It is so silly, pathetic and selfish to think, "I'm all alone! There's nobody beside meeeee!" (yes- cue the donkey from Shrek) But I think that that is me. because I am weird. My priest's wife-ness only contributes to my weirdness; it wasn't the cause of my weirdness.
1.Did you know that I once took the night train alone from Vienna to Paris? I stupidly chose an empty compartment, and I was soon joined by three men. They weren't speaking a Latin, Slavic or Germanic language, so I settled on them being Turkish. great. It was not Before Sunrise. In fact, I told them, in English, to sit at the opposite end of the compartment instead of right next to me. I threw a Satsuma mandarin in that direction for emphasis.
2. My guardian angel (named Felicity) was working overtime while I lived in Europe. I also traveled alone from Vienna to Rome. I walked around for about six hours and then got on the next train north. I didn't make much money teaching English, but I did have a Eurail pass.
3. If you are in Krakow, Poland with just a few zloty, do you buy a piece of pizza or some awesome dark green leather mittens? The mittens, of course! And what, you ask, are zloty? Well- when I was in Krakow, they were going through the transition from old to new zloty (Polish currency). I made my money in Austrian schillings, but still though of money in terms of US dollars- I think you are truly an ex-pat when you no longer do currency translation....so anyways....I had 10 dollars which was 100 Austrian schillings which was 1000 new zloty which was 10000 old zloty....but the mittens were really 6500 new zloty and I got change in old zloty...confused yet? I was!
4. See how weird that was? I was going to give examples of how I don't fit in with anybody...and then I start doing a European adventures quick takes!...
5. I
love that we have only an 18 inch computer monitor to watch videos and
shows on-line. It lets me 'get away' with watching some videos that I
couldn't/wouldn't watch if we had a big screen television. If something
gets too violent (like the latest Die Hard- yuck), I can just turn my head a little! But for know, we are enjoying the second season of Downton Abbey. Lovely!
6. Do you know anybody who was a clergy kid (Protestant, Orthodox, Catholic, Jewish....anybody!) who didn't grow up to be awful/atheistic/bitter? I feel like our life is going swimmingly and then I get smacked in the face with someone's experience (on-line info) that, for now, does not match ours.
7. ...and it took a week to do six random quick takes...I think it is time to re-evaluate this blogging thing...and that's okay
I'm too late to link up- but go to Conversion Diary for better quick takes...
yes, I know some very pious priest kids who are now adults. Who wants to be normal is more my and my husband's motto. :) The other one is the saying of an earlier monastic that there will be days when everyone is evil and thinks you are evil for not being; I am paraphrasing.
ReplyDeletesometimes it is good not to be normal and fit into the culture ...
When alone, we still have the Saints and the Mother of God to run to.
I am good friends with the wife of a Wesleyan pastor. His 25 year old daughter studied theology at Oklahoma Wesleyan and she is now married to a Wesleyan pastor. They are very happy, faithful followers of Christ.
ReplyDeletemy husband jon is a 4th generation lutheran pastor which means he was a pastor's kid. :) i do know some others who stayed with the faith. there are some who fall away and become atheistic/agnostic/bitter like my sister-in-law but it depends on the person.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in seventh and 7th and 8th grade, my family attended a Lutheran Church where a father and son were pastor and assistant pastor together.
ReplyDeleteThanks for these examples! I also know some positive outcomes of our life...but sometimes the negative stories seem to be everywhere
ReplyDeleteI'm the oldest of three of a product of a Catholic deacon...we all practice our faith and are committed believers:) keep fighting the good fight!! :)
ReplyDeleteMy friend of longest standing is a Presbyterian minister's kid, and she's a practicing Christian. By that I mean that she really is a Christian and not bitter or anything. (Oh, and the reason I don't say "my oldest friend" is that we are both now old enough that we don't really want to be labeled as such. :-) )
ReplyDeleteYour #1 sounded really familiar. I took the overnight train alone on several occasions during my semester abroad. Once fell asleep alone in a compartment and woke up to a strange man-- I think he might have been Turkish, come to think of it-- grabbing my thigh. I yelled at him and he got up and left. I think he was drunk. I sued to know exactly what train that was on, but it's been too long and my memory is now hazy. The young me who went to Europe would have thought that a tragedy. I wanted to remember every detail of that time as if it were carved in stone.
ReplyDeleteI've met a lot of really lovely, religious rabbis' kids. Admittedly, I met many of them in rabbinical school, so they may be the far other side of the adjustment curve- but I've met a few of their siblings, and they mostly seem like pretty genuine, thoughtful people. Some are more religious than others, but they don't seem too bitter, nor atheists.
ReplyDelete