It's time for what some would call a vacation!

[salex]

I think the only thing we really know about Jesse is that he loved playing the guitar and showed a serious talent for it, so Steve forced him to quit and take up an instrument he wasn't as good at and didn't enjoy. Steve says he did this to keep Jesse from being tempted into the sin of pride, to stop him from having fun with music, and to keep the guitar from becoming an idol. It's a standard cult indoctrination/brainwashing tactic for the leader to criticize and devalue followers' talents, which breaks down their followers' sense of self and confuses their self-worth. This destroyed sense of self encourages dependency on and submission to the leader. Steve brags about this at their Keeping Children's Hearts sessions as an example of good parenting. Poor Jesse.

[MamaJunebug]

Their writing is really painful. Psst...Sarah...if someone has to re-read a sentence (more than once in some cases) to grasp what you're saying, you're doing it wrong. Writing should flow.

A better way to write that sentence:

"The five youngest hike faster than the rest of us, so sometimes they will hang out at a viewpoint for a bit longer, waiting for the rest of us to catch up"

or...

"The five youngest, since they are faster, will sometimes hang out at a viewpoint and wait for the rest of us to catch back up"

Back because - although this is neither the most important nor the most fun thing I've done all day - this is fascinating.

It occurred in flash of insight that Sarah probably meant to say,

"The five youngest stay behind at a viewpoint, letting the Patriarch, the Matriach and me go on ahead until they feel like they are moved by God to restart up the trail, where we are overtaken by them as they are the five youngest and thus the speediest."

It also occurs that this is in no way a vacation. It is instead "several days of cleaning, cooking, praying, Bible-studying, blogging and wholesomely exercising in a locale that was reached after several hours' drive by us."

IOW, SOS, different place. So, obviously, not a vacation, though it would be called that by some.

Slightly off-topic: I just showed a friend a photo from the DryAsDust2.com blog for absolutely unrelated reasons. He asked who these people were, again, and I instantly said, "A family whose children and grandchildren are forbidden from any social activity with anybody who isn't a sibling." He gasped, "To what purpose??" I could only reply, "Cult." How especially weird the Maxwells look, when seen through the eyes of somebody new to the scene.

[Black Aliss]

All this talk of meaningless, adminispeak jargon reminds me of my favorite moment from the book "Bellwether," by Connie Willis:

1. Optimize potential

2.Facilitate empowerment

3. Implement visioning

4. Strategize priorities

5. Augment core structures

Our core competency in producing deliverables will synergize with our client focus through our optimized workflow process to produce exponential results for our shareholders.

Back on topic, I've known a number of engineers from that large aerospace company and they were all, to a man, controlling @$$holes. Even the ones who weren't at all religious.

[Eternalbluepearl]

That story about Steve making Jesse play an instrument he didn't like instead of the guitar is striking me right now as one of the saddest Maxwell stories. How are those adults still choosing to be under Steve's control? I've told my dad to eff off for far less.

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Steve you are an asshole. He squashed his own child's talent? Poor guy, any good parent would be proud of their kid for having something they are really good at.

Yep. Aside from potential pride issues, specifically he worried that Jesse might come to love the mechanics and action of actually playing the music rather than it being mainly a devotion to Jesus thing. The music is only a means to honor Jesus, it doesn't exist for itself, in their world.

...I mean the next thing you know he'll start playing "Row Row Row Your Boat" or maybe even some... JAZZ.

[Eternalbluepearl]

I don't know...they love their Camelbacks an awful lot and I don't think it's to glorify Jesus. I think if it's something Steve likes, then it's ok. If its something he doesn't care about, it's an idol. Fuck you Steve. You're mean to your kids.

[VodouDoll]

Yep. Aside from potential pride issues, specifically he worried that Jesse might come to love the mechanics and action of actually playing the music rather than it being mainly a devotion to Jesus thing. The music is only a means to honor Jesus, it doesn't exist for itself, in their world.

So he made Jesse quit the guitar, which he was good at and loved, because he didn't want Jesse to love playing the guitar more than he loved playing the guitar for Jesus? Jesse might have found himself liking the guitar too much, so he had to scrap it all together.

God. Steve Maxwell. He's evil. When you think about how he has completely ruined his children, and exploited Teri's depression to make her complicit in that as well? It's sick.

