If you read my intro post you will see I am new, learning and deciding on if LDS is the right place for me. I've never felt 100% in sync (if that's the right term) with the domination I was raised in (Protestant).
I am a very anti-social person. I always have been, I prefer my own company most of the time and have very few friends. I do not drive and live in the country (well, what I consider the country since I'm surrounded by farm land, etc) so at the same time it is hard for me to meet people. The area I live in is mostly people in the mid 40s and above as well (other than the teenage and children).
One of the main reasons for being anti-social lately, at least the last couple of years is because of my trouble trusting people, this causes me not to want to meet anybody new/make new friends. Most of that revolves around former places of employment and people I thought were friends. I've had 2 jobs outside of the home and both ended badly, with my getting fired for something I did not do. The people saying I did these things (one was giving away a pack of cigarettes to somebody I used to be in school with, the person behind them in line was the managers husband, he didn't stick around long enough to watch me purchase them for the people, but told his wife I was stealing and I got fired the next day. His wife told the District Manager, who fired me. The people even came in (as well as the person I was working with the night before) to tell her what happened, and she told them all that it was too late, she'd already fired me), the second incident was along the same lines, but with beer (somebody asked me if they could have the 5$ discount (which is something that store was known for, someone gives the person working 5$ so they can pocket it and get what the want from the shop). I told the person no, I don't do that (and I didn't, I was the only one) she said OK. I didn't know she had actually stole beer until the day I got fired (which was weeks later as they were waiting for me to get my check and take it from me, the girl had purchased beer the night in question as well).
So, I basically got screwed by people I thought were friends of mine as I worked at both places for almost 2 years (per place). The first, they waited for the manager to go away on vacation. The second, they waited for my check to get there, so they knew 2 weeks before firing me that they were going too. Both places, they basically made me sign a paper saying what I "stole" or I'd get arrested, a cop was on hand at the second location. The second location wanted my whole entire check, for what I later found out (after going to court and talking to probation officer, as I'd never seen the police report, nor was I ever arrested/taken to get finger printed, etc) was for $20 and some change. I told the cop about everything going on and complained to the higher ups in the company (as well as customers, family, other employees, etc) and was told that I was just trying to get back at them for firing me (I wasn't. The manager at location 2 told me that I'd have to sleep in the store if I couldn't get the door to lock - with witnesses)...
So those both made my trust issues even more difficult and hard to get past. It's been over 3 years since the 2nd and about 10 years since the first and I still get emotional talking/thinking about them. So, I don't trust people and am very picky about who my friends are, most of the friends I have I've known since I was in high school at least, and they don't live close to me anymore (or never have). I am looking for advice on how too join a community so open as LDS and feel wanted within that community. It's one of the things that draws me towards LDS, the community aspect, but I can't seem to get past my past issues/feelings. Should I talk to somebody about it? I don't want to talk to a Bishop, as I don't feel that I deserve to be able to as I have not been baptized within the LDS religion.
