I don't come by here very often any more (trying to wean myself away from this board in anticipation of when we cannot ever post any more) but since walking away from the WTS 1999 and some six or so years afterwards, my life was filled a series of changes and adjustments with my family. A lot of bad feelings were being dealt with because of my shunning my oldest son and I have three grandchildren that had never laid eyes on me or knew me at all except for being "the grandmother who does not have anything to do with my Dad". Living a in very small town and having my DIL's many relatives everywhere.....added to the bad rap I was forced to live with. It has been a rough road.
In the last couple of years, and leaving this mess in Jesus' hands, things have not only begun to emerge as "fixable", but have most definetely BEEN fixed at long last. I was invited to the youngest grandchild's (of this son) Sweet 16 birthday party last summer and I teared up when I realized that this was the FIRST birthday party of all three of these grandchildren that I had attended.
We have been invited to Thanksgiving dinner ( for the fourth year) with our whole family and that of my DIL's family (she is one of seven) and to spend a few days at Christmas at another son's home. We attend a huge 4th of July party with our family and everyone's friends at another son's house, and a big end-of-the-summer party that includes several of our birthdays and anniversaries etc are all celebrated together. It has been great.
The WTS rules had left this family shredded to bits. But these gatherings have done wonders to cement the gaping hole that being in the WTS had left many of us with, and no longer is there any worry about somebody showing up that will not be able to sit down and eat with the other one, blah blah blah....YOU know all those hideous WTS rules, regulations and requirements we HAD to live by to be "pleasing to God" ....They no longer apply to ANY of us any more....and what a marvellous difference this has made in bringing us closer together AS the family we should have been all the time. We have one daughter that remains a JW and has nothing at all to do with ANY of the family....even those that were never JWs, just a general blanket shutting off of them all. This does not advertise the WTS in a very good light....but that's okay.
I can deal with family members on a whole new level now, with no problem of who is worthy of my friendship or who is not. Being a JW is SO downright judgmental and mentally isolating. ALL of that is gone now and we can be COMFORTABLE with one another now....and it feels SO good to feel this way! I can say that I am more at peace with myself and everyone around me, more tolerant, more forgiving of others, and more deeply happy than I ever have been. (I still speak out about the evil WTS on the online forums though, LOL! I have ZERO tolerance for those that try to puff up the Borg.)
I buried a LOT of pain and sadness as a JW.....while waiting for "Jehovah" to fix things in the new order and while putting my life and my dreams on hold for three decades. Finding out that the WTS was a sham was also painful, but leaving that mindset and that WTS-approved ratrace was the best thing I have ever done. I never left God (as the WTS teaches) but have FOUND the Savior that had also been waiting for ME all that time. Without his hand in things, who knows where I would be today....but he IS there and I don't have to wait for him. I have SEEN, firsthand, what he has done for me! Once the way was cleared, many things took off in flight!
I just wanted to put all this down so that others who are seeing all the horrible things this cult has done in the past and IS doing at present....while making all it's absurd claims of being the "only pure religion on earth....and if they are thinking of walking away from it....that there IS a wonderful, meaningful and fulfilling life after leaving! Do not let FEAR of the WTS stand in your way. The world is NOT as awful as they tell you...and there ARE some pretty great folks EVERYWHERE you go, that won't measure your worth OR their friendship towards you, by what faith or religion you may happen to be.
I wish you ALL the best and I will be seeing many of you on other forums in the near future.
hugs,
Annie