ever since leaving 4 years ago, at least twice a week i have dreams of old friends, and sometimes i wake up crying, laughing, etc., depending on what it was about.
the ones that bother me the most involve me walking down columbia heights seeing old bethelite friends, and they all look at me weird because i have dreds and earrings now, but they still talk to me.
but they have this look of disgust on their faces, like i'm not good enough for them anymore.
LB,
One thing about being raised a Witness is that it prevented me realizing what the world is really like. I was way too trusting w/ numerous people because I felt most people were naturally trustworthy, such as most of the friends left behind amongst the dubs. You definitely gotta watch your steps a lot closer and be a LOT more selective of friends, that's for sure.
I'm working on it, it's a slow process but it's coming along.
thanks for the input....
jay
ever since leaving 4 years ago, at least twice a week i have dreams of old friends, and sometimes i wake up crying, laughing, etc., depending on what it was about.
the ones that bother me the most involve me walking down columbia heights seeing old bethelite friends, and they all look at me weird because i have dreds and earrings now, but they still talk to me.
but they have this look of disgust on their faces, like i'm not good enough for them anymore.
Robyn,
That's true, they could be shunning me. I guess I'm fortunate in that regard, we still talk on the phone periodically.
Thanks for your comments, I really appreciate the support.
Take care,
jason
my name is laurie fitzwater (formerly gendreau).
i was raised in fl and lived in bradenton.
i know a lot of people from sarasota as well.
Hi,
I had some friends that moved to Bradenton for a few years from Connecticut. The Talarino's - really REALLY cool family.
Ring any bells? I have no idea what part of Bradenton....but this was back in the late 80's early 90's i believe..
-jason
ever since leaving 4 years ago, at least twice a week i have dreams of old friends, and sometimes i wake up crying, laughing, etc., depending on what it was about.
the ones that bother me the most involve me walking down columbia heights seeing old bethelite friends, and they all look at me weird because i have dreds and earrings now, but they still talk to me.
but they have this look of disgust on their faces, like i'm not good enough for them anymore.
Ever since leaving 4 years ago, at least twice a week I have dreams of old friends, and sometimes I wake up crying, laughing, etc., depending on what it was about. The ones that bother me the most involve me walking down Columbia Heights seeing old Bethelite friends, and they all look at me weird because I have dreds and earrings now, but they still talk to me. But they have this look of disgust on their faces, like I'm not good enough for them anymore. In these dreams I walk through Bethel and am labeled as the "weak one" or the one that "needs encouragement." I wake up from these dreams frustrated, and they always seem SO REAL, that's what's scary. But it hurts a lot, knowing that most of my previous friends no longer view me as their friend anymore.
My family thinks I left to "pursue my own selfish desires" although I've repeatedly told them numerous reasons why I left, all of them having to do with my thoughts on the organization. They don't understand "how I could turn my back on my family and friends to pursue my own life" and I can't seem to explain to them how this isn't anything remotely like that. I've used illustrations (such as 'if you grew up in a gang-related family and then wanted out after awhile, would you stay in just so you could be w/ your family, or would you be true to your hearts desire and leave?") but even that only provoked a "do what you need to do" response. They still can't seem to understand, and I don't know how anyone could NOT understand.
So frustrating. I wish I could make the dreams go away. I really miss my friends a LOT. Not as easy making friends as it used to be....
i have received inquiries about how i was trained by spirit as a psychologist.
i was led to many sources of enlightenment.
books routinely was i led to that it was important i read.
12375460
when i was a jw kid, one of the ways we amused ourselves at assemblies, conventions, and the local kh was to play "spot the celebrity".
fortunately for us, the joyful throngs of jehovah's people were brimming with celebrity look-alikes, so we were able to enjoy many upbuilding sessions of "spot the celebrity".
here are some celebrities i have spotted on jwd.
me & chris rock? hahaha
i need to post a better pic of myself - the current one is too blurry....
i have believed that the great tribulation begins with some sort of nuclear attack on the united states.. events are emerging which increase the probability of such an event.. the archrivals at the end scene are the us and russia.
russia is in a dire state.
its economy hangs by a thread.
proplog,
your post reminds me of this:
http://www.rumormillnews.net/cgi-bin/config.pl?read=15853
Here it is almost a full year later and still nothing has happened. Not to say this couldn't happen - who knows how much of it is true - I did a little research and verified that a few scientists have indeed been killed and/or are "missing" but who knows why.
There are so many beliefs, predictions, prophecies, etc....the media distorts everything we deem as "fact" that there's just no telling what the real "truth" is or what's in store for us. I definitely believe something like what you've said could be the case, however I wouldn't put my life on every word of it coming true. It's just another angle to look at the whole situation.
I'm quite convinced there will be another attack on America very soon. So much so I'm trying to convince my girlfriend to move to Canada. We'll see what happens.
Peace,
jay
i found this little gem from the january 2002 km thanks to stephanus: .
january 2000 kingdom ministry now up.
i present it in all its deception (together with my ever-so-humble observations) for your reading enjoyment: .
Interesting....now that I read that I recall hearing that before.
I wonder if that's always the case though...I find it hard to believe that they always rely on funding from the circuit or district in order to travel for talks...??
i found this little gem from the january 2002 km thanks to stephanus: .
january 2000 kingdom ministry now up.
i present it in all its deception (together with my ever-so-humble observations) for your reading enjoyment: .
They spend it on flying to all of the tropical islands to visit the "brothers." New Zealand, Australia, the Cayman Islands, etc...
The Society had (probably still do) a fleet of Buick's - not the nicest car in the world, but nice in an old-fashioned sort of way.
And their rooms are IMMACULATE.
They dress pretty modestly though.
Who knows if any of the money is "stowed away" for their own benefit. I honestly doubt it, but it wouldn't surprise me either.
But yeah, I worked as an Exec Admin for a few years after leaving Bethel, and I KNOW how much money is spent on travel....the GB travels a TON, as well as other members of the organization - I can only imagine how much money is spent on travel per year....
they should look into video conferencing.
joe alward.
about a year ago i raised this issue of the bible-writers' apparent belief that the color of one's offspring is determined in part by what you're looking at while you're mating.
we didn't obtain then what i considered a satisfactory resolution of this problem, so i'm presenting it once again for the forum's consideration:.
if this were true most people on the earth would be black cuz most people do it in the dark.
:-P
hahahaha
i can't believe i missed that scripture in my mandatory reading of the bible my first year in bethel.
Actually, I never made it through Daniel.
