What's the one thing you miss about the WTS? (page 5)

Xena

aaaahhhhh LT you are so sweet

hhhmmmm I miss believing that I will see my parents alive again someday....

I miss gossiping with my sister about people at the hall

Valis

Francois: LOL! You must be responsible for over half the "immorality" and "fornication" in the Society! You naughty boy!

syn, that or the steep increase in "new" members of the flock...*L*

I miss the lengthy slide show presentation at elder duh's house when his Bethelite son returned home to regale us with tales of the "good work" they were doing there. click "and this is where we took a dump and read the Watchtower pre-press..."...click.."and this is where we slave away hours each day for Jehovah unpaid!"....click..."here's brother flummery hard at word making new videos for distribution.."....Just shoot me already!

Sincerely,

District Overbeer

peaceloveharmony

i miss teasing all the boys at the assemblies, DCs and get togethers

Soledad

What I miss the most is not having any responsibilities or personal ambitions other than becoming a pioneer and/or marrying an elder or bethelite. Not having to worry about college, a career, etc. No planning for the future because 'the end' is almost here....blah blah, things like that.

Imbue

I miss all the stimulating conversations...[8>]

Jewel

I miss riding in the back seat of a 72 car with no air conditioner on a 92 degree Iowa Saturday. Squished between two or three other "young people" with book bags in the back seat of a two door car. With the limestone gravel dust wafting through the windows until your teeth felt gritty and your hair felt like twine.

I miss sitting in my great-uncle's avocado-green-shag-carpeted living room thinking that if the book study didn't end I would surely jump up screaming and run from the house.

I miss spending three hours studying the Watchtower on Saturday nights and having to listen to younger cousins sound their way sssslllloooowwwwllllyyyy through each paragraph as they took turns reading.

I miss watching the skin on my knees blister in the sun at an assembly in an open stadium.

Wheeew-terrible memories

obiwan

My family,friends and the dramas.

WOW It's a wide open world,use your
own thoughts.

beckyboop

These are cynical: I miss the dirty looks and sometimes comments by my parents and others about NOT reading the bible during the wts or bookstudy. I wasn't following along... (I liked Ruth and Esther)

I miss being beaten at 2 years old because I couldn't sit still during the meeting, and once while being carried out even yelled "Jehovah save me!"

I miss my dad "trying" to spank me at 16 years old because I was trying to tell him he didn't know how to listen to ME--I just wanted to be able to tell him how I FELT, even if it wasn't JW approved

I miss wasting 30 years of my life believing their story of Paradise--spending it in field service as a pioneer--trying in vain (unless the person was not very educated IMO) to convince others that we had the "truth"

I miss the countless hours of studying I put in, even though I really didn't pay much attention to WHAT I was reading (how could I and have lasted that long?)

I miss the thousands of dollars that I gave to that bloody religion in gas miles, meals, lack of work, pioneering etc.

I miss the instant jolt of fear whenever a natural disaster occurred and you think, "Is this it?" and then your next thought of "If it is, I won't make it because I didn't do (fill in the blank with the appropriate guilt tactic of the week--more studying, praying, contributions, service etc.)

I miss constantly feeling guilty because I just knew I wasn't good enough

These are real: I miss being allowed to grow up in a healthy, normal (according to my body's needs) way--being allowed to develop sexually, mentally, emotionally, physically in ways that were good for me, not a religion

I miss all the years I could have figured out who I was, and went to school already to do something I like

I miss my family, since I'm not given much attention by them

I miss not really enjoying anything until now--because there was always SOMETHING wrong with EVERYTHING

I miss all the years that I could have been truly happy--without guilt like I am now

I miss the people, but have found others in my life who often resemble those features I liked in my friends

Bottom line--while things are very different now, and at times I've been resentful of the past--I am here now, and can do anything I want NOW! You're only to old to do something if you think you're too old. And although I may at times miss certain "good" (like lots of people around) aspects of my jw past, I realize I can re-create whatever those things are.

Becky

L_A_Big_Dawg

Wow Becky,

You brought back some feelings that I hadn't felt in quite a long time.

These are real: I miss being allowed to grow up in a healthy, normal (according to my body's needs) way--being allowed to develop sexually, mentally, emotionally, physically in ways that were good for me, not a religion

This really resonated with me, since my abndonment of the Org. I had to go into counseling for anger-management. During that time I discovered that I had over issues. These were dealt with, and I am still trying to get healed.

The other thing I discovered was that I was not alone. That there are a lot of ex-J-Dubs out there that have sought out professional help.

Dealing with the multitude of negatives that my upbringing in the Dubs had given me was hard and tramatic. However, I am here. Not perfect, not completed but a more whole individual than I was.
So I prefer to look back at the positives of being a Dub (and there were positives, though few and far between).

It's too bad that most of us that were raised as Dubs had no opportunity to grow up in a normal sense. Instead we were worried about Armeggedon, not having "bad associations", and not pursuing our education beyond high school.

All I can say is that I am thankful that my children will not have to go through that. There is no way that I would allow them be a part of the Org.

"That's me in the corner. That's me in the spotlight, losing my religion." REM

And thank God I lost my religion.

The Big Dawg

thewiz

the ignorance

What's the one thing you miss about the WTS?

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