Posted by jimmyjames [jimmyjames] on April 03, 1999 at 22:08:16 {Ed9c7782HMOfSZqlzZ0Uijuk77B9Xg}:
I've been seeing a few Witnesses from my cong. at work lately and it got me thinking about some of the old times (I know, I know, I'm only 20, but they feel like old times;-) ). Even though I've said some degrading things about JWs in general here on the forum and I've been more than a little sarcastic about particular JWs I've known, I can't help but miss the people in my congregation.
Am I the only one here who feels this way? When I read some of the posts here, I get the vibe that they don't really look back on any of their time in the org as ever being pleasant, especially those who've been out for a while now. Is it possible that they have forgotten over time while they developed a little cynicism? I know a lot of people had some bad experiences with elders/other JWs etc. I know a lot of people also felt betrayed and angry when they came to realize the org was misleading them. Weren't there any good times, though?
Don't get me wrong- I do have a lot of regrets. I was serious about the religion from about 14 on (high school years) and in retrospect I guess I did miss a lot. I would like to have gotten involved a lot more. I also regret "detaching" myself from a lot of friends that I had gone to school with since kindergarten and had grown up with- I'm sure I missed out on a lot of fun with them and going on to college with them, etc. But I can remember a lot of times getting together with the people in the congregation and I just can't bring myself to deny that they were some of the greatest people I've ever known and that I had a lot of fun sometimes.
When I see some from my cong. now and then I
can't help but miss the people. I've got too many plans and interests now that don't quite "mesh" with being a JW, so I can't stay. I sincerely hope that when the new "great crowd" GBers take over that shunning's the first thing to go.