The ward gained no ground by trying to get my inactive dad to see the errors of his way by sending different ph leaders to read Ensign (church magazine) articles about the greatness of the Book of Mormon- remember Ezra T Benson?

These daily intrusions (rescue to get my dad to return to church) began badly on Monday, which royally pissed him off because that's his passion to watch NFL. I recall dad asking- Don't you have family home evening in your homes? And one admitted- Yes, Brother Goop. My dad then retorted- Then why are you here?

By Friday night, my dad was sick and tired of them coming over to read church garbage. My parents were fighting about these daily intrusions. He grabbed his unloaded shotgun when the bishopric pulled into our driveway. He didn't brandish the weapon, but told them not to get out and go on their way. I think they could see the weapon laying on a chair near the front door. Reading the words of ETB was not going to change his mind about a bishop who chased him out of the foyer during Sunday School. They left and my parents began a 3-day fight- a most unpleasant weekend.

Messy becomes the YM ward charity project

Why church leaders thought it was a good idea to "love bomb" the Goops is beyond me. My dad had already run off church leaders, now they wanted deacons, teachers and priests to do this doorbell ditching prank.

My life was pretty bad in 6th grade. I was getting my ass kicked by bullies (7th and 8th grade). I did my best to defend myself and I was suspended for fighting. The school policy required anyone fighting to be punished. Teacher supervision was poor, and I was suspended every time that I was physically attacked.

I had problems at home. My parents had many arguments and siblings who abusing drugs.

At church, I felt picked on by church leaders. I was the deacon quorum secretary, but I was told to sit there and only copy notes. The only time I spoke was to say the opening/closing prayer and read last week's minutes from the 3 ring binder.

On Monday, the young men delivered hard fruit. It was either apples or pears. They didn't knock at the door. They pelted the door with the fruit that was supposed to be left. We had no idea that we were being love bombed and found a split apple in the driveway several days later. Instead, we thought we were having our house vandalized.

On Tuesday, someone kept knocking and there was no one at the door. Even my normally bubbly mom was becoming annoyed at opening the door and seeing nobody/nothing. The gift was a xmas stocking of tangerines, but was left/dropped in the flower planter. It wasn't discovered until Wednesday night.

On Wednesday, the gift was eggs. They were thrown at our front window. My parents called the sheriff and had them investigate. They discovered broken eggshells. We thought it was resurfacing threats from unpaid drug debts. Previously we had experienced flat tires, broken car windows, break-in/burglaries and egging. It was during the sheriff visit that the gifts were discovered. We still had no idea that these pranks were showing love from the ward.

On Thursday, a plate of brownies were found with a note. My dog enjoyed them. We now realized it was the church.

It ended on Friday. My dad sat in his pickup truck near the driveway. No one attempted to go up the driveway.

With church "friends" like these, who needs enemies?

Jesus stalking is the way to salvation.

Shallow & Unwanted, I hope they've since abandoned those tactics.

Those are their go-to when they have nothing of substance - benefit to offer.

We weren't the holy people in the ward. My dad worked on the farm on Sundays, didn't like having callings, etc. My oldest brother was considered the one who was leading all the good boys astray. He ran away with one of his friends and the stake president went to pick them up, caught them in Ogden or Salt Lake coming off a bus.

My little sister was also considered one of the bad kids and she ran around with another girl whose family was like ours. We weren't special like everyone else, yet I was extremely devout, but you'd never know it.

So when my mom died, the new bishop stopped by the house. Well, my father was a farmer and my brothers helped him on the farm. We didn't live on the farm. My dad said, "He thinks I'm poor." That is how the guy treated him. No, he just left us all a good inheritance in the farm and the separate home. We just never put on a show for the people like most mormons do.

I love it in this ward that I've become the one the neighbors want to reactivate and they tell me if you go back you'll have some peace. I'm like HUH? I'm older than the couple and I find it ridiculous how they seem to think I never was a good little mormon. We get offers for blessings far too often. My ex would probably tell them off good, but they always ask me. They've backed off some since I turned them down several times recently.

The whole culture is messed up.

Are you sure it was the same people delivering them as pelting your home?

HMer Wrote:
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> Are you sure it was the same people delivering
> them as pelting your home?

They openly bragged about tossing fruit at the front door. It was so much fun- that's what they laughed about in front of me in deacon's quorum. I didn't understand it at all. Not one bit.

And 5 decades later, I still feel befuddled as to what they were trying to achieve.

If they wanted me to feel closer and part of the group (quorum) then why couldn't they befriend me and like me for who I was. Instead they resorted to pranks (doorbell ditching, throwing objects at my house, doors and windows as well as throwing rocks at my family dog- which was beyond cruel).

I think love bombing is a horrible gesture because it fails on all fronts. It's ingenuous, insincere, fake and poorly received by those on the receiving end.

I hear you, Messy.

My family really got "love" bombed.

Our daughters are pretty, and there was a lot of jealousy from the other girls in the ward. Some of the parents were hoping to have their sons marry our daughters, so maybe that was the cause of the vandalism done to us.

It started fairly mild with doorbell ditching. From there, it progressed to egging the front of the house, as well as the roof.
After that, someone got the brilliant idea of pooping on our front porch. Later, a fairly large boulder had been rolled up against the front door.

