Well, I did it. I went to my sons first talk, he is 7 years old. I will try and describe the experience for you.
First of all, I am so proud of my son. Despite the religious aspects, he did a great job even though he was very nervous. Through all of this, I am first and foremost proud of my son and his accomplishment. Please do not ruin this by making disparaging remarks. We are all entitled to our opinions, and they are all correct. We do not need to share opinions that may be hurtful though.
OK, so on to the experience.
I thought I would be more nervous. I live 5 hours away, so I had a long drive to think about everything. I haven't been in a KH for 3 years or so and thinking about walking into one again made me nauseous to say the least. This was not the KH that I attended, but was one that I visited quite frequently, so I did know quite a few there.
I arrived 20 minutes before the meeting started, my son and his mom were not there yet. Historically, I remembered DF individuals would always come in after the opening song and prayer, I guess due to embarrasment and wanting to avoid "making a spectacle". I, however, feel no such embarrasment, except maybe for the many wasted yestrs I spent in the organization. So I walked into the hall 20 minutes before the meeting started.
I debated on what I should wear to the meeting. I ended up wearing dress pants and a shirt/tie. This was about my son after all, not me, so I went with the standard attire. I do have a beard though, and that wasn't coming off, so I guess I still stood out like a sore thumb.
When I walked into the hall, I was greeted by several, mostly because I think they did not recognize me and thought I might be a potential new convert, lol. I smiled at these folks and walked down to the front and found a seat and waited for my son to arrive. Several approached me and introduced themselves. I told them that I was freemedic JRs Father and was here for his talk. All of them acknowledged this and then moved on. Al in all, not a terrible experience. I did see many who I was friends with before and got the standard shunning as well as a few dirty looks, all of which I fully expected. Whatever, their loss not mine.
I sat through the bible study, which was the "Draw close to Jehovah" book, again. A comment was made about how the Isrealites were stubborn and rebelious and of no use to anyone and that Jews today were exactly the same. I was quite shocked when everyone in the audience laughed. Quite disturbing anti-semetic comments! During another talk, Baal was identified as being an androgenous God, both male and female. This "Pagan God" was identified as the souce of all of the gender "confusion" we see today. Lots of noises of approval from those in attendance. This was also quite disturbing to me.
At any rate, I thought I handled the situation much better than I thought. I wasn't nervous at all, and the terrible things I heard only reinforced further how happy I am that I am no longer a part of such a disgusting organization. I'm glad I went, being there to support my son was important to me even though I don't agree with the beliefs.
What was interesting was the response I got after. I posted a picture on FB of my son on the stage during his talk. I was so proud of his accomplishment and wanted to share it. I got a very negative response from a close friend who was DF'd several years ago but who apparently wants to go back. He said how sad it was that I was not "up there with him". My son gave a talk with another brother at the table. I guess they have started letting men give these talks now? The women are still banned from the podium I imagine. Anyway, he felt that it was heart breaking to see another brother up on the stage with him and that it shound have been me. There was such a barrage of responses that I ended up deleting the post, as the initial reason for posting the picture was lost.
I found this very frustrating. I am proud of my son and his public speaking accomplishment. Why do others, JWs at that, feel the need to make this about me and what they feel I am or am not doing correctly? So rediculous I think.
Anyway, I will continue to be proud of my son but also continue to show him that there is another way to live. I try and teach him and expose him to other ideas as often as I can when appropriate. I hope that he will see the TTATT and make a smart and informed decision when the time comes.
First of all, I am so proud of my son. Despite the religious aspects, he did a great job even though he was very nervous. Through all of this, I am first and foremost proud of my son and his accomplishment. Please do not ruin this by making disparaging remarks. We are all entitled to our opinions, and they are all correct. We do not need to share opinions that may be hurtful though.
OK, so on to the experience.
I thought I would be more nervous. I live 5 hours away, so I had a long drive to think about everything. I haven't been in a KH for 3 years or so and thinking about walking into one again made me nauseous to say the least. This was not the KH that I attended, but was one that I visited quite frequently, so I did know quite a few there.
I arrived 20 minutes before the meeting started, my son and his mom were not there yet. Historically, I remembered DF individuals would always come in after the opening song and prayer, I guess due to embarrasment and wanting to avoid "making a spectacle". I, however, feel no such embarrasment, except maybe for the many wasted yestrs I spent in the organization. So I walked into the hall 20 minutes before the meeting started.
I debated on what I should wear to the meeting. I ended up wearing dress pants and a shirt/tie. This was about my son after all, not me, so I went with the standard attire. I do have a beard though, and that wasn't coming off, so I guess I still stood out like a sore thumb.
When I walked into the hall, I was greeted by several, mostly because I think they did not recognize me and thought I might be a potential new convert, lol. I smiled at these folks and walked down to the front and found a seat and waited for my son to arrive. Several approached me and introduced themselves. I told them that I was freemedic JRs Father and was here for his talk. All of them acknowledged this and then moved on. Al in all, not a terrible experience. I did see many who I was friends with before and got the standard shunning as well as a few dirty looks, all of which I fully expected. Whatever, their loss not mine.
I sat through the bible study, which was the "Draw close to Jehovah" book, again. A comment was made about how the Isrealites were stubborn and rebelious and of no use to anyone and that Jews today were exactly the same. I was quite shocked when everyone in the audience laughed. Quite disturbing anti-semetic comments! During another talk, Baal was identified as being an androgenous God, both male and female. This "Pagan God" was identified as the souce of all of the gender "confusion" we see today. Lots of noises of approval from those in attendance. This was also quite disturbing to me.
At any rate, I thought I handled the situation much better than I thought. I wasn't nervous at all, and the terrible things I heard only reinforced further how happy I am that I am no longer a part of such a disgusting organization. I'm glad I went, being there to support my son was important to me even though I don't agree with the beliefs.
What was interesting was the response I got after. I posted a picture on FB of my son on the stage during his talk. I was so proud of his accomplishment and wanted to share it. I got a very negative response from a close friend who was DF'd several years ago but who apparently wants to go back. He said how sad it was that I was not "up there with him". My son gave a talk with another brother at the table. I guess they have started letting men give these talks now? The women are still banned from the podium I imagine. Anyway, he felt that it was heart breaking to see another brother up on the stage with him and that it shound have been me. There was such a barrage of responses that I ended up deleting the post, as the initial reason for posting the picture was lost.
I found this very frustrating. I am proud of my son and his public speaking accomplishment. Why do others, JWs at that, feel the need to make this about me and what they feel I am or am not doing correctly? So rediculous I think.
Anyway, I will continue to be proud of my son but also continue to show him that there is another way to live. I try and teach him and expose him to other ideas as often as I can when appropriate. I hope that he will see the TTATT and make a smart and informed decision when the time comes.