I am watching Oprah again, remember I don't have cable. But this one is very interesting, Oprah is in the Polygamist Sect that was raided last year in Texas.
She talks to the kids and they have never heard of Mickey Mouse, or Humpty Dumpty, or Cinderella. They don't have any toys and when asked why they responded with "We don't play. We work."
Oprah talked with 3 women who had 9 children between them all from 1 man. Now we all know that that is very possible outside of a polygamist sect, but the catch here is that they all still live with the 1 man, together and in love, they say. The reason they can love each other is because they all love him.
She talked with the husband of the 3 women from above and asked him what is a good age for marriage. 18, he said. Any of his children could get married at 18 if they wanted. There was nothing about being in love, or dating, or doing things for themselves first. All the things that we like to do before we get married is of no concern to them.
Oprah asked a group of teenage girls "What do you do for fun?" Their response "School is pretty enjoyable." The dresses were explained with "We think the body is sacred from the neck to the ankles, so we cover them."
She asked the women about the hair and the poof in the front. And they said that it was the style.
I'm not saying that any of what these people do is wrong. But I am saying it is very very weird. One, I don't know how someone can base everything they do, from what they eat, to how they perform their daily tasks on a book that is a bunch of stories. And I know there are people not in this sect that do that every day too, and that I don't fully understand either. I personally think it's impressive to have that much faith in something because it says you should. I can't do it. I question it all more than anything else. Having such solid beliefs in a book because that is just what you do almost seems to take away your own personal choice. But then again, living a daily life that way is a choice. Two, and more importantly I think these kids are missing out on a huge part of being a child. No Mickey Mouse, no toys?! What kind of childhood is it when you aren't allowed to imagine, and play pretend, and learn new things from discovery and asking questions?
This one struck me, "What do you want the outside world to know about your life here?" And the answer, "That we are very happy. That we like our life here." Yet it was said with no emotion, no inflection on a certain word, and no change in the face or body saying that it's true. They said that they live a simple and disciplined life and work at improving their life through their faith. I think that is commendable, but I think there is something more dark and underlying in all of it. If it is just a simple life with nothing to hide, why do they rarely leave the compound?
I think the whole ordeal is very shady. Part of the reason I think that could be because I just don't know enough about it. I'm judging based on what I see, rather than getting to know more about it. But let me tell you, if I have to have my hair like that, I'm going to say no thanks. But also their answers are so black and white, and simple that it leaves more questions rather than answers. This way of life raises a lot of questions in my head. How do they have such a solid belief system? How do they seem to have no interest in the rest of the world? Why do they think it's OK to love more than one person at a time, when the human body and marriage is sacred?
I think I need to read a book on this. Maybe I could get some answers
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