism, is overiding your better judgement and compassion.

  If you grew up as a witness, you wouldn't desire that life, anymore than someone raised as a nazi.

  If you were raised as a witness, you wouldn't be free to make your ridicuous calcualtions, without watchtower approval. You wouldn't even be on this board. You didn't grow up in a cult.

  Your conviction for the incorrect babble you spew every day, with your freedoms in hand, puts you more in the category, of cult leader, than follower. You would love that, so long as your freedoms were not infringed upon. Insensitivity is a must, and constant repitition of garbage. Your a natural!

  Unfortunately, you have come to a board where everyone is tired of BS and insensitivity. The third world is ripe for the plucking. Just follow the witness lead on that one, trust me.
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  AK - Jeff

  TvL

  I think another aspect is the fact that we missed our culture.

  I did not attend high-school sports events, local dances, didn't spend Saturday morning waxing the car and preparing for a date with a high-school sweetheart. I couldn't enjoy the camaraderie of the community at the small-town parades uptown [because they were always holiday related], and missed the airshows because they were military related. We didn't have parties [I mean even simple, alcohol free ones without anything wrong being done]. My clothes were dress slacks and blazers, and wing tips. I never had time to just go play, have fun with whomever was having fun, or go to a rock concert. My chosen 'entertainment' was all a bunch of hooey from a Brooklyn publishing house. I have no 'normal' history to speak about. My first 'date', was with my wife [and her damned mother went along].

  All of this culturelessness still affects me. There were some things that I am glad I missed out on - drugs as example - but what I really missed out on was the chance to be part of the society that surrounds us - real people - I never learned how to deal with them. [I do a fair job at that nowadays, but only after extensive deprogramming].

  Jeff
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  Tyrone van leyen

  Absolutely Jeff! I can't beleive I grew up in a civilized nation in the 21st century and missed everything. To tell you the truth, I'd probably have had more fun growing up in third world country. If I wrote down all the things I missed. The average person wouldn't beleive it.

  Just yesterday I was returning bottles and some guy engaged me in coversation. He seemed pleasant and was going on about his life troubles. When I went on about mine, bringing up being raised in a cult, I got the distinct feeling he didn't beleive what I was saying, about what I missed. He shortly therafter cut the conversation short. Either cuz he thought I was full of it, or just couldn't relate. It leaves you furious when this continues every day. It makes you even more furious when your parents can't relate to a word your saying, see no problem, and actually try with all their efforts of coercion, to bring you back to prison!
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  Tyrone van leyen

  One more thing Jeff. Not just culturally have we been robbed, and feel like strangers in our own land, but there were never any rights of passage. That is to say, no birthdays, no graduations, and no meaningful markers to put you from one stage of life,in social recognition,to another.

  I think that without these markers and no cultural identity, it makes it 50 times easier,for elder overlords to push the young ones around for their own purposes. It also makes it 50 times harder to meet a mate unless she's as messed up as you, cuz there is nothing to relate to.

  The Societies desire is to mould something perfectly obedient with no fight. It was all we knew, and they knew it, and couldn't be happier. I was good kid. Then when you step out of line, they dangle you over a void. Guilt will keep you on the straight and narrow even if you leave.

  Growng up JW is more a punitive, rather than loving family arrangement. It is more Judicial than loving. There is no understanding. It always comes from the watchtower,in which case the writers,have no kids and are businessmen. Guilt and fear are the ultimate means of control. This is not condusive to exploration of self, or the world.

  Anyone who raises his kid under these guidelines,without thinking for themselves over matters, is guilty of delinquent parenting.