The Dark Tower, a prison without bars

by freeman 13 Replies latest watchtower bible

  • freeman
    freeman

    Three days ago I was chit-chatting with my wife about the impending cold weather and snowstorm forecasted to hit our area when the conversation unexpectedly turned a bit negative. She made the statement that they might cancel the meeting if the roads become too dangerous, I replied that they just might but really if she went to the meeting or not, the decision was up to HER based on HER best judgment. Her retort was to the effect of not to tell her what to do and that she would go to the meeting if she wanted to. Oh boy, I guess I pushed the wrong button again. Honestly I was not implying that she needed to stay home but was trying to assure her that it was OK if she didi and that the decision was ultimately with her, i. e. not based on a phone call from some elder telling her it was OK to stay home.

    The subject was dropped and yesterday we got belted with snow and bitter cold as predicted. Well she got the big call from one of her handlers and when she got off the phone she was in high spirits saying these words ?I?m free, I?m free, they canceled the meeting?. I couldn?t believe what she was saying, enunciating in no uncertain terms that she so much wanted to stay home and not go out in the bitter cold. I was just dying inside to point out how much control she was under, but I just held my tongue and instead said "wow that?s great babe, how do you want to celebrate"? She asked me to fix her an adult beverage and so I did. We spent the remainder of the evening enjoying each others company, just like normal people do all the time, just like we did before we joined a cult.

    Message to lurkers: This is just another real-life example of just how much control the Dark Tower has over your life. Get out while you still can!

  • Elsewhere
    Elsewhere
    ?I?m free, I?m free, they canceled the meeting?.

    lol... yeah I used to do the same thing. I have never heard a JW complain about a canceled meeting. In fact, every time a meeting was canceled, it felt like the entire family was on a mini-vacation... big smiles and high spirits.

    Has anyone ever heard of a JW complaining about a canceled meeting?

  • Gretchen956
    Gretchen956

    In all my life I can honestly say that I don't ever remember a canceled meeting, and I grew up in Montana, although not the eastern part where the worst weather is. The roads were always plowed and sanded if they had to be out all night, never missed a day of school either. Looks like I never got a break!

    Gretchen

  • onintwo
    onintwo

    I can remember about 25 years ago a time when a group of us (young married couples, all in the troof) were on some sort of overnite camping trip. We were in a very rural campground. Somehow it happened that we were going to be unable to make it back to our area on Sunday afternoon and thus were going to miss the meeting. (I can't remember the exact circumstance). But I do remember this; A ministerial servant, very active, later to become an elder said: "Well, it's true we're gonna miss the talk and WT study, but hey, you hear one talk, you've heard them all!" We all laughed. It was a rare and candid moment for him.

    Someone kind of then said that she had a WT in her car and we could conduct the WT study right there, but she kinda got drowned out and we never had the meeting. I think everyone kinda felt funny, skating out on a regularly planned meeting and all. But we soon forgot about the feeling and went back to enjoying the outing.

    I can't believe how much control the WT had on all of us. Imagine feeling guilty about taking a weekend off, and relaxing like normal people do!

    Onintwo

  • Sassy
    Sassy

    freeman, it is sad looking at it from the outside looking in.. it has to do with the guilt they had put on us. Yes we could choose to stay home because it was unsafe weather (actually I took that route often), however the guilt in knowing others "OBEYED" and still attended hung over you like a heavy blanket the whole night.. yet if you got the call there was no meeting you could enjoy your "time off"

  • Sargon
    Sargon

    I can remember the odd book study cancelled, but I don't ever remember a cancelled meeting. I remember going to one meeting after nearly 18" of snow and most of the rest of the others showed up. We were a fairly rural congregation, some people having to drive up to 15 miles.

  • garybuss
    garybuss



    Once back in the 50's my dad was scheduled to give a Sunday talk at the Hall in Pipestone. It was a 60 mile drive and it was winter and Sunday morning it was snowing hard. Nevertheless he piled my brother and me and our mother and our aunt and uncle in his old Chevy without a heater, and off we went to Pipestone in a blizzard. We almost had a head on collision with a snow plow on the way and it took us forever to get there. When we got there the Hall was locked up and the meeting had been cancelled.

    That was my dad though, everything Watch Tower came first. First before our safely, first before our rest, first before our food, first before our education, first before us. Tower publishing couldn't have had a better robot than him.



  • A Paduan
    A Paduan

    Without bars ?

    They can bar her from coming - and just as easily bar her from staying home

  • cypher50
    cypher50

    We used to get one or two cancelled meetings a year up in NY due to snow (I lived in the country so it was a matter of safety). I usually was happy if it was the Sunday or Service Meeting but I actually liked going to the Book Study since it felt much more like just family getting together to study the bible (our book study groups usually weren't over 10 people and we were actually friends). Still, I mostly was happy if the meeting was cancelled.

  • wednesday
    wednesday

    Every few years in Dallas we have an ice storm. We were always excited , news coverage and no meeting! does not happen too often, but it is like not having to go to school.

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