My Awareness of Audience and Voice

I believe that traditions are absolutely a guiding influence. I also absolutely believe that they are limiting. I think about some of the family traditions when I was a young child (about 100 years ago) most of them based on the family religion - Catholicism. I didn't mind the formality of the Catholic Church. For me, it truly becomes a spiritual matter. I think that the tradition of Catholicism was a guiding influence to my spirituality although it was extremely limiting. Becoming a Christian was my own little rebellion, the interesting part was, that my dad responded well and didn't take it as a personal rejection of his faith. I absolutely laughed out loud as I read Garrison Keillor's, A Wobegon Holiday Dinner. The way that the writer made light of his family's faith, The Sanctified Brethren, and his Uncle Carl praying at the dinner table. I hope that we all can enjoy the faith of our families as he did. In reading, “Scripture said, "Pray without ceasing," and he almost succeeded." (116), I found myself thinking of the family member that would be voted "least likely to asked to pray over a Thanksgiving meal" and it made me laugh even harder. I have found that although I didn't "embrace" Catholicism, I do respect it and in my father's mind, rebelled against it.

I think that we should question everything, as not to be like sheep, led to the slaughter. As an adult, including as a student at Everett Community College, I find myself saying, "I'm not a sheep, I'm not a sheep!" I want to know why, I need to understand. For me things need to be logical. I think that we get caught up in doing things the same old way because it is just easier and we hate change. There are easier and better ways to do things these days, but it absolutely takes away from the beauty, pomp and circumstance that traditions provide.

I don't think that I can answer what should take precedence. I know that our identity is vital to a clear sense of who we are and what we want to be. I also believe that our culture and traditions shouldn't be lost to the value of identity. I am drawn to Sarita James' essay, Let Me Find My Own Husband, "I couldn't let my parents arrange my Indian marriage from Indiana. I would have to find my own suitable boy. Or perhaps even an unsuitable boy." I wouldn't want to go so far as to arrange my children's marriages, but I sure would like some input.

"Shun" is a very strong word, like rebellion. I am far less concerned about the shunning of traditions that I am the thought of shunning each other as people. We need to love on each other at all cost. We don't even have to like the rebellion, but we have got to love each other. We are all we have.

Our society is definitely becoming more accepting of transgressions and non- conforming behavior; much to societies detriment. We see how we were being conditioned to be desensitized to the sex, language and violence that we never expected to see on television.