Great topic, Kismet!
While I was growing up in the Borg, and through my whole JW experience, there were two people who stood out as role models and examples of the kind of Witness I wanted to be.
First was one of the elders in my home congregation. When I was little, he was pretty scary, but I always respected his knowledge of the Organization, and how he could always explain what the interpretation of ALL the Bible's prophecies were. I remember wishing and praying to be as knowledgeable as he was. To me, he was the epitome of "theocratic wisdom".
The other person was well known among the JWs in Quebec, Ontario and the Maritimes. Her name was Grace Lonsbury, and she was always interviewed at every assembly and convention I ever attended. She pioneered from young adulthood, and remained single and childless "for the sake of the Kingdom". She was "used" by the WTS (and I now say that with the contempt it deserves) to make people feel that full time service was something anybody could do if they really wanted to, and that if a person wasn't selfishly pursuing the things of the world, they could serve Jehovah completely like she did.
Now that I know the whole Org is complete bunk and rubbish, I feel sorry for them for wasting the best years of their lives on an investment that's never going to pay out for them.
Just before our exit from the Org began, during my last pregnancy and afterward while I was going through postpartum depression, the people who inspired me were the ones who cared about my family and me without concern for who we were or what they were able to get from us in return. Some of them were neighbours, some of them were strangers at first, but not a single one of them were JWs. I couldn't believe that these "good" people - by virtue of their not being JWs - would have their whole lives and the good things they did discounted just because they weren't Witnesses and end up destroyed.
One woman in particular, was the Public Health Nurse who came to see me twice a week for two months and provided the emotional and moral support that I needed while I was ill. She never judged me for not "doing enough". She always focused on positive things and reminded me that I was doing the best that I could. She was the person who didn't laugh at me when I started talking about going to Nursing School (unlike the JWs), and she was the one who encouraged me to go for it. If it wasn't for her and and the positive experience I had with her, I would not be a nurse today. Becoming a nurse has been the one of the best highlights of my life and most difficult thing I've ever done. Thank you, Elaine, from the bottom of my heart.
I'm still drawn to knowledgeable, experienced, compassionate, non-judgemental people. What really surprises me now, though, is when someone tells me that they think of me as their mentor or as an inspiration. Every single time, I'm surprised!
Love, Scully
Edited by - Scully on 5 August 2002 10:49:49
