Have you got Morgbot relatives who claims to be happy when clearly they are struggling in different areas? Ones who say things like "Hey, it works for us?"

At first, thought that maybe they truly are happy but soon after realized such comments were a mechanism to hold the marriage together, in an avoidance of looking at facts and reality. Aconscious decision to avoid looking at the reality because that would be just too damn painful.

No, they are impersonating happy people.

It's that gigantic narcotic smile that really scares me.

Remember that the gospel promises us joy, not happiness.

They are different. That's revealed truth.

"Your mother was never happy as a mormon." He didn't know me all my life, but I didn't even admit it to myself UNTIL he said that. I was NOT happy in mormonism. None of us were in my family. No wonder most of us are out. I tried the hardest and my parents argued over whose fault it was I left. They weren't happy either.

It wasn't either of their faults.

Happiness not guaranteed. In Mormonism it only can statistically apply to very few. Many are called to fit in square holes but few are chosen by evolution to be truly happy about it.

They are no happier than anyone else and in some cases, I would say they are less happy...for example....

One of my sisters got pregnant at 17 years old and married the pending father (a guy in the next ward over in our area). My TBM parent were beyond mortified, yet they kept up the appearance of being happy. They treated my sister and her husband differently from the rest of the siblings that were married first, and offered little if any support throughout their marriage and years of having more children.

One of my best old friends from childhood has a step daughter that got pregnant in her teens and wasn't married. While they would have prefered her to have been married, they welcomed the new child and did all they could to support the young mother and her new baby.

Dogged obedience was never happiness.

Man is that he might have someone to obey. Isn't that how it goes? Wickedness never was happily doing what you are told? Policy upon policy, prophet upon prophet, like a golden shower, giving us each 6 months their wisdom, their wisdom!

Good question.

Are these people "protesting too much"?

A lot of pseudo-happy people are on Facebook-type sites, posting selfies of themselves, smiling and appearing happy, in full costumes and makeup. My con-man TBM nephew posted photo of himself and his wife in ski gear, in front of the lifts at Alta--"Enjoying The Snow." They both weigh 250 pounds, and can't walk more than 1/2 block, let alone ski. Last summer, they had another picture of them in front of "Our House In Cape Cod." They never owned or even rented a house there, but they told us, "We meant, that's our 'dream' house."

"Happiness" is like a pissing-contest, with Mormons. Narcissists want you to feel less happy than you are, in order to feel better about themselves. They compete with money,"blessings", prestigeous callings, bigger houses, bigger families, etc. Most of us ex-Mormons are sick of this "one-upping."

Mormons are always trying to sell their religion, and the facade of "happy forever families" must be maintained. I know of several Mormon families who been "called" to create Facebook pages for themselves, at the cult's request! Their pages suspiciously similar. I'm sure they were given instructions. Mission presidents are instructed to creat websites and Facebook pages for the mission, but also another personal Facebook site for their family.

It's hard to tell people's level of real joy, because it might totally be a front, or maybe just the behavior seems phony.

Whatever--don't let them make YOU feel less happy,in comparison.

Fake news, fake happiness. You can't have one without the other. This is because Satan is so good at faking it. He wants all to fake it. All arise.

I think that a certain type of human being enjoys mormonism.
Combining the two above thoughts means I'm such a human being, and I think the one key ingredient is optimism.

You know what creates optimism?

Yep, getting away with doing things you know are not supposed to happen and liking it. Yep, that's why I was a happy mormon!

Okay, maybe there are genuine saints, and maybe I've met a couple, but they're rare.

But most happy TBMs are that way because they don't have much in the way of a conscience. They repent a lot and they are okay being a 'smoothie' in the hereafter.

If at some point in your life you want to be "authentic" you use the evidence available, you quit mormonism and you find out where you fit. Turns out I fit in RfM, annoying though it must be...

Maybe you should go back to The Mormon church? I hear coffee tastes better being an active Mormon.

C'mon, mormonism sucks!

Oh, they could pay me enough to be a mormon, but then my only happiness would be involved with when and how to quit.