Our middle daughter is blonde, and she had a license plate frame that read: "Not all dumbs are blonde". It got stolen off of her car, and the girl who stole it, put it on her car! Hubby and I confronted the girl and her parents and told her to return it or else we'd call the cops. They didn't, so one of my daughter's guy friends went over in the middle of the night, and removed it and gave it back to our daughter.

At the time, I was seriously thinking about having us live off of the grid, but all of the pranksters and vandals have moved, so life is more pleasant now.

That's terrible.

I can't believe that they not only took the custom license plate holder but actually attached it to their vehicle.

he had passed away when I was 3 years old. My grandmother livd 3 blocks away and we took turns staying with her. (We fought over who got to stay as we got to watch the TV shows we wanted and we loved the peace there--we'd write down the explanation of shows we were watching and learned some sign language as we grew.)

Well, go around signing in Brigham City, Utah. I never thought much of it. You do get targeted. My grandmother had tomatoes thrown at her house and a lot of other things. She didn't know why they were doing it. They did it to us, too.

We never fit in in mormonism. We just didn't act holy enough I guess. My dad was not very mormon acting and then having a grandmother and mother who signed. My mom grew up as a target as she was their voice. She learned to sign before she learned to talk.

But we were targeted many times. I just found out about my brother getting bullied by a few kids in the neighborhood. He didn't dare tell my dad as you never were sure he wouldn't kill them. I knew he wouldn't, but we didn't know what would happen. They taunted my mother when she'd go talk to them. She said don't tell your dad! I wish they would have and I wish they would have told me. I babysat a bunch of them. The neighbors were afraid of my dad. All he would have to do is show up at the door.

I feel angry when I read how people behave. And these kids were probably the same ones passing/administrating sacrament, giving talks about love and charity and going around with the bishop.

People give evil a pass, especially if it's done by members.

The other night I recalled how Brother Slugger used to punch me near the shoulder before priesthood meeting began. I couldn't take it any more and I punched him in the gut. I related how sore (and bruised) my arms were after playing tackle football on Saturdays (No Friday Night Lights at my little HS). My parents knew better than to grab or touch me. Even the coaches took it easy on us on Mondays.

My mom continues to give Brother Slugger a pass. "Well he really didn't mean it. That was his way of being friendly. You really shouldn't have punched him back." My mom will never understand that he continuously crossed personal boundaries. Members are conditioned to allow personal intrusions.

who abused my child. I can't believe the parents who blame the kids for the bad behavior of a "leader."

My grandmother had a lot of things happen like kids would stand in front of her house and pretending they were signing. A lot of them teased her all the time. She was a great lady, my second mom. My parents did do things to get it to stop, but there was always someone else.

I never fit in and my sister said recently to me, "I tried so hard." I said to do what? She said to be accepted in that ward and in the mormon church. She has moved around a lot and she has been in many wards and none good. Her kids were tormented. Her son who could handle bullying the least was treated really bad. Her kids all quit going to church in high school and she didn't make them. Their dad wanted them to.

At least my sister finally left the church. I would assume her kids are shocked.

A lot of mormons are bullies. There is no way in hell a child of mine would have been treated like you were without me letting that man know that was unacceptable. These are the type of things that my whole family left the church because of. We didn't know the deep doctrine. I found that out here.

I had an old bitch lady confront me about walking my dogs in front of her house on the city sidewalk as she was sure they were peeing on her lawn. She laid in wait for me it was obvious and when she got done yelling I said, "Now I know why all the people in this neighborhood hate you." (I had always been nice to this old bitch) She kept yelling at me as I walked away from her. I can't remember what she said to get me to turn around and go after her. I said, "You really want to take me on?" She ran in the house. I found out from my daughter's MIL that this lady sends poison pen letters to all kinds of people in the ward. She and her husband were like "You did what?" They still laugh about it. The lady even chased me into the church parking lot a week or two later.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/05/2024 09:46PM by cl2.

Why would anyone think pelting your home with eggs would bring you back?

Pay Laid Wrote:
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> Why would anyone think pelting your home with eggs
> would bring you back?

I was active in the church, but my dad was not. This was supposed to be an act of love. It was just a big joke for the 13 year olds who came to my home unannounced to bring so called gifts of appreciation (My family was suffering great economic disparity- my mom couldn't pay a full tithe and my Xmas present included dark dress socks and tangerines). It was a bleak time in my life.

I never told my dad that the young men had admitted to throwing rocks at my family's dog. Dad loved his dog. He would have likely gone back to church to harm the kids in the parking lot. Probably would have gone to jail for battery.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/11/2024 06:10AM by messygoop.

Thank you so much for this Topic. I have struggled so much at the hands of Members cruelty. It helps me to see that it is more common than I realized. And maybe, it is more due to their social ineptness and lack of empathy; Than to myself. Or, anything I did or did not due. It doesn't help anyone and really causes a lot of harm to some. To be treated like Manure on the bottom of the Mormons shoes. I've been nothing but kind to them. But, it's changing me to the point that I really don't care anymore. I don't feel that kindness has worked for me.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/12/2024 05:24PM by cinnamontoast.

They usually just ignore you