Hi everyone, my name is Mellow (some names have been changed) lol. As no doubt many of you were, I was born in. I am now in my mid 20s living in a Jehovah's Witness household. I'm a guy from the UK and live in West Yorkshire. I enjoyed the standard closed upbringing many other Jehovah's Witnesses partake of. I was baptised at 12, was a hard working publisher, also a member of the RBC team, became a ministerial servant in my early 20s but for the last 5 years or so I have just been going through the motions and doing what everyone expected of me but of course not what I felt was right.
It has only been in recent months that I have begun to drift from the organisation. However I think people have expected it for a while ever since I grew some glorious facial hair that was quickly perceived as a sign of rebellion. Jesus had a beard, that's all it needs to be said on that subject. However as it is understood by many here no doubt I'm faced with unrestrained family shunning as well as the loss of all my friends that I've acquired over the past 20+ years. Thankfully my brother and his wife have both now begun to agree with my original suspicions and doubts about the organisation. So at least I can turn to them for support to some degree.
However I'm very happy to be here and will hopefully receive the support, help and guidance of many who have faced and who are facing a similar horrible unnatural situation. I am still technically a Jehovah's Witness, but I highly doubt this will be for much longer as at the end of the day you have to be true to yourself. It upsets me that there must be so many in the organisation that feel the same way but are trapped inside the very box many believe to be the truth.
I'm looking forward to many a lively discussion here and please wish me all the best with my rehabilitation and discovery of a normal life. I'm sure many will agree that there are many many beautiful people in the org, but its scary how that love they have for you can just switch off, and I have noticed it so quickly. But it's being dictated to them.
Peace, love, empathy. Mellow