How was it when you were a JW as a kid?

by nevaagain 26 Replies latest jw friends

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  nevaagain

  Whats worse than being an adult JW? Being a JW as a kid.

  When I was a kid I always had a bad concience all the time. I believed I would not survive Armageddon for the fact that I didn't like going to service and I didnt like going to the meetings. There used to be a time when I had school every second Saturday. The other kids hated school on Saturdays, but not me! That meant no service and my parent would not be mad at me for missing service!

  My parent didnt have a lot of money so I don't think that even as non-witness I would get showered with birthday and christmas presents, but still listening to other kids what great presents they got was very hard.

  I still didnt forgive my mom for all the beatings she gave me for being a lively kid during the meetings. My parents where pretty old school, that meant no notepad and no pens. Also no children books or other things to keep busy during meeting. They really expected that I would stand still the whole 2 hours without even understanding whats going on. No wonder I still loathe meetings to this day!

  I still dont understand why they dont have a seperate program for children during meeting time. As if just from repeating what his parent told him to say as a comment would benefit the child in any way.
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  floriferous

  JW kids are alienated from a very early age by having to sit through interminable meetings about 'types & antitypes' or the 'Bablyon the Great' book that even adult JW's struggled with.

  Or the Ezekiel book about a mad old man that had to lay on his right side in the dust for so long & then on his left for so long & then God told to him to make models out of his poo ( as a teenager I found that funny & confirmed my growing ideas that God was weird).

  The borg has really missed a trick by not having a separate program for children.

  Don't get me started about 8 day assemblies.........
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  Bungi Bill

  I was eight years old when my grandmother began that part of the JW indoctrination process that they like to call the "Free Home Bible Study".

  At his mother's insistence, my father attended parts of a few assemblies,including the public talks. Significantly, he picked up immediately that it was pointless bringing children along to such events (this was about the time the "Babylon the Great" book was released) - as the content was clean over their heads. Was he right about that!

  Nonetheless, my father was placed under much pressure from his parents to bring us three children along to the meetings. Luckily for us all, he resisted.

  For that, I can't thank him enough!

  I wholeheartedly agree with his later description of the JW routine of five meetings a week (as it was then), plus Circuit Assemblies, District Conventions, Special Assemblies, International Assemblies etc - with mandatory attendance of both children as well as adults - as "inhuman."

  Bill.

  PS: How I managed to get snared in when a teenager is another story!
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  punkofnice

  Being a JW kid was austere and awful. I was afraid the demons would appear in my bedroom at night. I was afraid that I was guilty of something and god would lovingly murder me at armageddon(tm).

  I do not thank my parents for putting me through that.

  It has made me insular and not very good at making decisions...........apart from leaving the cult!
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  FadeToBlack

  My son has been out longer. He just kind of drifted away. When I woke up, we had a good conversation when I was last back in the states. I wanted to make sure he didn't hate me for taking away his childhood. He was a JW from birth until his early 20's.

  Suprisingly, he was ok. I think his biggest regret was not being able to be involved with sports. He is not really anti-JW, just not part of it any more. Someone visits him with mags once in a while that he said he glances at. I encouraged him to be polite but firm when refusing their invitations to go to the meetings.

  I think I am actually more upset by it (his lack of a normal childhood) than he is. When I visit my sisters and mother (never JW's) and see all the memories they have of real family outings and get togethers, it really hits me. I got nothing.
  
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  Sofia Lose

  My childhood really good and normal. Lots of play time with siblings, cousins and neighborhood kids.

  Cannot recall a single birthday or holiday celebration, but recall other parties just the same. The big talk of 'JW kids are not happy' is just crazy talk.

  Just the other day we all got together at this park, bouncy house, pool, games, such good food and music! The kiddos along with all there had a great time. Parties like that are common in the Spanish congs of this FL area.

  SL
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  tenyearsafter

  Worst experience I can recall was going door to door one weekend, and when I rang the bell, a girl from school who I was really enamored with answered the door. She thought I came to visit her and started chatting...my D2D partner started the presentation, and I felt like crawling under the door mat! I had always maintained a "low profile" about being a JW, and this "outed" me and ruined my chances with the hot girl at school. It is funny now, but I was absolutely mortified when it happened!
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  Sofia Lose

  I must add that when most of the family is JW and there are very little influences of contradiction, then it makes it for life to seem quite normal.

  Not until 1995 with the 'generation' change did I begin my disgruntled movement, then finding out about the UN affiliation and lately the pedophilia cover up. Now is when I find myself very sad and mad to be trapped in this Org.

  SL
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  StephaneLaliberte

  When I look back on my childhood …
  

  • I lost contact with an ant and an uncle because they were disfellowshipped.
  • The contact I had with my non-jw family was insufficient.
  • I thought everyone, except JW, were either ignorant or too proud to accept the truth.
  • I was not involved in any after school activities
  • I could not be part of a baseball or basketball team
  • Vacation days often meant that I was going in service for the morning.
  • I was not celebrating any holidays

  Now, the strange thing is that when I grew up, I felt very happy. I was a very happy kid. I had good friends, good parents, never lacked food or clothing, played a lot, and had a lot of fun… I sincerely had a great childhood. Since I knew nothing better, I saw what I had as the best that I could have. That’s also what I was being told every meetings (5 hours per week)!
  So, looking back now, I don’t understand how I could be happy in all this, but this doesn’t change the fact that I was!
  Weird.
  
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  FayeDunaway

  The witness fun I had growing up, was socialization with other witnesses-picnics, 'get togethers', outings, that had everything to do with the people, and nothing to do with the WTBTS. Everything to do with the WTBTS was either negativity, boring, stifling, or flat out painful. We bore it. We got through it. Just so we could just be together in our free time.