Some of you may have read my JW ex-wife's E-mail to my son last night after I posted it. This is my son's E-mail response to his mothers initial E-mail. I think I'll just let this speak for itself. I edited out the points which don't apply . Enjoy !
My son writes, " Hey Mom, thanks for responding back to my E-mail. I have had so many people tell me how much they love my garden and I always tell them to come back later in the year for veggies. One lady came up to me and my girlfriend and said she saw our garden last year and loved it and that she would be interested in buying cucumbers , tomatoes, chilies and other things from us. But I was thinking that it would be awesome to trade things with her. Anyways - I think it's going to be very important to be able to take care of ourselves more fully in the coming months and years. We are going to be forced to pay more attention to the way we treat our Mother Earth and our fellow beings : animals and plants. "
He continues, " I totally agree with you that this system is messed up and cannot last much longer. But I do not blame it on anyone else or anything else besides the dominant western culture that uses everything it touches without thought for how it might affect the future . Blaming others for our problems is just denial. There is no Satan !! Or at least there was NOT a Satan until the Catholic Church made it up a couple thousand years ago. Satan is a boogey-man who was created to keep people afraid of using their own minds and hearts and to give up control of their lives to others. It worked on people back in the " dark ages " and it still works on people today. JW's use the Satan boogey-man quite often actually , as we both know. " Don't leave the organization or Satan will get you and you will turn into some pill popping, crack smoking prostitute with a needle sticking from your arm. " I remember these boogey man stories quite well actually ; there was usually at least one at every assembly. But you know what is soooo weird ??? I don't take any pills, I prefer herbs. I have never smoked crack. I have never been paid for sex. And I don't even know Satan/boogeyman. Don't you find that strange Mom ? They always tell you about the bad things that happen to a very few people who leave and come back ( they probably only come back because their families stopped talking to them and it drove them nuts ). But you will never hear anything about the hundreds of thousands of people who stop being JW's and listen to their hearts, live wonderfully happy lives, and have fulfilling experiences they never dreamed were possible . Isn't that weird Mom ?
He adds, " Do you wanna know why you only hear about the ones who left JWdom and had a horrible time and had to come back ? Drum roll please...... FEAR !!!! The leaders of all religions, yours included, are playing to the fears that they have created in it's members ! Don't you find it the least bit odd that they tell you not to talk to anyone who left and is happy ?? We both know what they label those people.... apostates. It is so easy to force you to make the decision they want you to make when you only hear one side of the story. I have lived both sides of the story and have decided that religions are just about controlling people. I make my own decisions based on what I have experienced, you do as you are told without questioning. Who is the puppet ??
He continues, " I am completely happy with who I am. I was created perfect and born perfect and now I am remembering more and more why I am here. The hardest part is getting rid of the conditioning that was instilled in me as a child that no longer suits me. But there are many techniques that are useful for removing that kind of conditioning. I don't blame you Mom , or hold anything against you. In fact, I am sure there is a very good reason why I chose to be born as a JW, I just don't remember at the moment.
He adds, " In the future I see myself living with others of like mind in a tribe. Would like to work for no one else but ourselves, and life will be about spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical fulfillment. Then sometime in the next hundred years or so... the person you know as Flipper junior will die. But that will not be the end. The soul who is playing this character right now will be reborn to the spirit form that is indestructible and infinite. Only I will have a wonderful lifetime of experience to add to my many other experiences. Somewhere shortly after I leave this Earth Mom, I will see you and my dad and my sisters and all of my close family and friends and we will all celebrate and hug and we will cry tears of joy and laugh about the good times we had together in this lifetime and apologize for the times we hurt each other. And we will see each other for who we really are and realize that all the silly things like religion, money, and hurt egos are just silly things after all. Then we will tell each other how much we appreciated having the opportunity to love each other in a human form. "
He continues, " To answer your question about my song " Rebel Soul ", I will just share with you one line of my song : " Be a rebel dare to love ! " the way I see it, a rebel is someone who breaks away from the status quo and the way things are going right now in the world - if everyone decided to rebel against the norm and just love one another then it would be a different place. And before you go getting all high and mighty about JW's being the only ones who love blah, blah, blah... I am not talking about conditional, only love those who decide to go to the same church as you. I am talking about the kind of love that accepts every person for exactly what and who they choose to be in this very moment. Preaching to people about what you believe because you think they will die if they do not agree with you and be eaten by flocks of ravenous birds, is not love. That is just silly. But I accept that is the story that you choose to believe. That is your choice. "
He concludes, " Mom, if you would like to be a part of my life I would love to garden with you or go hiking sometime before the wildflowers are out in May. I can bring you some plants, I have plenty. Or maybe we can have the whole family together for some food. I am quite the chef actually...bet you can't guess where I learned that. It has been far too long for family to go without seeing one another and I would love to see you and my sisters soon. Let me know. I guess that is enough for now. From the very deepest depths of my heart, Flipper Junior. "
His P.S. " I have not given you my phone number because everytime you called in the past you would leave crying messages that made me feel bad. I would love for you to be able to call me but I would appreciate it if you would not leave those kinds of messages. I know the emotions are real and I'm happy you care but I am a big boy and I know what decisions I have made. Nobody is fooling me and I will take my chances with the bed I have made. Please respect my wishes. "
All I can say is I am so proud of this son of mine. As always I welcome any and all comments. I'm speechless. Nothing to add
