JW's not happy people

by wannaexit 18 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  blondie

  Maverick, your comment reminded me what Eric Hoffer said in "True Believer."

  To the frustrated, freedom from responsibility is more attractive than freedom from restraint. They are eager to barter their independence for relief from the burdens of willing, deciding and being responsible for inevitable failure. They willingly abdicate the directing of their lives to those who want to plan, command and shoulder all responsibility.

  Not only does a mass movement depict the present as mean and miserable - it deliberately makes it so. It fashions a pattern of individual existence that is dour, hard, repressive and dull. It decries pleasures and comforts and extols the rigorous life. It views ordinary enjoyment as trivial or even discreditable, and represents the pursuit of personal happiness as immoral.

  Blondie
• 

  DannyBear

  Iam very worried about my daughter (jw) right now. Newly married and having a rough go financialy. She has owned her own business in the high tech field for seven years and done very well. But recent down turns in the industry have almost killed her business completely.

  I think she was starting to think for herself as regards the religion, even associating with me an evil apostate scum. I can only hope that she will not attribute her temporary woes to her slackening off as a jw.

  That is of course what the 'power's that be' within the cult will ascribe to her problems. Whenever anything goes the slightest off track......it has to be your fault for not 'being more active'........'personal study'......'field service'....and all that tired old horseshit.

  Damn I hope she doesn't fall prey to some idiot elder or relative who gushes this nonsense.

  Danny
• 

  Satanus

  Hi dannybear, and welcome back. Sometimes downturns can be blessings in disguise, to use a tired phrase. At their lowest points is where addicts (that includes religious addicts) often have an epiphany, and start on the road to recovery.

  SS
• 

  DannyBear

  Thanks SS,

  I sincerely hope your right. She is a very bright and savy girl. As I told her 'I wish I had a magic wand, that could make things better' ........any parent hates to see a child in pain. I feel just as bad for her now as the time when I rushed her to the hospital when she split her forehead open in the playground. My heart aches for her.

  Danny
• 

  SheilaM

  I imailed with a wife of an old friend last night. She never misses the dubs and didn't seem shocked that Anthony was in the Marine's she is a little different than most dubs down there hmmm

  On the 7th day, God rested, we overran
  his perimeter, and stole the globe. Marines
  have been running the show ever since.
• 

  Trotafox

  To the frustrated, freedom from responsibility is more attractive than freedom from restraint. They are eager to barter their independence for relief from the burdens of willing, deciding and being responsible for inevitable failure. They willingly abdicate the directing of their lives to those who want to plan, command and shoulder all responsibility.

  Blondie:

  I so agree. I'd like to read that book. This is my friend(?) (who is still in the Borg) to the tee. She actully worried because she had dreams where she would be the only one following the false prophet (how close this is to her reality right now). She was always so busy all the time and had a TO DO list that was ridiculous. When she got engaged, she actually had "Get married" on her TO DO list! Well, when the JW's came knocking, how tempting and easy it was for her to turn over her "Develop a relationship with God" task to an organization who would take care everything in such a nice, orgnanized. CONTROLLED process with the promise of "We take care of each other; you can count on us because we're Jehovah's organization and no one else has His blessing ." " NOT (not even close) So now everything she does revolves around the Borg and her To Do list is just as long as it always was.

  And Me? Why did I join the Borg? Because she was my best friend, like the sibling that I never had and I emotionally needed that friendship. I, too, was a spiritual person and truly searching for the right way to serve God. I thought she was on to something. I trusted her judgment (she is a very bright person although I now know she was emotionally weak...as I was) which is why I never researched the organization as I would have done normally (I didn't have the Internet at the time). My independent thinking () eventually saved me but not until 11 years of my precious life went down the tubes and having to suffer the loss of my best friend. I doubt that she will ever come out. She always had to be the perfect daugher, the perfect employee, the perfect wife, the perfect housekeeper, and now she is trying to be the perfect JW.

  Now I concentrate on making my own happiness by makng new friends , developing my own relationship with God without the interference of an organization (religious or otherwise), and trying to get over the absolute anger that I have for myself, my friend, and the Watchtower. Learning to forgive is so hard.

  Cheers, Trot
• 

  blondie

  I recommend the book, Trotafox, as will several others who post here, True Believer by Eric Hoffer.

  Blondie
• 

  Trotafox

  bttt for good reasons.
• 

  Double Edge

  My JW friend is NEVER happy ... sooooo negative.