I bought my children gifts at convention and assembly times. They usually got some kid friendly notebooks, one of those pens that has several colors of ink, and little stickers or other things to make the convention fun. They got to open those little presents the morning of the convention/assembly.
I also got them each a toy they'd been wanting. They had to make a list, so they never really knew which one of their requests they were getting. I would wrap them and put them on the table before we went to the convention/ assembly, so they could take a guess at what was in them. They got to open them as soon as we got home, and I took pictures. We usually had something special for dinner, too.
Plus, there were various "just because" gifts throughout the year.
I'm actually worse at giving gifts now than I was then:( But I'm working on that. It's still very hard for me to remember birthdays!
Cicatrix
JoinedPosts by Cicatrix
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25
DID OUR PARENTS REPLACE BIRTHDAY OR CHRISTMAS GIFTS WITH ANYTHING ELSE?
by diamondblue1974 in.
what about it...i know for me i got gifts throughout the year but i didnt get as many as my friends did on their birthdays etc....what about you...do you or did you replace b/days and christmas gifts or celebrations with anything else whilst being a jw and in particular anything as personal....
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Cicatrix
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This is for ones not born in the truth
by vitty inhow long did it take for you to revert back to your old ways of thinking, reasoning and attitudes from before you were a witnes .
eg i lived with my husband before we got married, then learned it was wrong.
now i see so many witness getting married too young (cos they want sex) that i dont think its such a bad idea.
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Cicatrix
I wasn't born into the organisation, but became involved with it at the age of sixteen and didn't leave until twenty years later. Because I was in for most of my adult life, I haven't been able to just revert back to the way I was (I think that would be impossible, due to the fact that maturity has changed me a lot, anyway, and would have even if I wasn't JW all those years). I am slowly examining the teachings I received as a JW, and I'm learning to not fear the horrible retributions the WTS claims befalls all "apostates." I am also learning how events in my life and my family background made me vulnerable to the Witnesses when they came knocking on my door.
All of this has taken hard work,a big dose of patience, and some very helpful people I've met along the way. I wish I could just "get over it," but it's going to take time to undo a lot of faulty learning that I was exposed to for so many years, years that are the very years when people form their adult personage.
There are some things I may never get over, and I'm going to have to come to terms with that. But I am doing my best not to become trapped by fear or disillusionment. Sometimes I've had to force myself to do things, but I'm usually glad I've done them after the initial fear of doing them is over and I find that I'm still standing. -
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Shunning - what do they think they are accomplishing?
by mjarka911 ina jw cousin of mine called my jw wife today and asked if i saw my new nephew from my jw sister.
my wife said "no, his family would never allow him to see the baby!
" (i'm da'd).
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Cicatrix
Hi Mjarka,
I DA'd myself voluntarily a couple of years ago. When I'm shunned by my former friends, it only serves to remind me of WHY I left in the first place.
I'm sorry to hear how your family is treating you, by the way. -
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Where is this scripture located in the Bible?
by Cicatrix in"time and unforseen occurence befall us all"
it's driving me nuts trying to find it!
thanks:) cic
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Cicatrix
Thank you everyone! Now I can get some sleep tonight:) I never thought about checking out the WTS site, lol.And I got rid of my WTS books (it was cathartic, but sometimes now I wish I would've kept a few for reference). I never did had the CD ROMs.The "donation" was more than I could afford.Someone was kind enough to lend me their set for awhile though. It was pretty nifty. Lol, Candidly.
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Where is this scripture located in the Bible?
by Cicatrix in"time and unforseen occurence befall us all"
it's driving me nuts trying to find it!
thanks:) cic
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Cicatrix
"Time and unforseen occurence befall us all" It's driving me nuts trying to find it! Thanks:) Cic
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New OM Book replacement & Upcoming Elder School
by doinmypart inthe organized to accomplish our ministry (om book) will be replaced on sunday march 20, 2005 with a book titled organized to do jehovah's will.
this is confidential, so be sure to tell your relatives and friends that are still in!
will there be any updates to the org's procedures, or just a re-hash of old policies?
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Cicatrix
"Can they be preparing to accept 'apostasy' and equate internal charity with the waste-of-time
"ministry"?"
I've been wondering if they are preparing to get on the "faith based initiative" wagon myself. Gotta have some "charity" or service to offer to do that.
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Which is worse: shunning by JW or by Non-JW relatives?
by GermanXJW inyesterday, on the first christmas holiday, my family and me were invited at my father in law's house.
he has never been a jw and we had no contact but because he shunned us for being jw.
i find this as offensive as being shunned by a jw - maybe even worse because he decided personally to have no contact.
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Cicatrix
I have some in-laws that used the fact that I was JW to shun me, with the approval of the rest of the family. They were also having a JW family call on them regularly, mostly, I believe, to spread lies about me.They were very active in their own church, and regularly spoke against JW beliefs (I don't know if the JWs knew that or not). Also, some other folks I know told me that they had witnessed them saying crap about me.
The JWs believed the lies (there was no reason for them not to, my in-laws are "pillars of the community"), and I was scapegoated because of it.Not only by the JWs, but also by the very small, very rural community I lived in. It turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me, because I ended up being able to experience for myself the lack of love and the emphasis on legalism in the organisation. I "rebelled" against the local JW elders and went to college, and there I met lots of new people and learned that not everything "worldly" was evil.I realized that I was being totally stressed out by the JW org, to the point it was affecting my health and the health of my kids. I knew I needed to get out.
When I DA'd myself awhile back, the in-laws lost their cover. I figured that my announcement would be a test as to whether their motive was for religious and altruistic reasons or not, and I gave them a Christmas ornament as my "peace offering". My efforts to bury the hatchet were not reciprocated. Later in the first year I was out,when I was buying flowers at the greenhouse where my SIL works, she took me aside and yelled at me about the fact that my family bought the family business and house that she and her husband wanted.Unfortunately, she cornered me in a back greenhouse, so there were no witnesses to her little tirade. At least I know the real reason for all the venom, anyway!
This year,I sent them a Christmas card, wishing them a "blessed Christmas and New Year":) It hurts to be hated over something I had no idea was even an issue until way too late (and the sad part is that I had never wanted to move there and take over the family business-my husband wanted to), but I'm not going to let how she and her husband treat me to affect my life anymore. Now that I live hundreds of miles away from them, their rumors don't affect me.
On the bright side, another SIL admitted recently that she had been told some lies about me that she no longer believes. Maybe someday the rest of the family will get a clue, too. -
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What Terms Do Jehovah's Witnesses Use To Indicate They Are A Cult?
by minimus in.
"the organization" is one of my favorites.
very "cultish" expression, to me.......and you??
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Cicatrix
"independent thinking"
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Baby Girl
by teejay ini was enjoying a rousing conversation with a funny, sexy lady.
then tragedy struck.
my cell phone started acting up.
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Cicatrix
{{{Teejay, Sheila and Family}}}
I'm so sorry to hear of this tragedy! You guys are in my thoughts and prayers.
"Amidst a cemetery of headstones graced with children's toys and showing lives marked in days and months instead of years; with epitaphs like "I Pray The Lord My Soul To Take", the loathsome coffin, barely two feet long, sat draped in beautiful flowers. I hated the sight of it."
I agree so much:( -
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Well it finally happened
by SheilaM inwell here it is folks i am finally published.
i found out wed i had a poem and a photograph published in park universities the scribe.
which is cool since i don't even go there yet, it was quite and honor.
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Cicatrix
Awesome!! Enjoy the results of your hard work and talent:)