It does raise the question, if the church is paying you to be a mormon, do you have to pay tithing? If the answer is yes, I'll be demanding an 11% raise.

One meeeeelllion dollars!

I think I could be happy in any sacrament meeting. At least until someone in the bishopric opens their mouth and stupid comes out.

Someone years ago told this story here:

A good Mormon family one Sunday morning was in their driveway getting into the van to go to church. They were all in their Sunday best, carrying their lesson manuals and scriptures.

In the driveway next door, the neighbor family was also getting into their van. They were dresssed in beach clothes, carrying picnic baskets and balls and toys, laughing and joking.

Next door, the Mormon kid said to his dad, "But they're not REALLY happy, are they, Dad?"

The key to being a happy Mormon, if there is even such a thing, is to take little to none of it seriously. If being happy means to keep your sanity, this is a must.

The most devout TBMs I have ever known seem also to be among the most miserable, depressed and mentally ill people I have ever known, but are experts at maintaining the happy façade. Behind closed doors, however, the ugly truth comes out...

The most devout TBMs I have ever known love to use and abuse authority. They find satisfaction in mandates from heaven.

This is a plan for unhappiness unless you want to be abused.

Elder Berry Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The most devout TBMs I have ever known love to use
> and abuse authority. They find satisfaction in
> mandates from heaven.
>
> This is a plan for unhappiness unless you want to
> be abused.

Hence, the rampant mental illness among TBMs.

https://i.redd.it/o3wab7k059b41.jpg

Look happy to me. /s

Love it.

TBMs are odd in that they can be utterly miserable but are so terrified of giving off any hint of what they really think or feel that they will cry tears of "joy". We've all seen it at F&T. If I'd stayed for much longer, that is exactly how I would've become.

I didn't know what true happiness really meant or felt like for myself at that stage. I just knew that something was wrong, somewhere, a mental itch that wouldn't go away no matter how hard I fought it.

Sometimes I read TBM family members' fb posts and wonder if they aren't coded distress calls from their subconscious. That the real feelings are still coming through but the TBMs don't realize it. Like they've got the mental itch, but just smile through it.

Usually, they'll discuss some seemingly hilarious madcap life adventure that would be thought of by most people as the self-created, disastrous consequences of trying to do something idiotic without even stopping to make a plan. But with the TBM twist, it's not a spur-of-the-moment foolhardy failure that everyone somehow lived through, it's a glorious humblebrag example of how awesome the church and its members are. It's not a nightmare family vacation, it's a chance to grow more as a forever family. "But gee, who would've foreseen that the car would break down 150 miles from anything? It's been burning oil for ages while we drove it in town but never gave signs that it would break down in the middle of Death Valley. Still a great car, who'd have thought it could sleep 12? So glad the boys used to be Scouts and started a fire...we were humbled that Baby Jane shared half of her Graham cracker with her sisters. Sleeping hungry, cold and alone is such a valuable lesson, much better than Disneyland would have been...we are SO BLESSED. (Insert your rofl heart praying hands angel wings wacky smile OMG emojis).

So I've watched and have correlated some of the more common TBM phrases to the life events and I think this is what they're really trying to say.

I'm so lucky to be so blessed = I'm broke/my car is broke down
I'm so thankful for Mom = someone come get her before I end up in prison
Life is just such an incredible experience= I can't take this crap much longer
It's important to take a little time for yourself = I'm hiding in the closet watching porn/just got an oxy refill for "back pain"
My life is so full and engaging = please please make it stop
Parenthood is so fulfilling = there are legos and poop literally everywhere
I don't know what I'd do without my family = I got dumped by the person I was cheating with

Happy? Would they know that happy doesn't hurt, if they've always associated crisis and drama with "joy"? Can you feel happy when you're stretched so thin you could sleep for days? Or trapped by the choices you were socially coerced into making, and that you can't bear the emotional consequences of breaking free from?

I have a lot if adjectives for my TBM in-laws, but happy isn't one of them.