[snarkyjan]

So he made Jesse quit the guitar, which he was good at and loved, because he didn't want Jesse to love playing the guitar more than he loved playing the guitar for Jesus? Jesse might have found himself liking the guitar too much, so he had to scrap it all together.

God. Steve Maxwell. He's evil. When you think about how he has completely ruined his children, and exploited Teri's depression to make her complicit in that as well? It's sick.

This is one person I'd like to see shuffle off his mortal coil. Soon. And painfully.

[terranova]

What gets me about the guitar story is that Steve is biting off his nose to spite his face. A good guitarist in a music/singing troop would be bloody useful.

[Arete]

That story about Steve making Jesse play an instrument he didn't like instead of the guitar is striking me right now as one of the saddest Maxwell stories. How are those adults still choosing to be under Steve's control? I've told my dad to eff off for far less.

Jesse is one of the five kids who has been raised in the batshit crazy from birth, unlike Sarah and his two oldest brothers. Those reversal kids don't know how to fight back, or understand that disagreeing with your parent has nothing to do with God. :(

[bionicmlle]

Sarah just posted that Jesse is becoming very good at pointing out mountains.... :?

Ladies, ladies. Simmer down. Jesse is jUst working on being a proficient leader to the womenfolk during the time of trouble and persecution! Jesse is letting the ladies know how he would signal to a safe place to flee, where they must amass their stockpile of emergency supplies and wait on the second coming of [their Lord] Jesus Christ.

Silly Jingers......

[rosamundi]

That story about Steve making Jesse play an instrument he didn't like instead of the guitar is striking me right now as one of the saddest Maxwell stories. How are those adults still choosing to be under Steve's control? I've told my dad to eff off for far less.

I think this like from their burrito recipe is up there, as well:

We used to add hamburger, but Dad found that you couldn't taste any difference and this makes it much less expensive.

(from titus2.com/recipes/maxwell-burritos.html )

Dad's tastes are so all-important that it doesn't matter if the kids could taste any difference (and I'm pretty sure that you can, actually, tell the difference between a vegetarian burrito and one with meat in it), everybody has to eat what dad likes, and they have this meal every Sunday. No trying to ring the changes with something different, no, it's bean burritos cooked in bulk four times a year and then frozen, because trying different food might make an idol out of the butchery counter at Costco.

[nelliebelle1197]

I think the only thing we really know about Jesse is that he loved playing the guitar and showed a serious talent for it, so Steve forced him to quit and take up an instrument he wasn't as good at and didn't enjoy. Steve says he did this to keep Jesse from being tempted into the sin of pride, to stop him from having fun with music, and to keep the guitar from becoming an idol. It's a standard cult indoctrination/brainwashing tactic for the leader to criticize and devalue followers' talents, which breaks down their followers' sense of self and confuses their self-worth. This destroyed sense of self encourages dependency on and submission to the leader. Steve brags about this at their Keeping Children's Hearts sessions as an example of good parenting. Poor Jesse.

I never read this one or if I did it did not connect. Poor kid. So I guess Joseph was good at something besides singing so they made him sing?? That would explain it.

[nelliebelle1197]

I think this like from their burrito recipe is up there, as well:

(from titus2.com/recipes/maxwell-burritos.html )

Dad's tastes are so all-important that it doesn't matter if the kids could taste any difference (and I'm pretty sure that you can, actually, tell the difference between a vegetarian burrito and one with meat in it), everybody has to eat what dad likes, and they have this meal every Sunday. No trying to ring the changes with something different, no, it's bean burritos cooked in bulk four times a year and then frozen, because trying different food might make an idol out of the butchery counter at Costco.

That word choice from Sarah has always made me mad as hell. Sometimes when I feel we are being too hard on the Maxwells, I need to remember this one.

[nokidsmom]

Jesse is one of the five kids who has been raised in the batshit crazy from birth, unlike Sarah and his two oldest brothers. Those reversal kids don't know how to fight back, or understand that disagreeing with your parent has nothing to do with God. :(

This is where Steveovah really controls his family. He has trained them to believe that going against him as a parent = going against God. In this way, he is elevating himself to be on the same level and for someone who is so against making idols, he has done a mighty good job of making himself one. The second commandment for the Maxwells should really read "thou shalt not have any gods before me Steve". Which might explain his own obsession with his kids and wife making idols of Pepsi and guitar playing.

[dpndetfarm]

This is where Steveovah really controls his family. He has trained them to believe that going against him as a parent = going against God. In this way, he is elevating himself to be on the same level and for someone who is so against making idols, he has done a mighty good job of making himself one. The second commandment for the Maxwells should really read "thou shalt not have any gods before me Steve". Which might explain his own obsession with his kids and wife making idols of Pepsi and guitar playing.

I guess it is Adam and Eve Steve after all !!!11!!!!!11!!!!

[Eternalbluepearl]

Can you imagine coming into that family as an in-law? What the ever loving fuck? This must be one of the reasons very few of the kidults are married off. Who would understand this Maxwell existence?

[nokidsmom]

Can you imagine coming into that family as an in-law? What the ever loving fuck? This must be one of the reasons very few of the kidults are married off. Who would understand this Maxwell existence?

Right. Only two are married and Nathan married Melanie before Steveovah was as far down the rabbit hole as he is now. There's been two broken engagements, one of them a week before the wedding. I have no doubt that there have been potential suitors for the girls but I wouldn't be surprised if some of them gave up after approaching Steve and getting interrogation level questioning.

[johnhugh]

Right. Only two are married and Nathan married Melanie before Steveovah was as far down the rabbit hole as he is now. There's been two broken engagements, one of them a week before the wedding. I have no doubt that there have been potential suitors for the girls but I wouldn't be surprised if some of them gave up after approaching Steve and getting interrogation level questioning.

And we never know the full story about John Marie... Whether he is sniffing around one of the girls and Stevie is holding back, or his parents are pushing him towards the Maxwells and John Marie is 'doing a Davey' and is holding back as long as possible.

[nokidsmom]

And we never know the full story about John Marie... Whether he is sniffing around one of the girls and Stevie is holding back, or his parents are pushing him towards the Maxwells and John Marie is 'doing a Davey' and is holding back as long as possible.

"doing a Davey". :lol: Really like that one!

Oh yeah, forgot about John Marie. Another possibility is that the Maxwells life is extreme even by fundie standards and the more he gets to know the family the more scared he gets about getting mixed up in it permanently. I can totally see that as well.

[kpmom]

If John Marie is sniffing around the girls he's sure taking his own sweet time about it. It's been at least two years since we at FJ became aware of him, and his family was friends with the Maxwells before that.

He's got his own business. He tucks his starched shirts into his ironed jeans, even on picnics. What else does Steve need to know?

[nokidsmom]

If John Marie is sniffing around the girls he's sure taking his own sweet time about it. It's been at least two years since we at FJ became aware of him, and his family was friends with the Maxwells before that.

He's got his own business. He tucks his starched shirts into his ironed jeans, even on picnics. What else does Steve need to know?

Steve would probably require him to move near the compound; no way is he going to let his girls move away and get out of his orbit. Maybe moving would impact his business which then would impact his eliglibility? Bit of a catch-22 maybe?

[Brittany15]

If John Marie is sniffing around the girls he's sure taking his own sweet time about it. It's been at least two years since we at FJ became aware of him, and his family was friends with the Maxwells before that.

He's got his own business. He tucks his starched shirts into his ironed jeans, even on picnics. What else does Steve need to know?

Or perhaps he is just waiting on someone to turn 18?

[Mrs Ms]

No, none of that is important. What's important is that he has his children's hearts.

He has their hearts in the palm of his hand and he's slowly squeezing, squeezing, squeezing the life out of those hearts. By the time he's gone, nothing but a dessicated piece of gristle will be left. And that's the way he wants it. He doesn't want them to have independent, full lives after he's gone. He will want them in perpetual mourning and prayer for Daddy. They will barely function and continue to worship him after he's gone. Because he has their hearts, forever and ever amen.

:violin:

Sorry to go back so many pages, but two things in the post stand out for me.

First, as someone who has worked as a caregiver for people with very serious special needs the bolded makes my stomach roll. I cannot think of a bad enough insult for Steve :angry-fire:

and on a "lighter" note Joan of Snark, your post somehow reminded of the movie "From Dusk Til Dawn" and the scene where a vampire gets his heart ripped out of his chest and it doesn't affect him. He carries on functioning until the person holding his heart stabs it....

[gustava]

Or perhaps he is just waiting on someone to turn 18?

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